Are you fascinated about my Elliptical Machine Stories?

Good. It continues.

So after my research which included going to Consumer Reports online and finding out what they suggest and then googling those models for real people reviews, I chose a Nordic Track and then found it on sale at Sears. So Saturday was the day. I had it in my head. Go to Sears, purchase elliptical.

Got to Sears during what ended up being a crazy afternoon out with Jody and got on the machine and was indifferent leaning towards, 'the console on this this looks cheap enough to make me change my mind'. However, being that I have undiagnosed ADD/OCD/control and ridiculousness issues (you know, from time to time) I thought, this is what you researched, this is the one. Buy it! Buy it!

So I did. And of course with everything else like the extended warranty (which my parents always hate, sorry mom!) the delivery, the set-up (I'd be damned if my screwing mistakes were going to make the warranty ineffective!) I paid another $400 for it. I wasn't upset or surprised but I still left indifferent about the purchase. This is annoying considering how much I've been thinking about it and my new svelte figure that is a few months down the road.

So after more thought during the day and overnight (you know in my sleep and all), I decided to look at Sports Authority. Savory Man asked me if I had tried the machine at Sears. Well, I DID try it, just not plugged in. Hmm. Ok, I see some issues now that we are bringing this up. Well, anyhow, the sales guy at Sports Authority was masterfully knowledgable about ellipticals and says he works all the time, has worked there forever, and puts all the machines together himself. For your knowledge, Reebok, Nordic Track, and Health Rider are all the same brand. In fact, after a confirmation trip back to Sears I realized that yes, they were basically the same machines I was looking at. HealthRider is the brand that is made for Sports Authority. Here's the one I chose. I realize this is probably a fascinating story for you to be reading.

But a little more on Customer Service. There was basically none at Sears. I was just another sale. Not that I asked (whoops) but no one plugged the thing in for me, made comparisons to other machines, told me the ins and outs of ellipticals and their opinions. I almost bought a smaller machine at Sports Authority which was less expensive. The guy there was awesome...he told me about the difference in the wheel being in front versus being in back, how this littler machine had no option to do hills, about resistance, and space, and stability. The warranty was way better too. It was the same price, but for another year and covers EVERYTHING soup to nuts such that the machine in 4 years, should anything break for any reason, the machine should still be like new in 4 years. Not a bad deal.

So how excited are you after reading about this to hear about the trials and tribulations of me making myself use this machine after all of this. This blog is going to be fascinating in the next 4 months!