Teeter FreeStep LT1 Review: Is This Recumbent Cross Trainer Worth It?

Is FreeStep LT1 Worth It?

The recumbent trainer is leading the way when it comes to the latest new craze in-home fitness equipment. They’re safe, easy, and practical to use and provide incredible advantages for overall fitness levels. The Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer is reasonably priced and allows users to challenge themselves with both upper and lower body exercises.

But the question we’re here to answer is whether or not you should spend your hard-earned cash on the Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer? Just because something is popular doesn’t necessarily mean it’s good. 

As a professional coach working with professional athletes for more than 20 years, I’ve been lucky enough to try literally hundreds of different pieces of fitness equipment and gadgets. This review aims to provide a thorough run-down and assessment of the specs, features, and pros and cons of Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer.

Let’s get started. 

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Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer and Elliptical

4.8

If you have knee pain or are recovering from an injury, then the Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer is perfect for you. Its low-impact and linear motion helps keep your body aligned correctly and still provides a challenging full-body workout.

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What We Liked & What Could Be Better  

Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer was first established by an engineer named Roger Teeter, who became renowned for designing and developing “inversion tables,” which are known for their pain-relieving benefits. Remarkably, Roger Teeter still has a great passion for inversion tables despite the incredible success of the Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer.

Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer has been specifically designed to help improve the stabilization muscles with a comfortable seating position, yet still a challenging workout. Stabilization muscles play a significant role in postural balance and help to reduce the chance of injury. 

Pros

The Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer has a bunch of awesome features and although it looks big and bulky is actually much more compact than I initially thought. Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer provides a low-impact workout, meaning you can train every day without the fear of getting injured. 

Cons

Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer doesn’t have the best warranty, and as such, it might raise a few questions for potential customers if something breaks or needs fixing. The biggest disappointment for me is that the Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer offers no pre-programmed workouts, which, to be honest, is quite surprising at the price point, especially considering most pieces of fitness equipment these days include training programs.

Recumbent Cross Trainer vs. Classic Recumbent: What is the Difference? 

For most fitness fanatics reading this review, you are entirely aware of what both a classic recumbent and recumbent cross-trainer are; however, for those who aren’t aware, let’s take a look at these pieces of home fitness equipment and the main differences between the two.

The Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer and the classic recumbent both fall into the fitness and rehabilitation niche. Recumbents are well known to be excellent and practical fitness machines commonly used by physiotherapists and fitness trainers to either help people returning from injury or those people who are just out in fitness.

The pedaling stroke and motion are the two primary differences between the Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer and a classic recumbent. The pedaling stroke is a much longer, more “ellipsed” motion, and the motion is significantly smaller than those of a recumbent exercise bike. 

Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer allows you to perform your exercises in a comfortable seated position instead of recumbent or “elliptical” trainers. Overall, most users find the Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer to have a much more natural and comfortable pedaling motion and allow users to work out longer. 

How Does The FreeStep Stride Technology Work?

Perfect for any fitness level, the Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer is designed to protect the knee joints by utilizing a “natural stepping stride” that takes unwanted stress off the knees and hips. The linear movement also does an excellent job stabilizing the hips and reduces and eliminates pain in the joints and lower back.

Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer provides users with a full-body workout safely and effectively. Because the machine is low-impact, it allows you to train every day if you so wish, although I would suggest having a few days off each week. Many other recumbents can place unwanted stress on the body and joints. It’s great to see the designers of the Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer have put a lot of thought into it.

The FreeStep Stride Technolgy provides a smooth and linear motion that helps to keep your hip, knees, and ankles perfectly aligned, helping to mitigate stress on your knees. Most classic recumbents force your upper leg to simultaneously work with the lower leg, which ultimately leads to shearing of the knee. On many recumbents, your body is not aligned correctly when driving the pedals forward, causing your knees and ankles to “bow.” 

Unfortunately, many recumbents force your core and midsection to sway, which places unwanted stress on the lower back and can lead to long-term injury. The beauty of the FreeStep is that it provides a natural stride movement mimicking a leg-press which is an exercise known to strengthen muscles like your quads, glutes, and hamstrings. 

Moreover, the FreeStep is incredibly efficient and effective at providing a total body workout. Full-body training is one of the best ways to save time, boost fitness levels, and burn double the calories as isolation exercises; now, that sounds like a win-win. 

FreeStep LT1 Main Review, Specs & Features 

Holidays Sale: -$120 Off

Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer and Elliptical

4.8

If you have knee pain or are recovering from an injury, then the Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer is perfect for you. Its low-impact and linear motion helps keep your body aligned correctly and still provides a challenging full-body workout.

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Seat

The Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer comes equipped with an adjustable seat that is very, very comfortable. The seat allows you to adjust both the recline and height positions, but the best thought after the feature is that you can adjust them independently. 

You can’t adjust the seat vertically, meaning there is only one height position which is a little baffling, if I’m being honest. But that being said, when you adjust the recline of the seating position, the height of the chair also adjusts slightly, meaning users of different body sizes can use the Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer.

The seat is also much bigger than most other recumbents, and the padding is high-quality and durable. Some users have commented that the seat could be slightly softer, but in my opinion, the softer the seat, the more prone you are to “slouch,” resulting in lower back pain. 

The Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer can seat various heights with people from 4′ 11″ right up to 6′ 6.” Some customers have complained that the backrest has come loose while working out, but this is rare, and Tetter will fix the problem if the warranty is still valid. 

Maximum weight capacity

One of the most important features or specs on any piece of home gym fitness equipment is the maximum user weight.; there’s no use spending your money if you cant use the machine. The Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer has a solid and robust maximum users weight of 300lbs or 136kgs. A user weight this high means that people can work out safely and effectively. 

The pedaling motion

The pedaling motion on most recumbent cross trainers is circular or linear, with classic recumbents having more of a “liner” motion which is particularly beneficial for those people who have arthritis. 

Thank the Lord that the FreeStep technology takes advantage of linear motion, which as a professional coach, I can tell you drastically reduces the stress on both the knee, ankle, and hip joints. To be honest, I don’t understand why other recumbent manufacturers don’t take a leaf out of the Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer book and take advantage of the linear movement. 

The Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer pedals are reasonable in size and can adequately fit most shoe sizes comfortably. You’ll also notice that the pedals synergistically move as you pedal, which increases force through the pedals.

Main Features 

FreeStep LT1 vs. LT3: How Do They Compare? 

If you’re not sure whether to choose either the Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer or the Teeter FreeStep LT3 Recumbent Cross Trainer take a look at this super clear and informative comparison chart I’ve compiled. If you want to learn more, you can check my detailed comparison of the Teeter Freestep LT1 vs LT3 recumbent cross-trainers.

The machine you choose will largely depend on your goals and budgets but either way you’re sure to get a high-quality recumbent that will help you achieve those goals. 

Teeter Move App: How it Works 

The Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer comes with access to the TeeterMoveTM App with Free Training. The program is similar to many other apps in the fitness market and has a wide range of variety, such as world-class training programs and classes that leading experts in the fitness industry have developed.

The TeeterMoveTM App with Free Training is free of charge, which is fantastic, especially considering most fitness companies make you pay expensive monthly fees to get access. The app is easy to download and is the perfect tool to help you achieve your fitness goals. 

What Do Customer Reviews Say? 

The soundest way to evaluate any piece of fitness equipment is to check out the reviews from verified customers.

Bossman from CA says, “Packaged well. It took 90 minutes to assemble. It works perfectly. Love it. Great back support. I love how easy it is to customize the seat and arm levers. I love how easy it is on my knees, back, and hips. Good workout. Love it.”

A user named Ol Irish commented, “I recently purchased a FreeStep; the quality and engineering are exceptional. I purchased this primarily for my wife, who just finished 18 months of chemotherapy, during which she was always tired, weak, and her balance was affected.”

Jean from Michigan said, “I cannot change the tension on the Peddle on the machine. It is tough to push them down. I am 63. It was not as easy to put together as I thought it would be, And the upper armbars feel weird when using them if they are even in correctly.”

FAQ

Wrap it up: Who is the FreeStep LT1 Best For? 

If you have knee pain or are recovering from an injury, then the Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer is perfect for you. Its low-impact and linear motion helps keep your body aligned correctly and still provides a challenging full-body workout.  

Due to the comfortable seated position, beginners to the fitness world will also benefit significantly, as will the elderly. If you want a high-quality recumbent trainer without breaking the bank, then the Teeter FreeStep LT1 Recumbent Cross Trainer might be just what you’re looking for.  

Read Also:
1. Teeter Freestep LT3 Review
2. Power10 Elliptical Rower Review