Not sure if this is the right forum, but I have a question about workout equipment at home.

Here is some food-for-thought, oops not a phrase to use here, I mean here is some feedback, wrong again, here is my suggestion: the gym I get to use for being a hospital volunteer has many equipment options. If I were to choose one user-friendly piece of equipment for home, it would be the NuStep.

First - my suggestion is to stop walking in socks for exercise. Put on some shoes. All of my doctors tell me not to walk around in the house without support (one said - even to the bathroom at night). I have pretty much everything at home and I use my recumbent bike and elliptical the most. However, I would only buy a used item from a reseller who will warranty the item for a period of time. I like some of the one's that sell stuff from health clubs that get refurbished. You will get what you pay for, so take your time. Garage sale stuff is pretty risky. I did it once and well, I bought someone's trash for the most part - what a waste. Thought I was saving $500, but I was throwing away $500. Personally I'd go bike - it's more useful. You can put it in front of your tv and pretty much work it all the time. Elliptical is great, but you aren't going to use it like that. I did get some nice used stuff at Second Wind (not sure if they are still around) and Play it Again Sports (not sure how widespread they are- they buy stuff from people and resell it). Good luck

Ive always heard if you're not going to get a gym quality piece of equipments- save yourself the $$. Cheap may will not yield a good return on investment IMO.

Well I took your advice on the wearing shoes and it feels a little awkward but I am going to stick it out. My problem is I was raised to take your shoes off at the door and breaking that habit is tricky, lol. I do have interest in an elliptical but for some reason in my head I feel like walking will work your muscles more and the elliptical is more of a gliding motion. I am sure they are both helpful I just need to get over my weird quirks.

Thanks again for the reply.

If you live close to a Planet fitness you could go in and try the equipment prior to buying. PF is a pretty stress free environment when it comes to Gyms/fitness and would give you a chance to try before you buy.

Personally I love the eliptical - I can do a light workout or increase the resistance and work up a real sweat in short order. DH hates it and will go for the treadmill everytime. When I was still MO and having knee issues, doctor said these were the list of types of exercise in order of "friendliness" to the knees: swimming, biking, eliptical, walking.

I echo the other posters note about wearing good fitting shoes - very important. In the summer when I wear mostly sandles (except for when working out), my feet often hurt and they don't in the winter when I wear sturdier shoes.

Just throwing this out there- but early out I relied a lot on gentle yoga which was great for my joints and mobility. I used youtube and it was free to subscribe to channels and do whatever inspired me to do- and it helped me mentally with the weight loss perspective issue/food/etc. Tai chi might also be an option- super good on joints.

Heard recumbent bikes are also good.

Just to echo what others said I never go without shoes. I've had plantar fasciitis and was told by my podiatrist to never go without shoes even indoors. I also buy good shoes with lots of support. I have a treadmill and try to only use it when I can't go outside. I really like a good elliptical and don't like the bike much- but it can be good exercise if done to a fast enough pace.

It sounds like you are comfortable with a treadmill and if that's what gets you up and walking then by all means get one.

I would caution against cheap. If you can find a good deal from a reseller that would be where I would look first. I would suggest googling treadmills for some reviews and then you will know what brands to look for.

I would also suggest that you try some resistant bands to start building some muscle. Very inexpensive, they usually come with instructions or a DVD. When I can't go to the gym I use them and they're great.

I love my elliptical and have one at home but you do need to work up to it. I, like many others, gave up after 5 minutes and had to work really hard to build up my time on it. I can do 45 minutes to an hour now but it's taken a while to get to this point.

Baby steps!

Elliptical, Bike, or Treadmill - if you use them, they are all great. I prefer the Treadmill myself, but we have all three at home, plus a Bowflex weight machine. The secret is to use them. Also, if you plan to exercise regularly and for a long time, don't go cheap. You get what you pay for, and in my opinion, the cheap equipment is not made for continuous long term use. The manufacturers must figure people usually buy the stuff on a whim and it doesn't need to last long. They just don't stand up to a lot of use. Go second hand refurbished if you need to save the money, but look for quality. Just my opinion, based on a lot of experience!