Tuesday, 18 February 2025

Elliptical Trainers

ProForm 510 E Elliptical Trainer Review

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The ProForm 510 E Elliptical combines a variety of effective workout features, such as upper body workout arms and incline settings. There’s even iFit compatibility and mp3 connectivity to ensure your workouts are both challenging and enjoyable.

But how does this compare to the upgraded 710 E elliptical?

In this review we’ll guide you through the design features, 20″ stride length, 18 resistance levels, and what to expect from each of the 20 workout apps. We’ve also added pros and cons from customer reviews, to help you decide if the ProForm 510 E is the best elliptical machine for your own home gym.

Design features

ProForm 510 E Elliptical

If you’re considering buying a new elliptical trainer, one of the first decisions you’ll need to make is whether to opt for a front or rear driven machine.

With the flywheel positioned at the front of the machine, the ProForm 510 E falls into the first category of being a front drive elliptical.

What does this mean for your workouts?

Although you will still experience a smooth movement in the arms and foot supports when working out, the range of motion will feel a lot less like cross country skiing, and a lot more like a stepper.

This is particularly true when you take advantage of one of the 5 manual incline positions that the ProForm 510 E has to offer.

With a maximum incline of 20 degrees, this gives you a much wider choice of incline settings and longer stride lengths (18″ to 20″) than some of its rear driven competitors.

Being able to adjust the incline setting of the foot plates doesn’t just offer some extra variety to your workouts, but also helps to switch the focus onto toning different groups of muscles.

While the lower inclines are better for targetting your hamstrings, the higher incline settings and front driven design help strengthen and tone your quads, calves, and glutes.

ProForm 510 E Elliptical

ProForm 510 E Elliptical – Features Summary

  • iFit Live Technology Compatible
  • Adjustable Stride Length: 18″ to 20″
  • 20 Workout Apps
  • Digital Quick Incline
  • Compatible Music Port for iPod
  • 18 Digital Resistance Levels
  • Stride Adjust Incline Ramp
  • Inertia-Enhanced Flywheel
  • Oversized Pedals
  • Dual-Grip EKG Heart Rate Monitor
  • Intermix Acoustics 2.0 Sound System
  • Transport wheels

Display console design

ProForm 510 E Elliptical

Together with the stability of the commercial-gauge solid steel frame and inertia-enhanced flywheel, one of the most attractive features of the ProForm 510 E is its display console.

Rather than relying on buttons alone, ProForm have also included some useful icons to make adjusting your workouts much more intuitive.

The 18 workout programs have been split into 2 clear groups; calorie workouts and performance workouts, making it easier to plan your fitness program around specific training goals.

The 5″ LCD display screen has also been divided into 3 main sections for tracking various workout statistics, including time, distance, calories burned, and RPM (revolutions per minute).

Being backlit has the added benefit of making the workout information much easier to see, both in dim light conditions and under glare from the sun.

Another great benefit of the ProForm 510 E is the fact that it is iFit compatible. Although this isn’t the same as iFit enabled, it does mean that you can extend the variety of workouts far beyond the 18 preset options.

iFit training and preset workout programs

While it’s still possible to manually enter your workout information online at the end of a training session, automatic syncing from the machine to your computer is just one of the many benefits of iFit.

As well as improved workout tracking and goal setting options, you can also plan virtual running routes with the assistance of Google Maps, then follow your progress on screen from a street view.

The ProForm 510 E comes complete with iFit compatibility

After partnering with top fitness trainer Jillian Michaels, the ProForm 510 E now provides audible coaching through your own weight-loss program and provides a series of challenging new workouts.

When connected to the iFit module, these workouts will be automatically downloaded to your elliptical, helping you make the most of your training time.

You can even track your nutrition and other activities on iFit.com. Whether training for a race, losing weight, or maintaining a healthy lifestyle, it’s all made that much easier with the online food and activity log.

Quality of assembly instructions

Although the build quality and workout options are two of the most important things to consider before buying an elliptical, it’s also useful to find out as much as possible about the assembly.

A quick read through some of the customer reviews shows mixed feedback from other people who have already purchased and setup the ProForm 510 E.

The ProForm 510 E user manual comes complete with in-depth assembly instructions that are easy to follow

While some people found it quick and easy to assemble, there were others who found it took closer to 3 hours.

Having someone to assist in lifting the main flywheel housing and base supports into place certainly seems to speed up the process, and is recommended where possible.

In terms of the user manual and assembly instructions provided by ProForm, there’s no shortage of in-depth diagrams and step-by-step walkthroughs to make sure everything is easy to follow.

There’s even a full part identification chart to make sure you have all the bolts, screws, and washers you need before you start.

ProForm 510 E vs. ProForm 710 E

ProForm 510 E EllipticalProForm 710 E Elliptical
Model510 E710 E
iFit LiveYesYes
Display Type5" Backlit5" Backlit
Resistance Levels1820
Preset Workouts1820
Stride Length18 - 20 inches18 - 20 inches
CoolAire FanNoYes
Weight Capacity275 lbs300 lbs

What’s included with the warranty?

  • Frame: Lifetime
  • Parts and Labor: 1 year

Customer reviews

Although we try to provide all the information you need about the ProForm 510 E Elliptical in our own roundup, if you still have unanswered questions one of the best places to ask them is Amazon.

Whether you want to find out more about the assembly or the workout options, you can ask questions to people who have already purchased the machine, who will quickly be able to provide you with an answer.

Waiting for a response to your question can also be an excellent time to have a read through the large collection of customer reviews.

Despite not being as single-sided as the reviews for the Schwinn 430 Elliptical, there are still an impressive number with the full 5 star rating.

After reading through these reviews ourselves, we’ve put together the following lists of pros and cons to act as a quick summary.

Pros:

  • Quick and easy to assemble
  • Sturdy frame design
  • Compact size makes it easier to setup in smaller spaces
  • Challenging range of resistance levels
  • More effective cardiovascular workouts than traditional single level ellipticals
  • Lower impact exercise compared to treadmill workouts
  • 20 degree maximum incline is higher than on similarly priced ellipticals
  • MP3 connectivity lets you enjoy your favourite motivational music while you workout

Cons:

  • iFit compatible rather than iFit enabled. Although the machine does still provide a great range of workout options, the yearly subscription and adaptor does add an extra $200 to the price.
  • Shorter stride length than some machines. Still ideal for users under 5ft 10 ins.

If you’re wondering where to buy the ProForm 510 E, we’ve personally found Amazon to have the best price and most frequent sale offers.

ProForm Elliptical Trainer Guide

Review Overview

Overall Review Rating

3.5 / 5

Whether you're looking for a challenging workout or simply something a bit different for your indoor cardio, the 20 degree incline and iFit technology certainly make the 510 E an attractive option.

Although there's only $100 difference in price between this model and the 710 E, you have to bear in mind that the only real upgrades are the cooling fan and a couple more workout programs.

The 710 E is also in the same category of being 'iFit compatible', rather than 'iFit enabled'. So for the $100 you save by choosing the 510 E, you could actually buy the iFit module instead.

While it's important to take into account both the positive and negative reviews to build up a balanced picture, there's no denying this is one of the best ProForm ellipticals in terms of value for money.

Product dimensions: 68 in. (H) x 26 in. (W) x 68 in. (L) Weight capacity: 275 lbs Product weight: 209 lbs