Valen’s Vanity Square

Hubby has gone to JB for meeting, and will only be back after a few days.

Before we got married, hubby had also been traveling quite a bit. And when he was out of town, I knew that he missed me the most. But now, after being married for 8 years, I guess he misses his favorite exercise equipment - an elliptical cross trainer - more than he misses me. Haha!

Hubby will be stranded in meetings after meetings these few days, he won’t have time to exercise. He has been enjoying working out on the elliptical exercise machine a lot since we bought it. Even just 30 minutes on the machine makes him feel healthy. (He’s a guy who is very conscious about his waistline. :P) It would be a great torture for him not to be able to exercise.

That’s why I said he will miss the machine more than his wife! Let’s bet, the first thing he does when he comes back this Friday, would be to spend some precious time with his beloved elliptical machine. Haha!

Hubby’s new ‘toy’ is here - an elliptical cross trainer machine from AibiGym! (So sorry that I had always called it a stepping machine, haha! Well, this just says how much I’m into sports…)

This cross trainer machine was not the one we saw initially, this is double the price of what we had in mind earlier. The monthly installment is still cheaper than signing up for a gym membership though. And just like you have to read up an adipex review before you decide to try the diet pill, we asked many questions and tried ‘pedaling’ on the machine before we made the purchase decision.

The first cross trainer that we saw was cheaper, but it uses a belt-driven system, which may start to break down after 1 year of regular usage. The warranty period for this is only 1 year. The machine is lighter, so when a heavy person (such as hubby) pedals on it, the machine tends to be a bit ’shaky’. Moreover, the gliding is not smooth; it will be quite harmful for my left knee, which is prone to knee pain after climbing stairs (oh no, sign of aging!).

The elliptical cross trainer that we bought is built on a magnetic system. The gliding is smooth, it will last longer than the belt-driven system, and the supplier is giving 3 years warranty for the magnetic system. The size is slightly bigger than the previous one, but still much less bulky than those you see in the gym centres. It is stable and sturdy. There is also a small digital setting device to help monitor the calories burnt, the pulse rate, and the speed of pedaling.

The machine was delivered before lunch time. I haven’t started using it as I was rushing to meet a project deadline, and now I’m catching up with all my blogging activities. Oh well, since this is hubby’s toy, I will let him do the ‘official opening’ and be the first one to ride on it. Haha!

When we were in the shopping mall yesterday, we went into a couple of fitness equipment shops to check out the price for stepping machines. Hubby is still undecided - to sign up for a gym (which he may not have time to go and waste paying the monthly fees) or to have an exercise machine at home.

I made it clear that I don’t allow bulky treadmills in my house, but I can accept a stepping machine, which takes up much lesser space than the former. And I can use it too! I don’t like doing treadmills coz I tend to slip or lose balance on it, haha! Stepping machine is suitable for me, because it’s gentle on the knees. It would be quite enjoyable to watch TV and exercise at the same time, haha! Furthermore, I heard from hubby that there may be a trip to Mount Kinabalu in the first quarter of 2010! So it’s time to start some physical training, including strengthening up the muscles of my legs!

We did see one stepping machine that looks sturdy and has a reasonable price tag, but we didn’t buy it yet. At least we know how much it cost and if hubby gets his bonus next month, he knows how much to allocate for the purchase.

(Another reason that hubby wants to have an exercise machine at home is so that I can use it too, coz he said I have already ‘expanded’ in my waist and butt, and wants me to lose weight! Grrrrr!)