Tag Archives: Console

Layman’s Guide to METs

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I have been asked many times over the years about METS since they are displayed on most of today’s cardio machines, including our new Elegant and Touch consoles. Simply stated, METS is a good way to measure your exercise intensity and therefore the effectiveness of your exercise. MET stands for Metabolic Equivalent Task where one MET is equal to the rate you burn calories while you are sitting. As you begin to move or to exercise, you burn more calories and that increase can be measured or represented as an increase in METS.

I like to use a laymen’s translation for METS as a Metabolic Equivalent To Sitting, or how many times more calories a person is burning during an activity compared to if they were sitting around watching TV. So if your cardio machine states that you are working at five METS, you are burning calories 5 times faster than you would if you were watching television. Exercise at 10 METS and you will burn as many calories in a 20-minute cardio session as you would in over three hours and 20 minutes of watching TV.

While the number of calories you burn obviously goes up with an increase of METS, the actual number of calories a person burns still varies based on age, weight and fitness level and this is another subject which should be addressed separately. MET values will vary with combinations of change in speed and elevation on a treadmill or speed and resistance on a bike or elliptical. You can also use METS to determine if your workout on an exercise bike today is as efficient as it was yesterday on a treadmill or elliptical machine.

TIP: Since many people may not be able to maintain 10 METS or even five METS for extended periods of time try an interval based program like Sprint 8® that will take you to or near your individual tolerance and back down to something more comfortable and then back up and down again repeatedly. This type of fitness program has been shown over and over again to be extremely effective at increasing fitness levels.

Here is a chart showing the MET value of various common activities: METs chart

 

Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/METs

Turning Energy Saver™ Mode On and Off

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Our Classic, Elegant and Touch consoles include an environmentally friendly feature called Energy Saver™ mode. When the feature is activated, the console will go to sleep after 15 minutes of inactivity to save power. A small green LED will light on the display alerting you that the machine is in Energy Saver™ mode.

For technical reasons, the Energy Saver mode is set to OFF as a default when the machine leaves the factory. Here’s how to change the Energy Saver setting from OFF to ON.

Treadmill Classic console

  1. Start by plugging in and turning on the treadmill.
  2. Step on the side rails and insert the safety key.
  3. Simultaneously press and hold the INCLINE UP and SPEED DOWN arrow buttons for 3-5 seconds. The console will beep and begin to scroll SELECT ENG MODE. At this point you can release the buttons.
  4. For the Energy Saver mode (ESM), press the INCLINE UP arrow button to take you to ENG3.
  5. Press the ENTER button.
  6. Now press the INCLINE UP button, and the display will change between ON and OFF.
  7. Once it is displaying the desired output, press and hold the STOP button for 3-5 seconds to exit. The console will beep and begin to scroll SELECT ENG MODE. At this point you can release the button.
  8. Finally, press and hold the STOP button again to exit Engineering Mode. The console will beep and return to the main screen. At this point you can release the button.

Treadmill Elegant console

  1. Start by plugging in and turning on the treadmill.
  2. Step on the side rails and insert the safety key.
  3. Simultaneously press and hold the INCLINE UP and SPEED DOWN arrow buttons for 3-5 seconds. The console will beep and enter Engineering Mode. At this point you can release the buttons.
  4. Now press the top left ATM-style button to select Settings.
  5. Once in Settings, press the top right ATM-style button to select Continue.
  6. Using the two middle-left ATM-style buttons select ON or OFF.
  7. Once it is displaying the desired output, press the bottom left ATM-style button to select Finished.
  8. Finally, press the STOP button to return to the main screen.

Treadmill Touch console

  1. Start by plugging in and turning on the treadmill.
  2. Step on the side rails and insert the safety key.
  3. Simultaneously press and hold the INCLINE UP and SPEED DOWN arrow buttons for 3-5 seconds. The console will beep and enter Engineering Mode. At this point you can release the buttons.
  4. Using the touchscreen, press the selection for Settings on the left side of the screen.
  5. Once in Settings, press the word “Energy Saver,” then make your selection for ON or OFF with the buttons that appear in the top right side of the screen.
  6. Once the desired output is selected, press the HOME button on the top-right side of the screen to exit Engineering Mode.

Bike/Elliptical Classic console

  1. Start by plugging in the bike or elliptical.
  2. Simultaneously press and hold the RESISTANCE UP and RESISTANCE DOWN arrow buttons for 3-5 seconds. The console will beep and begin to scroll SELECT ENG MODE. At this point you can release the buttons.
  3. For Energy Saver mode (ESM) press the RESISTANCE UP arrow button to take you to ENG2.
  4. Press the ENTER button.
  5. Now press the RESISTANCE UP button, the display will change between ON and OFF.
  6. Once it is displaying the desired output, press and hold the STOP button for 3-5 seconds to exit. The console will beep and begin to scroll SELECT ENG MODE. At this point you can release the button.
  7. Finally, press and hold the STOP button again to exit Engineering Mode. The console will beep and return to the main screen. At this point you can release the button.

Bike/Elliptical Elegant console

  1. Start by plugging in the bike or elliptical.
  2. Simultaneously press and hold the RESISTANCE UP and RESISTANCE DOWN arrow buttons for 3-5 seconds. The console will beep and enter Engineering Mode. At this point you can release the buttons.
  3. Now press the top left ATM-style button to select Settings
  4. Once in Settings, press the top right ATM-style button to select Continue.
  5. Using the two middle-left ATM-style buttons select ON or OFF.
  6. Once it is displaying the desired output, press the bottom-left ATM-style button to select Finished.
  7. Finally, press the STOP button to return to the main screen.

Bike/Elliptical Touch console

  1. Start by plugging in the bike or elliptical.
  2. Simultaneously press and hold the RESISTANCE UP and RESISTANCE DOWN arrow buttons for 3-5 seconds. The console will beep and enter Engineering Mode. At this point you can release the buttons.
  3. Using the touchscreen, press the selection for Settings on the left side of the screen.
  4. Once in Settings, press the word “Energy Saver,” then make your selection for ON or OFF with the buttons that appear in the top-right side of the screen.
  5. Once the desired output is selected, press the HOME button in the top-right side of the screen to exit Engineering Mode.

Switching From Miles to Kilometers on the New Vision Fitness® Consoles

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Product personalization is a key consideration when choosing a product, including fitness equipment. One great feature all new Vision Fitness® consoles have is the ability to switch your speed readout from miles to kilometers. The Elegant and Touch consoles also allow you to see distance in either miles or kilometers at any time in your workout, no matter what your Region settings are. See below for your console, and see how you can start changing the speed feedback in your workout to fit your preferences!

Classic Console

  1. Start by turning the unit on.
  2. For a treadmill, step on the side rails and insert the safety key.
  3. For a treadmill press and hold at the same time, the INCLINE UP and SPEED DOWN arrow buttons for 3-5 seconds. On an elliptical or bike, you will need to press and hold the RESISTANCE UP and RESISTANCE DOWN arrow buttons for 3-5 seconds. The console will beep and begin to scroll SELECT ENG MODE. At this point you can release the buttons.
  4. For the switch function mode on a treadmill, press the INCLINE UP arrow button to take you to ENG3. For an elliptical or bike press the RESISTANCE UP arrow button to take you to ENG2.
  5. Press the ENTER button.
  6. Now press the START button, the display will change between Miles and KM (Kilometers).
  7. Once it is displaying the desired output, press and hold the STOP button for 3-5 seconds to exit. The console will beep and begin to scroll SELECT ENG MODE. At this point you can release the button.
  8. Finally, press and hold the STOP button again to exit Engineering Mode. The console will beep and return to the main screen. At this point you can release the button.

Elegant Console

  1. Start by turning the unit on.
  2. For a treadmill, step on the side rails and insert the safety key.
  3. For a treadmill, press and hold at the same time, the INCLINE UP and SPEED DOWN arrow buttons for 3-5 seconds. On an elliptical or bike, you will need to press and hold the RESISTANCE UP and RESISTANCE DOWN arrow buttons for 3-5 seconds. The console will beep and enter Engineering Mode.  At this point you can release the buttons.
  4. Now press the third ATM-style button on the left side of the screen to select Region.
  5. Once in Region, you can press the top right ATM-style button to select Continue 3 times to go to the page to switch from Miles or Kilometers.
  6. Using the middle left ATM-style keys, select STANDARD (Miles) or METRIC (Kilometers).
  7. Once it is displaying the desired output, press the bottom left ATM style button to select Finished.
  8. Finally, press the STOP button to return to the main screen.

Touch Console

  1. Start by turning the unit on.
  2. For a treadmill, step on the side rails and insert the safety key.
  3. For a treadmill, press and hold at the same time, the INCLINE UP and SPEED DOWN arrow buttons for 3-5 seconds. On an elliptical or bike, you will need to press and hold the RESISTANCE UP and RESISTANCE DOWN arrow buttons for 3-5 seconds. The console will beep and enter Engineering Mode. At this point you can release the buttons.
  4. Using the touchscreen, press the selection for Region on the left side of the screen.
  5. Once in Region, press the word UNITS, then make your selection for Metric (KM) or Standard (MI) with the buttons that appear in the top right side of the screen.
  6. Once the desired output is selected, press the HOME button in the top right side of the screen to exit Engineering Mode.

Having the ability to switch between miles and kilometers allows you to optimize your console’s functionality, train in metric or standard speed and will provide a better overall workout experience.

Using the Training Calendar on the Touch Console

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One of the cool training tools you’ll discover on the new Vision Fitness® Touch console is the training calendar. For many, starting a fitness routine is not the difficult part; most often it is maintaining your program that is the challenge.

Why? Typically, it has to do with personal motivation (or lack thereof) and not being able to see results. If you can’t see your initial progress, it can be discouraging and cause you to give up on your program. The Vision training calendar is an easy to use tool designed to keep you motivated and allow you to see your progress.

Using your own personal user profile, the Touch console will keep track of various pieces of information that are important to you and will motivate you to keep going. Here is a quick guide to getting started with your calendar. Please note that you will need to create your own USER PROFILE to fully engage in the benefits of the workout calendar.

  1. From the home screen, press USER INFO and select a user from the list on the left. (The calendar can track as many as five users.)
  2. Now press the CALENDAR BUTTON on the right.
  3. SAVED WORKOUTS will be displayed by an asterisk (*) on the day they were saved.
  4. Press the * to select that day. A WORKOUT SUMMARY window will appear to the right of the CALENDAR. Press START to begin using the selected SAVED WORKOUT again.
    • Use the arrow keys (< January >) at the top of the workout calendar to scroll between months.
    • You can view the workout summary for each day and each week by touching the number of the week shown on the left-hand side of the calendar (1, 2, 3, 4, 5).
    • If there is more than one workout, this will be indicated by arrow keys and the number of workouts (< 1 of 3 >) at the top of the workout summary. Use the arrow keys to scroll between the workouts.
    • The WORKOUT SUMMARY shows you the date and time of day of the workout, distance, time, pace and calories burned. To view a detailed summary, simply touch the WORKOUT SUMMARY box. On this screen you will find your workout averages (labeled WORKOUT DATA) and individual STAGE averages.

So where does the motivation come into play? Your motivation kicks in when you compare current results to past results and see improvement! You can choose to view your results on a day-to-day or week-to-week basis. Now THAT’S motivation!

It doesn’t matter if you’re a beginner or an avid fitness buff, the training calendar is designed to keep track of your personal information and show you the path to your own success.

Put Your iPhone or iPod to Good Use With New Vision Fitness Consoles

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Using an iPod or iPhone with your new Vision Fitness® console can open a whole variety of features you wouldn’t expect from a piece of fitness equipment!

The new Vision Touch console is able to transfer the audio and video from an iPod or iPhone through the iPod/iPhone cord to the console. This also allows you to control the device on the touch screen, and keep your eyes on the prize. A great undistracted workout means better results. Unable to stream video through your iPhone? Simply switch your iPhone to “Airplane” mode under Settings, and both the video and audio should stream just fine.

As you get into your workout, you may feel the urge to slow down, but your phone or iPod never has to! You can also charge your device using the USB port while you work out. Please note this is possible for devices that require 1 amp or less for charging. Simply plug your device into the USB port and watch your device charge as you work your way to a lean and mean fitness machine.

These are just a few new exciting features to check out that will help you use your Vision Fitness exercise equipment to its fullest potential!