Ok, so my aunt is a personal trainer and she says that if the machine asks how much you weigh then it's pretty accurate on calories... another trainer said that I was probably only burning 75% of the cals I thought I was since I have bad allignment...

I've read quite a few times on here that the cal counters are just plain wrong... anyone else have any input?

Hi Sarah~~
My elliptical asks for the weight but I have never really trusted the cal ories burned. I take it as a ballpark figure. I do try to focus more on the intensity, time and distance that I put into my workout.

I'm the same as you... I do an 30 mins to an hour a day and push myself by making sure I stay above a certain RPMs and switch it up by doing the random program and reverse mode... just nice to know how accurage the cal counter is...

I put in my goal weight (10lbs less than I am) to compensate for it overestimating.

Be sure to read the sticky from Suzanne about the 2005 Consumer reports on ellipticals/treadmills http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/showthread.php?t=50314
I also read several other reports and ePinions.com.
Check out this site for reviews, too: http://www.ellipticaltrainers.com/in...l_ratings.html
I ended up getting a Life Fitness X3.5 elliptical crosstrainer and LOVE it!!