A stepper machine is a great bit of gym equipment to give you a full cardio workout, along with toning your legs and butt! Though your local gym will have a high-end step machine, you can get cheap steppers for your home that provide a decent work out. Portable step machines can also be used at your office/desk or taken away with you if needed.
Stepper Machine FAQs
Most frequent questions and answers
How many calories do steppers burn?
This will depend on your weight and effort. You can easily burn 500 calories in an hour though.
Are stepper machines expensive?
No, you can get simple step machines for under $50 and they are effective!
Are the portable steppers quiet enough for the office?
Yes, if they become noisy some wd40 will help
Absolutely, they work the glutes pretty hard.
Top Step Machines for Home Use
Contents
Sunny Health & Fitness Mini Stepper with Resistance Bands
- Resistancebands included for a serous workout
- Easy to read LCD monitor
- Hydraulic drive system
- Wide pebals with non-slip rubber
We have talked about Sunny Health and fitness in previous posts, every product they have seems to dominate Amazon with the best reviews, sales and product rankings. Their mini stepper is no exception, it is the top seller on Amazon and amazing value at under $100.
The mini stepper works by using a hydraulic system so you have nothing to plug in. This also makes it highly portable if you want to take it anywhere. They say the combination of the 2 exercises can work 20 different muscle groups in go. The stepper also has resistance bands which you can use in conjunction with the stepping motion, working arms and legs at the same time. This makes a killer work out if you push it. The steps can also be adjusted to make them harder, longer steps will be harder work.
The stepper has a small display screen which will show you the time, total steps done and calories burnt. This mini stepper also has decent sized foot pedals, even fitting our editor’s size 11 feet.
This product at date of writing has 1062 reviews on Amazon, 79% giving it 4 or 5 stars. Sunny Health & Fitness also respond well to any questions asked, with 188 answered questions. If you are unsure about anything relating to this mini step machine, it has likely been asked before so scroll though the questions.
Best compact, portable step machine on a budget
Jamie
Stamina In-Motion Elliptical Trainer
- Super-compact stepper, perfect for home or office
- Can be used sitting down or standing up
Stamina call this portable stepper an ‘elliptical trainer’ which is a bit over the top. For me, elliptical machines are more full on cross trainers with step and pull motions using upright handles.
Saying that, it is still an awesome little step machine and highly portable if you want to take it to the office. Yes, I do use one of these and actually doing some steps while typing this post! I have this step machine under my standup desk and I am not even a millennial! This portable stepper can also be used sitting down when you are watching TV or at your desk.
The Stamina In-Motion stepper has a good range of different tensions depending on your physical capability. Resistance is easily changed manually with a dial. It even has a mini-monitor giving you steps per minute, total strides, time and calories burnt during your workout.
This portable step machine weighs only 24lb, but feels really stable when used. It can be easily stored in a cupboard requiring only 24×17 inches.
This product requires minimal assembly on delivery.
Bowflex TreadClimber TC100
- Multi-functioning step machine
- Easy on the joints as low impact
- Heart rate monitor
- Easy to read display screen
Bowflex is a top brand in the fitness industry known for high quality products from adjustable dumbbells through to full on commercial cardio machines. Bowflex is owned by Nautilus Inc who also own Modern Movement and Schwinn, who specialize in bikes.
The Bowflex Treadclimber is a 3-1 machine, as it also can be used as a treadmill as the belts move, you just lower both steps flat and adjust the setting on the display.
This stepper is discontinued by Blowflex, but you can still find in stockists of Bowflex gear.
StairMaster SM3 StepMill
- Smaller but just as tough as the commercial version sold into health clubs
- Climbing stairs is one of the most efficient and effective cardio and strength workouts
- Step range of 26 to 162 steps per minute
- 10 total workout programs, including fat burner, calorie burner, intervals and more
- Easy-to-read large backlit LCD display; Polar-compatible heart rate monitoring
The Stair master is more of a commercial stepper and something you would likely find in your local gym. It runs using real steps that move, so there is no way of cheating on the intensity like standard step machines.
The speed goes from 26-162 steps per minute if you want to HIT workouts with it. The machine has a large LCD screen which displays all the data you need from speed, calories burnt and a heart monitor.
Best Stepper Machine Workout
If you want to really have a decent work out with your step machine, I would recommend doing a HIITs routine. HIIT stands for high intensity interval training.
Start off by doing 30 seconds fast and have a 1-2 minute rest. Once you get fitter you should be aiming to max out for 30 seconds then have a 1 minute rest. With most HIIT exercies, if you are going as fast as you possibly can, 20 seconds should be your maximum. This also applies to cycling, running squats etc.
Alternative cardio machines you might like
Diamondback 910sr Recumbent Exercise Bike
Jamie is a running addict and gym junkie. He trains 7 days per week and is currently doing an MA in nutrition and sports science