Yowza Fitness Sanibel Elliptical Trainer Review

When I went out to the Yowza Fitness headquarters, the feature that really stood out was the Cardio Core arm motion.  It is found on two of their elliptical trainers, the Yowza Sanibel and the Yowza Captiva.  The difference between the two is the elliptical motion.  The Yowza Captiva has a variable stride that goes from 18" to 32".  While the Yowza Sanibel has a standard elliptical stride. 

Cardio Core Arm Motion

The Cardio Core arm motion is a breakthrough design that targets and tones upper body muscles.  Of course, that is what all elliptical trainers are suppose to do.  The reality is people tend to go through the motions when using the upper body handlebars.  The majority of the resistance is applied to the legs. Most people apply little or no pressure to the handlebars.

The Yowza Sanibel takes a different approach to toning the upper body.  Rather than two handlebars that move back and forth, there is one t-bar that moves left to right with the elliptical motion.  Your upper body slightly twists with the stride, and in the process you target you abs and obliques.   It is like doing stomach crunches or holding a weight and moving the upper body left  to right.

The abs are an area most of us would like to improve, and to do so you have to both burn calories and apply resistance to that area.  Your typical elliptical trainer does not concentrate meaningful resistance to the abs, in fact it does little to tone the upper body.

When working out on the Yowza Sanibel, I notice the tension in my abs.  In addition,  my cardio shot up in a short period of time.  In fact, I chose to switch back and forth between holding the t-bar and the stationary handlebars.  It gave me a chance to catch my breath, which means using the Cardio Core arm motion will give you a serious cardio workout. 

Other Features - Yowza Fitness Sanibel Elliptical Trainer

21" Elliptical Stride — Gone are the days when elliptical trainers had short choppy elliptical strides.   The trend is the longer the better, and at 21" the Sanibel has one of the longer strides.  The motion tends to be much more elliptical than circular.  Consequently, there is less bouncing. 

Rear Drive — There is some controversy on which is better, a  front or rear drive design.  However, the one advantage of the rear drive over the front is the absence of rollers and rails.  They tend to wear, require regular lubrication and can often be noisy.

Sound System — You can plug in your MP3 player and avoid the hassle of ear phones. The sound is decent for fitness equipment.  There is also a three speed fan that points towards your core.

Warranty — The Yowza Sanibel has an above average warranty, which includes lifetime on the braking system, 5-year parts and 2-year labor.

Our Review — Yowza Fitness Sanibel Elliptical Trainer

The Cardio Core arm motion may be the next evolution in crosstraining and it is that feature that distinguishes the Yowza Sanibel from the pack.  Even without it, the Sanibel would be a quality crosstrainer.

Yowza Fitness is a fairly new company, but the manufacturer has been in the fitness equipment business for over 20 years.  The machines are built in Taiwan, which has a better reputation for quality control in comparison to China.  So far, the feedback is that the equipment is holding well, and service issues have been minor.

I suspect that the combination of innovation and quality products will result in Yowza being a significant player in the fitness equipment industry.

Go to YowzaFitness.com to learn more!