Elliptical machines tone your muscles and facilitate weight loss, provided you stick to a healthy, low-calorie diet. Elliptical machines are expensive, so consider visiting a gym if you want to test one. Commercial gyms often provide an array of elliptical machines as well as entertainment options such as TV and music to keep you from getting bored during your workout.
Function
Elliptical machines have foot pedals that offer resistance using a motion similar to that of cross-country skiing. To exercise on an elliptical machine, select a workout program using the buttons and visual display. Stand on the foot pedals, grasp the handles and start moving. Note that some machines might turn on only after you move the pedals slightly. If you have difficulty figuring out how to use an elliptical machine, ask a fitness expert or gym staff for assistance.
Types
To avoid early onset of fatigue, alternate periods of intense exercise with periods of rest. Elliptical machines often have a variety of preset workout programs that automatically increase and decrease intensity and pedal resistance throughout the workout. These programs might be labeled fat-burning, conditioning or other names that indicate their intensity level. Choose one that matches your workout goals, or create a customized program if the machine provides that option. You may also manually select intensity and resistance levels.
Calorie Burning
Exercising on an elliptical machine is an excellent way to burn calories. Harvard Medical School provides the following data for elliptical workouts. A person weighing 125 lbs. burns 270 calories in 30 minutes of elliptical training. A 155-lb. person burns 335 calories. A 185-lb. person burns 400 calories.
Maximize Elliptical Benefits
To burn more calories, increase the duration or intensity of your workout. Many elliptical machines have displays that indicate how many calories you have burned and timers that show the length of your workout. Pick a reasonable number of calories as a goal, and keep exercising until you reach it. You can also increase the number of calories you burn by increasing the resistance of the foot pedals, which causes you to expend more energy.
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