Do You Want a Form Like a Pro?
Written: Dec 13 '04
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Lots of features, comfortable, appears well made.
Cons: Short handles and warranty.
The Bottom Line: I really like this treadmill. I have no hesitations recommending it or giving it 5 stars.
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| jo.com's Full Review: ProForm CS17e Treadmill |
My friend owns the Proform CS17e. Unfortunately for her I do not train her and she rarely uses this nice machine. It gets its use from me! I love it and spend my time at her house on it.
About the ProForm CS17e:
This is a treadmill. A treadmill is a standard cardio vascular machine that I have found becoming more and more sophisticated as other machines like ellipticals come on the market. Some of these newer machines people find less boring. In my experience companies who make treadmills are scrambling to catch up. I think they have done a decent job with the CS17e.
There are a couple of features about treadmills I notice right away. I look at the size of the belt and deck. I do this for a reason. If a belt is too short or narrow it makes walking on it never mind running uncomfortable. If anyone has ever had the unpleasant experience of walking at a fast clip and hitting the sides of the belt or worse the front of the belt you know that it throws off your balance and if you are not careful or new to the treadmill can get hurt. The ProForm CS has a 20 inch x 55 inch belt. This is a really good size. It will accommodate most runners. In fact the general rule of thumb if you are making comparisons is that a belt should be at least 17 inches wide and 48 inches long. If you see one shorter I would avoid it.
I also want to be comfortable on the deck. My feet hurt me. I have Sjogren ’s Syndrome so I have to make sure that not only do I have the best sneakers but the most comfortable walking surface. I like the ProForm CS. I find that my feet do not hurt me as much as they have on other machines. There seems to be enough shock absorption and cushioning on the deck so I can spend an hour on it without any problems.
I also notice the general design of the machine. Where are the handles, what are they like, is there a magazine rack and a place for my bottle? On the ProForm CS17e there are two sets of handles. You will find traditional handles on the sides of the machines however they are shorter than you will find on other machines. This is not a bad thing but I know some people like the security of a large side rail. This does not have a side rail.
It also has a handle in front of the console. I do not find this in a place that I would necessarily expect you to be holding onto. I know a lot of people especially just starting out hold on to a handle that is often in front of them on a treadmill. This one is higher up and has a couple of features. One I will note now and that is the heart rate sensors. Even as recently as a few years ago machines did not necessarily have built in heart rate sensors. I rarely find one now that does not and that is excellent. It is really important to know your heart rate; to now exceed your maximum target heart rate (220 less your age) or to work comfortably even at half your maximum target heart rate. So now there is no need to buy a heart rate monitor. The ProForm CS17e does it for you. Although console numbers are notoriously inaccurate in terms of calories burned, for example, I have found heart rate sensors to be accurate. I know this because I double check before I review them or while I am using them even if I am not reviewing them by doing a pulse check.
There is a huge space on the console; perhaps the largest I have seen where you can stash everything you own (well almost everything). My water bottle fits in nicely and I can read a magazine comfortably.
Features of the console:
Like the Star Trac the ProForm CS has a built in fan. It has one rather than two. The fan has two positions you can put it in, high and low. The fan is a CoolAire Fan and will blow air at 4-6 miles per hour. I have noted that I do not like air blowing on me. If you do, you will love this feature. If you do not you do not have to use it!
The console has a 4-Window/7x10 Matrix Console. What the Matrix means is that it shows you your workout essentially in a graph form. The graph is 7 inches by 10 inches and easy to read because it lights up. I never found these graphs helpful but they are fairly standard. In fact I know a lot of people who cover the console so they will not be looking at their workout or how much time they have left. The benefit of the graph is if you are interval training (changing levels and intensity fairly regularly), you can then monitor how long you have run at various intensity levels by watching the red lines change.
The four windows show my time, speed, distance, calories used, pace, laps, incline level, segment time, fat calories, and pulse. This is what I consider a feature rich console. You really cannot ask for much more from a machine.
Something I have not seen on other machines is called the QuickSpeed Control. For example I was on the treadmill the other day. When I increased the intensity I had to click on each level. So I would click the up arrow and it moved in increments of a tenth. It also beeps. Granted most people are not listening to my beeping but I have always found this annoying. With the QuickSpeed this is eliminated. I can increase my speed or decrease it immediately. It does not have to basically stop at each interval.
The way this works is really interesting. On the large hand rail where the heart rate sensors are buttons which light up when pressed. If I am walking at 3 miles an hour and want to go to 4 rather than pressing the up arrow, which is what is usually done, I just press 4 and it immediately jumps to 4. It is a really neat feature. There are QuickIncline buttons that do the same thing. The machine will adjust the incline from 0-10% at the touch of a button.
The programs:
You can choose the quick start button and not choose a program. If you want a program there are ten workout programs. They are laid out nicely on the console. One is a heart rate program. There are also two pre set training distance programs. What this means is that, for example, I can choose the one quarter mile racetrack program and watch while I walk with the track displaying on the console. There are 2 programs that I can program on my own. When I preset a program I want, for example if I preset an interval training, the machine will automatically control the resistance. This is not uncommon on treadmills. Many work this way but it is just another nice feature on this machine.
Additional information:
You can store your workouts; there is a 90 day warranty which is not great so be aware of that. My friend has had not problems with her machine at all and has had it for about 5 weeks but I think 90 days is chintzy. It folds and rolls. There is a 2.75 horsepower motor. There is a 250 pound weight limit on this machine. It measures 73 inches in length x 58 inches high x 38 inches wide.
My final thoughts:
The ProForm CS17e is an excellent treadmill. It sells for $1100 but you can find it online for less. That is a lot of money for a treadmill but you are getting one that has a lot of features and is really comfortable on my feet.
I am giving this 5 stars in spite of the couple of cons I listed.
Please feel free to leave me a comment, question or e-mail me privately.
I am hosting a Get Active in 2005 write off. Please read my profile page for more information.
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Recommended:
Yes
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Member: Jo
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