Tiny stair-climber steps up your workout
Posted: Wednesday, July 22, 2009 8:21 PM
by Diane Mapes, contributing writer
What it is: Stamina InStride Electronic Stepper, $69.99.
What it claims to do: According to the manufacturer, the InStride Electronic Stepper is a lightweight exercise machine that offers a great cardiovascular workout for people who are limited on space. At just 20 pounds, the Stepper can be used anywhere – while watching TV, while on the phone, while at work – and it can even be tucked “into a workout bag to take along.” The machine’s resistance helps work your calves, thighs and buttocks as well as your core, while the aerobic aspect of the stepper “helps you burn calories and fat.”
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| Stamina Products, Inc. |
| Stamina InStride Electronic Stepper |
Our experience: I’ve always had a hard time working out at the gym without some kind of mental stimulation. IPods just don’t cut it for me; I need conversation, a good book or a TV to keep me from thinking about how boring it is walking, striding or bike riding to nowhere. Unfortunately, my new gym is one of those places where everybody’s plugged in and the closed-captioned TVs are all tuned to sports channels. And yes, I’ll say it: I’m too vain to wear my reading glasses (which have a tendency to fog up once I get going anyway). As a result, I’ve been hitting the gym less and less, opting for 3- or 4-mile walks a few times a week instead. But is that enough? Not according to a study in the Archives of Internal Medicine that says women trying to lose weight need to exercise 55 minutes a day, five days a week.
So I decided to try bringing the gym home and set up an electronic stair-stepper in the middle of my living room, where it would be impossible to avoid (but easily tucked into a closet should company happen by). Assembly was a snap – or rather a couple of snaps: I simply had to insert a metal wheel into the base, thread the metal cable around it, then pop the electronic meter (which gives you a read-out of your time, calories and strides per minute) into place on top. Being mechanically maladroit, I worked up a sweat just putting the thing together, but I managed to get it up and running in about 10 minutes. Sneakers on – yes, you need to wear shoes – and I was ready to roll.
Unlike the stair-steppers at the gym, this one had no handrails, which gave me pause at first. It’s not that I’m unbalanced, but I have been known to fall over while tying a shoe. To keep from freaking out about losing my balance, I put a chair next to the contraption and soon I was stepping away. Or rather, I was clomping away – it took a few minutes to figure out how to keep the pedals from knocking into the floor. Once I leaned forward and stepped up my pace, though, I was pumping like a piston. Having injured myself by overzealousness in the past, I started off slowly, doing five minutes a couple of times a day. Soon, though, I was able to bump that up to 10, then 15, then 20 or so, easily folding these quick bursts of cardio into my normally sedentary day (I work at home and often spend 12 hours a day on the computer). Since I could watch TV or chat on the phone while I was exercising (I wouldn’t advise business calls; the heavy breathing can be disconcerting), my workouts went by quickly with none of the mind-numbing boredom I used to feel at the gym. And being hands-free meant I could work my arms at the same, either with bicep curls, tricep extensions, or, if I was feeling particularly upbeat, cheers. One other fun side note: since I was exercising alone, there was no need to make myself presentable or put on special gym clothes. I used my stepper wearing in sweatpants as well as a sarong and sneakers (not a look I’d risk outside the confines of my living room).
What the experts say: According to Dr. Sarah M. Speck, director of the Center for CardioVascular Wellness at Swedish Medical Center in Seattle, this kind of exercise equipment offers a two-fold benefit. “If you move the muscles between your waist and your knees for 20-30 minutes a day, you have very beneficial effects on your metabolism and your cardiovascular health in addition looking better in your jeans,” she says. Blood pressure and cholesterol go down, blood sugar is improved and you might just lose a few pounds, since “these are big muscles and they use up a lot of calories.” But the stair-stepper may not be for everyone, and not just those people who are over 250 pounds (the weight limit set by the manufacturer). “Older individuals or anyone with a balance issue should make sure this is something that their doctor approves,” says Speck. People with knee problems also will want to clear it with their doctor before hopping aboard.
Starting slow is the way to go, says Speck, and yes, a chair next to the contraption is “not a bad idea since you don’t have any handrails.” Once you’re up and running, though, she says you can either do short spurts (15 to 30 minutes) on a daily basis for good cardiovascular health or long stretches (45 minutes or so) every other day to tone. Whatever your goal (mine is a bit of both), Speck says the stair-stepper can “absolutely” help improve cardiovascular health and aid in weight loss, primarily because of its convenience. “You can do it front of the television; you can do it while you’re waiting for dinner to cook,” she says. “While you’ll get the most benefit doing that 30 minutes all at once, anything is better than sitting on your duff.”
Bottom line: I used the InStride Electronic Stepper for about four weeks and while I haven’t noticed any changes in how my jeans fit, I can say that having this handy contraption in the house has definitely been a boon. It’s convenient, easy to use and for the most part, fairly quiet (an odd squeak has developed in the last few days and this time, it’s not me). The time, calorie and strides-per-minute read-outs are a bit confusing since they rotate through the small screen, but it’s easy enough to figure out how many minutes you’re spending on the thing. As far as I can tell, 10 minutes burns about 130 calories, something that comes to mind at night when I start thinking about grabbing that after-dinner snack (I’ve found positioning the stepper between me and the kitchen helps overcome these moments, too). Coupled with my brisk evening and weekend walks, this device seems to have plugged the big gaping hole in my fitness routine. And it’s saved me money. I just called and cancelled that gym membership I wasn’t using.
