Losing weight can be a tough prospect for some people: they can’t find the time or keep the motivation needed to see results. Finding a consistent and effective weight-loss exercise program seems, to them, an impossible promise.
But there is hope.
While you need to find the motivation within yourself to lose weight, there are plenty of routines and equipment out there that can help you reach your goals. Elliptical machines are one of the great pieces of home equipment that you can use whenever you want. Here are the benefits you can look forward to when you want to start losing weight.
Low-Impact
Elliptical machines are designed to put the least amount of stress on your joints as possible. Rather than jogging on a treadmill or other hard surface, ellipticals use a circular running motion that feels natural but doesn’t jolt you with each step. This reduces the risk of injuries and provides a smooth, natural-feeling workout that will help you lose weight.
This is good when you haven’t exercised in a long time or are overweight, both of which increase the risk of injury. The smooth elliptical makes it easy to learn and stick with, and gives you peace of mind that you will not come away with aching joints or a sore back. You can adjust the difficulty settings on the elliptical machine as you progress, which will provide more resistance to help you lose weight faster, but still with the ease-of-use on joints.
The low-impact nature of the elliptical will also allow you to use it more frequently even if you do find that you have soreness, although you should also consult a doctor if you feel any pain other than muscle fatigue from exercising.
Whole-Body Workout
Unlike a treadmill, an elliptical machine will give you a full-body workout that will spark weight loss as soon as you start using it.
When you want to lose weight, you want to focus on the big muscles of your body that will use the most energy. This will make each workout more effective. The largest muscles are in your legs, where your quadriceps are. They are the four muscles that make up your thigh, and an elliptical machine will provide a great workout for them. But, again, an elliptical will reach so many more muscles: your buttocks, your calves and your hamstrings will all feel the burn.
With the arm extensions on the machine, you will also workout your pectorals, triceps, biceps and even your abdominals. All of these muscles working in conjunction will help you lose weight more quickly than targeting only certain areas.
Burn Calories
The secret to weight loss is to get the number of calories you burn closer the number of calories you intake. Unused calories are what drive weight gain, so you don’t want to, for example, take in 3000 calories in a day but only burn 500 of them. The leftovers will turn into fat.
This is why exercise is so important to weight loss. Even if you didn’t change your diet, just burning an extra 500 or 700 calories each day would help you control or even lose weight. Ellipticals are a great way to burn those extra calories because they are easy to use and you get the total body workout.
Elliptical machines can help you burn up to 400 calories for every half an hour used. This means that just one hour each day can help you burn 800 calories. If you can manage that, there is no way you will not start to see results.
Easy Routines
The hardest thing about an exercise routine is sticking with it, especially for beginners. You don’t want to only exercise every three or four days, because you will soon stop exercising altogether. You also don’t want to exercise too frequently, or you will burn yourself out.
Start with an easy routine: 15 minutes a day, whenever you can, for five days in a week. This will start giving you the benefits of exercise without ruining the experience for you. You can step it up to 25 or 30 minutes the following week, 40 minutes the net, and so on until you reach a routine time that you feel comfortable with. Think about it: in just four weeks, you could exercise for one hour, five times a week, which is 3000 extra calories burned!
If you follow a healthy diet as well, you will definitely see results.
Dominic Hancock has worked as a personal trainer for several years, always knowing that he wanted to work in sports and/or fitness since that’s his one true passion. He enjoys working one-on-one with individuals as well as educating people how to stay safe when using the gym equipment.
