Hate it or love it, elliptical machines have slowly but surely warned their way into the hearts of fitness trainers. Just when it seemed like the only way to burn unwanted calories, lose weight, and tone those muscles was only through high-impact workouts, ellipticals came to prove them all wrong. It seemed as though you had to subject your joints and bones to rigorous exercises to get meaningful results.
Elliptical machines offered a low-impact, full-body workout without stress and strain on the joints. These cardio machines are a piece of sought-after fitness equipment at commercial gyms and home gyms. However, some of these machines can sometimes be cumbersome to move around and relocate.
While there’s no denying the amazing results it gives, how much does an elliptical weigh?
Contents
How Much Does An Elliptical Weigh?
Different Types Of Ellipticals And It’s Weight
It’s impossible to give a definite weight for a normal elliptical machine because they come in different weights and sizes. Manufacturers and brands create models with different features to meet the target trainer’s needs.
Since it’ll be counterproductive to list out the weights of all models and products, it’s best to categorize these elliptical machines’ weights across the lines of sizes and designs. These include Under Desk, Compact, standard, and commercial grade ellipticals.
Under-Desk Elliptical
In terms of shape and design structure, the smallest types of elliptical machines are under desk ellipticals. As the name signifies, they are designed to fit comfortably under a desk and are portable to move around.
How much does an under-desk elliptical machine weigh?
Different brands offer unique designs and weights and come in almost similar weights. However, under-desk elliptical machines are known to come with an average weight of about 26 pounds. These under-desk weights can be as low as 7.5 pounds and can go as high as 37 pounds.
These under-desk elliptical machines often have an average maximum user capacity of 188 pounds. This maximum weight limit ranges from as low as 150 pounds or slightly less to as high as 250 pounds. Most under-desk models have a maximum weight capacity of 180-250 pounds.
Compact Elliptical Machine
These are the smallest-sized full-body ellipticals. Compact machines have the basic features of any elliptical machine and are often designed with simple construction. However, they also come with less advanced features than other standard and commercial grade types.
How much does a compact elliptical machine weigh?
Compact elliptical machines have an average weight of 65 pounds. The machine’s sheer weight ranges from 50 pounds to 100 pounds. They are an ideal home-use apartment elliptical. Their design makes it easy to relocate and store. They also have a smaller footprint than commercial elliptical machines.
They come with an average maximum user capacity of 200. However, it’s common to see compact ellipticals with a recommended maximum weight limit of 200-300 pounds.
Standard Ellipticals
Before brands started offering smaller-sized ellipticals with the under desk and compact design, standard ellipticals were all that was offered for home gym use. They are often the elliptical machines people picture in their minds when thinking about an elliptical machine.
They have it all but in lower grades. They come with an interactive LCD, adjustable inclines and stride lengths, movable handlebars, oversized pedals, etc.
How much does a standard elliptical weigh?
The average weight of an elliptical machine is about 150 pounds. These standard ellipticals can come with weights of 100 pounds to as much as 200 pounds. They come with solid transport wheels to aid their relocation.
Standard ellipticals are designed to carry a higher weight capacity than compact ellipticals. They have an average weight capacity of 300 pounds.
The minimum weight capacity for these standard ellipticals starts from 250 pounds and can go as high as 350 pounds.
Commercial Ellipticals
These are large, heavy-duty ellipticals that are mostly used in a commercial gym. They are the largest and heaviest of all elliptical trainers. It features the best technological advancements in the elliptical world. It has larger screens and several other additional features.
How much does a commercial-grade elliptical weigh?
Commercial grade elliptical machines have an average weight of 220 pounds. This is because heavier ellipticals can weigh over 300 pounds.
In addition, the commercial-grade elliptical machine comes with floor stabilizers and functional front and rear transport wheels for easy relocation when needed.
These commercial-grade ellipticals can have maximum user weights exceeding 400 pounds. However, since they are used commercially, they’re designed to withstand varying individual weights.
What Factors Affect Elliptical Machine Weight?
Since ellipticals come in varying weights, they have to be designed differently. Yet, most come with the same general look, except the under desks. Three main factors contribute to the overall weight of any elliptical. These factors include its size, materials, and flywheel weight.
Elliptical Machine Size
The larger the size of an elliptical, the heavier it would be. This is why commercial-grade ellipticals seem to have a heavier weight than compact or under-desk ellipticals. Larger ellipticals would have more components included in their frame. For instance, when the console of an under-desk elliptical has a digital console screen of about 2 inches, a commercial-grade elliptical would have a console with an LCD screen of 7-10 inches.
The area the screen will be positioned will be different. A larger screen will ultimately increase the size of the elliptical. The weight of the console holding both screens will also be different, affecting the elliptical’s weight.
Materials Used
Different construction materials have different weight densities. Ellipticals are made from different construction materials, affecting the product weight. For example, an elliptical made from plastic would be lighter than an elliptical made from solid steel.
A combination of construction materials will also affect the weight. Ellipticals are not made from a single material. An elliptical with a steel frame would also have cushioned pedals and padded handlebars.
Portable ellipticals are made with lightweight construction materials to allow for ease of usage and relocation. Since they’re designed for portability, manufacturers will favor lightweight materials instead of heavy-duty construction materials.
The same applies when trying to make the new elliptical machine affordable. Materials used would have less weight and sometimes durability compared to the more expensive alternatives.
Flywheel Weight
The flywheel is the engine of ellipticals. They are designed to power the functions of the trainer. In addition, they offer resistance to the pedals and movable handlebars. Flywheels are rated by weight because they come in different weights.
Weight plays a major function in the efficiency and quietness of the flywheel operation. The heavier the flywheel, the smoother and silent it would operate. When heavier flywheels are used, this would significantly affect the total weight of the elliptical cross-trainer.
The smaller the size of the elliptical machine, the lighter the weight of the flywheel. This is why under desks and some compact ellipticals are featured with flywheels as low as 14 pounds to 20 pounds.
On the other hand, larger ellipticals like those in the commercial-grade category would come with flywheels weighing 32 pounds. A good example is the Nordictrack Commercial 14.9. The flywheel of the Nordictrack elliptical weighs 32 pounds.
FAQ
1. Can one person move an elliptical?
Yes, they can as long as it is a smaller-sized, lightweight elliptical exercise machine like an under desk or compact elliptical machine. For safety reasons, asking for assistance when moving larger ellipticals is best.
Although these commercial machines often come with solid transport wheels that aid movement, it’s safer to have extra support or hire professional movers when dealing with larger elliptical cardio equipment.
2. How do you move a heavy elliptical upstairs?
The best and safest way is to disassemble the elliptical exercise equipment. Although these large ellipticals come with transport wheels, they offer no help when used to pull or push the machine on a staircase.
If you choose not to disassemble the machine, get as much manpower as possible to lift the elliptical carefully on the stairs or call professional movers.
3. Can an elliptical fit in an SUV?
This depends on the size of the elliptical and the maximum cargo area of the SUV. Smaller-sized ellipticals like an under-desk could fit easily into an SUV. As the size of the elliptical increases, it may be difficult to fit.
Standard and commercial grade ellipticals would not fit into a standard SUV. However, it could fit if properly disassembled.
Conclusion
Elliptical machine manufacturers offer different shapes and sizes with different weights. It’s hard to give a definite elliptical weight without properly considering factors that can influence it. A major deciding factor would have to be the size of the elliptical in question.
In terms of size, ellipticals can be broadly grouped into four categories. Each category is designed to target trainers’ needs and workout areas. As the size of the elliptical machine increases, the weight also increases.
The constant materials used also determines how heavy or light the overall elliptical weight. Using lightweight materials like plastics for most of the elliptical trainer design would result in a lower-weight elliptical. The opposite occurs when heavier construction material like solid steel is used.
The weight of the flywheel can add to the elliptical weight of the elliptical machine as it is often graded and rated with its weight. Heavier flywheels may provide better workout efficiency for the elliptical machine, but they will also increase the weight of the elliptical.
