Gazelle Edge: My Adventures in Leaps and Bounds Fitness

Tony Little'sGazelle Edge may not go together as gracefully as the name implies and I promise no matter how coordinated you are you won't look as graceful as the people on the infomercial. Regardless, this stripped down version of the Gazelle Glider is for the person who wants a low impact cardio workout they can do in small bursts, at home, in a confined space, without a huge outlay of cash.

I happened on the Gazelle Edge in Kohls, where it was regularly $149.00 but was on sale for $89.99. I got an additional 20% off with a coupon. For just $72.00 and ten minutes of debating if I would actually do it I garnered my first workout by dragging it through the store and stuffing it into my car.

Strategically setting it up in the living room in front of the picture window where I, and everyone else, has to look at it seems to be working. I've been using it four times a week for 15 to 30 minutes at a time. According to the display I am burning approximately 600 calories every fifteen minutes in just over a mile. I'm not sure what it's a mile of but a mile is a measurement I can relate to. Product placement is key, if the kids annoy me I can always hop on it in my "pajamas" when the school bus is picking up.

Eight weeks of steady exercise and curbing my extra eating has cost me 10 lbs. Please note I have had at least one of the following items every day: cake, cookies, ice-cream, and chocolate. I said curbing not quiting. I wasn't trying to lose weight, I was trying to build up stamina and get some much needed cardio so this is a bonus. At this rate I could reach that delusional ideal weight the doctor is always looking up on that for-everyone-who-isn't-of-Portuguese-decent chart in only 32 weeks.

Here are a few tips. You will want to be cool and smooth and extended like the girls in the infomercials but don't get carried away. As you try to sweep into an in flight split you will look wild, be out of control and most likely stretch beyond what you are ready for. You will want to go fast because that's what they do in the commercial and those numbers on the digital display are so much fun to watch. If you go fast you will tire quickly and possibly cramp. Holding a firm core will get your best balance and staying within your regular stride will give you the most fluid movement. Once you find your stance and rhythm you will be able to lean forward or backward and sink into a bent knee which will effectively work out all of your muscle groups. Change the height of your grip on the front bars for comfort and intensity.

The workout is totally customizable by you, for you, and to you because you are in control of your position and extension. Time, distance, and calories are monitored so you can easily see how changing your stance and stride take effect. In short it's a great workout that will have you feeling better by the day even if you're not losing a pants size a week.