Buyer Beware

Buyer Beware

Do not believe exaggerated claims of calorie burning or conditioning in just a few minutes of exercising a day. In short, if a product or program sounds too good to be true, it probably is. The American Council on Exercise has specifically sited the example of Time Works, which markets an exercise machine that it claims helps achieve “full-body fitness in just four minutes a day.” The device combines upper-body twisting and lower-body stepping. The manufacturer asserts that users can achieve a total aerobic workout, a total resistance workout, and a dynamic flexibility workout—all of which is equal to more than 60 minutes of traditional exercise.
The ACE commissioned Dr. David C. Nieman of Appalachian State University to test this $600 device. Not surprisingly, the study concluded that the manufacturer’s fantastic claims are simply not true. The company asserts that people will “burn nearly three times the calories of a treadmill, rider, or strider!” In fact, study participants (12 men and 16 women of college age and average weight) burned eight calories per minute,and their metabolism returned to normal 15 minutes after they stopped exercising.Their total energy expenditure was about 40 calories, which is trivial in a fat-loss program. The subjects did gain some cardiorespiratory and lower-body strength benefits, but there was no gain in upper-body strength or joint flexibility. Harmful? No Worth $600? Not really. The ACE also reported that from this product’s release in early 1998 until early 1999 when the study was completed, Time Works racked up more than $60 million in sales. With profits like these, you can hardly expect infomercials for fitness products to go away.