Can I Lose Fat Around My Hips & Thighs Using an Elliptical?

Whether you're an apple, carrying those extra pounds around your torso, or a pear, with extra weight on your hips and thighs, working out to spot reduce fat in a specific area is a myth. To lose that excess fat, you must reduce the total fat in your body. Working out with an elliptical helps you burn calories, improve heart and lung health, and reduce the size of your hips and thighs. An elliptical is activated by moving the body in a cross-country skiing motion.

Once you step onto the elliptical and start gliding, you are performing aerobic exercise. This type of training raises your heart rate and works your muscles, tightening and firming them. As a result of regular exercise on the elliptical, your hips and thighs will gradually become thinner.

Having discipline is important for burning fat. If you work out on the elliptical trainer at irregular intervals, you won't burn much fat on your hips and thighs. You're better off following a dedicated schedule. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends a minimum of 30 minutes of physical activity performed five days a week. To lose weight, double your exercise time to 60 minutes a day.

An elliptical workout activates multiple muscles in the upper and lower body. The glutes, tensor fascia latae, quadriceps and hamstrings are the muscles of the thighs and hips. The elliptical works all of these muscles, which will give them a tighter, more toned look. You also work the latissimus dorsi in the back, triceps on the back of the arms and deltoids on the shoulders.

Interval training is an exercise method that involves alternating your intensity back and forth from high to low. Doing this on the elliptical will speed up your fat loss progress. Start your workouts with a light warm-up, then follow a 1-to-2 ratio of high to low intensity for the rest of your session. For example, glide fast for 30 seconds and glide slow for 60. Ellipticals also come equipped with a resistance adjustment. Feel free to turn it up for your high-intensity bouts and turn it back down for your low-intensity bouts.

Any time you perform exercise, your metabolism stays elevated when you are finished. This causes you to burn more calories around the clock and further lean out your hips and thighs. The harder you train on the elliptical, the higher you will boost your metabolism.

Using bad form on the elliptical will compromise your progress and increase your chances of developing muscle imbalances. While you glide, keep your shoulders back, eyes looking forward and abs tight. Position your hands about chest-high on the poles and fully activate your leg muscles.

To achieve fat loss on your hips and thighs, you need to take a look at your diet. If you consistently overeat, all the work you do on the elliptical will be canceled out. The best approach is to reduce your daily calorie intake to create a deficit. A daily 500-calorie reduction helps you to lose about 1 pound a week.