Elliptical Workouts For Weight Loss: 3 Workouts To Try

In today’s fitness landscape, the elliptical machine stands out as one of the most versatile and beneficial workout tools. Beyond its ability to provide a low-impact cardiovascular workout, it’s an excellent choice for those aiming to shed unwanted pounds. But why is the elliptical particularly effective for weight loss? Its unique design allows for simultaneous upper and lower body engagement, making it possible to burn a substantial number of calories in a relatively short period. Furthermore, its varied resistance levels and customizable programs mean that users can continually challenge themselves, preventing workout plateaus and keeping the weight loss journey progressive. In this article, we’ll delve into three elliptical workouts tailored for those with weight loss goals, guiding you towards a fitter, healthier version of yourself.

Benefits of Using an Elliptical Machine

The elliptical machine has rapidly gained popularity in gyms and homes worldwide, and for a good reason. Its unique blend of features offers a range of benefits tailored to meet various fitness needs:

1. Low-Impact on Joints: One of the foremost advantages of the elliptical is its low impact nature. Unlike running on a treadmill or pounding the pavement, the elliptical allows your feet to maintain continuous contact with its pedals. This reduces the strain on your joints, particularly the knees, ankles, and hips, making it an ideal choice for individuals with joint concerns or those recovering from injuries.
2. Full Body Workout: The elliptical’s dual-action handlebars enable users to work both the upper and lower body simultaneously. As you push and pull the handlebars, you’re actively engaging your arms, chest, back, and shoulders, while the stepping motion targets the glutes, quads, and hamstrings. This comprehensive engagement results in a higher calorie burn, maximizing weight loss potential.
3. Customizable Resistance and Incline: The ability to adjust resistance levels and incline settings means that users can continually challenge their muscles and cardiovascular system. As you progress in your fitness journey, you can increase the resistance or incline, ensuring that your workouts remain effective and preventing your body from adapting to a set routine.
4. Pedal Backwards for Variation: A unique feature of ellipticals is the ability to pedal in reverse. By doing so, you can engage different muscle groups, particularly the calves and hamstrings. This adds variety to your workout, breaks the monotony, and ensures a well-rounded muscle engagement.

Incorporating the elliptical into your fitness routine can thus provide a balanced, effective, and joint-friendly workout, making it a standout choice for those looking to achieve and maintain their weight loss goals.

Elliptical vs. Other Cardio Machines

When it comes to cardio machines, there’s a variety to choose from, each with its own set of advantages. Let’s delve into a comparison of the elliptical with other popular cardio equipment: treadmills, stationary bikes, and stair climbers.

1. Treadmills:
   • Caloric Burn: Treadmills can lead to a significant calorie burn, especially when used for running or high-intensity interval training (HIIT).
   • Impact: Unlike ellipticals, treadmills can be hard on the joints, especially when running at faster speeds.
   • Versatility: Treadmills allow for walking, jogging, running, and can simulate uphill training through incline adjustments.
2. Stationary Bikes:
   • Caloric Burn: Stationary bikes offer a moderate to high caloric burn, depending on the intensity of the workout.
   • Impact: Bikes provide a low-impact workout similar to ellipticals, making them knee-friendly.
   • Muscle Engagement: While bikes target the legs and glutes, they don’t offer the same full-body engagement as ellipticals.
3. Stair Climbers:
   • Caloric Burn: Stair climbers can lead to a high caloric burn, especially as they mimic the challenging motion of climbing stairs.
   • Impact: They offer a medium-impact workout, which can be a bit more strenuous on the knees than ellipticals but less so than treadmills.
   • Muscle Engagement: Stair climbers effectively target the glutes, quads, and calves but lack the upper body engagement of ellipticals.

Caloric Burn Potential: While the exact number of calories burned depends on various factors including weight, age, and workout intensity, ellipticals offer a competitive caloric burn due to their full-body engagement. They often come close to treadmills in terms of calorie expenditure and can exceed stationary bikes and stair climbers, especially when resistance and incline are increased.

Suitability for All Fitness Levels: Ellipticals shine in their accessibility for users of all fitness levels. Beginners can benefit from the machine’s low-impact nature and straightforward usability. At the same time, advanced users can challenge themselves with higher resistance levels and interval workouts. This adaptability, combined with the ability to target both upper and lower body, makes the elliptical a versatile choice for many fitness enthusiasts.

While each cardio machine has its merits, the elliptical offers a unique blend of full-body engagement, low-impact workouts, and adaptability, making it a top contender for those looking to achieve a comprehensive and effective cardio workout.

3 Elliptical Workouts for Weight Loss

1. Interval Training

Brief Explanation of Interval Training:

Interval training, often referred to as High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), involves alternating between periods of high-intensity exercise and periods of low-intensity recovery. This method is designed to push the body out of its comfort zone, resulting in increased calorie burn both during the workout and in the hours following, a phenomenon known as the afterburn effect or excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC).

Step-by-Step Guide:

1. Warm-Up: Start with a steady and easy pace for 5 minutes. This prepares your body for the more intense activity to come and helps prevent injury.
2. High-Intensity Interval: Increase the resistance level and speed, pushing yourself to exert maximum effort for 30 seconds. Your heart rate should rise significantly, and you should find it challenging to maintain a conversation during this period.
3. Low-Intensity Recovery: Reduce the resistance and slow down your pace for 1 minute. This allows your heart rate to come down slightly and your muscles to recover, preparing them for the next high-intensity burst.
4. Repeat: Continue alternating between the 30-second high-intensity intervals and the 1-minute low-intensity recovery periods. Aim to maintain this pattern for 20-30 minutes, depending on your fitness level.
5. Cool Down: Slowly reduce your pace and resistance, spending 5 minutes at a leisurely pace. This helps in gradually bringing your heart rate back to its resting state and reducing muscle soreness post-workout.

By incorporating interval training into your elliptical routine, you can effectively boost your metabolism, improve cardiovascular endurance, and accelerate weight loss, making it a powerful tool in your fitness arsenal.

2. Hill Climb Challenge

Explanation of Hill Climb:

The Hill Climb Challenge on an elliptical is designed to simulate the resistance one would face while climbing a hill or mountain. As you increase the resistance on the machine, you’re mimicking the uphill climb, demanding more from your muscles and cardiovascular system. This challenge not only enhances muscle tone in the legs and glutes but also provides a more intense cardio workout, leading to higher caloric burn. The continuous change in resistance levels keeps the muscles engaged and prevents the body from adjusting to a set pattern, ensuring a dynamic and effective workout.

Step-by-Step Guide:

1. Warm-Up: Begin at a low resistance, maintaining a comfortable pace to get your blood flowing and muscles warmed up for 5 minutes.
2. Initiate the Climb: Start at a moderate resistance level suitable for your fitness level.
3. Increase Resistance: Every 2 minutes, increase the resistance level. This should feel like you’re gradually climbing a hill, with each “step” becoming slightly more challenging.
4. Maintain the Challenge: Continue this pattern of increasing resistance every 2 minutes for a total workout time of 20-30 minutes. Aim to reach a peak resistance where it’s challenging but still maintainable for the duration of the 2 minutes.
5. Cool Down: After reaching the end of your hill climb duration, gradually decrease the resistance level over the next 5 minutes. This will help your muscles relax and your heart rate return to a more resting state.

The Hill Climb Challenge is a great way to vary your elliptical routine, focusing on strength and endurance. It’s particularly beneficial for those looking to tone their lower body and achieve an intense cardio workout simultaneously.

3. Total Body Burn

Emphasis on Using Handlebars Effectively:

The Total Body Burn workout is designed to engage both the upper and lower body, maximizing calorie burn and muscle engagement. The elliptical’s handlebars are an essential tool in this workout, as they allow for upper body activation. By pushing and pulling the handlebars, you target your arms, shoulders, chest, and back, creating a comprehensive workout. This approach ensures that while the legs are working, the upper body isn’t left behind, leading to a balanced and effective exercise session.

Step-by-Step Guide:

1. Warm-Up: Start your workout at a moderate pace with a low resistance setting, focusing on the lower body only. Avoid using the handlebars for the first 5 minutes. This helps in preparing the legs for the more intense phases of the workout.
2. Handlebar Engagement: Switch to using the handlebars, setting the machine at a medium resistance level. Push and pull the handlebars actively for 2 minutes, ensuring your upper body is working in tandem with your legs.
3. Leg Focus: After the 2-minute mark, let go of the handlebars and increase the machine’s resistance. This phase will focus more on the lower body, pushing the legs to work harder for the next 2 minutes.
4. Alternate: Continue to alternate between the 2-minute handlebar engagement phase and the 2-minute leg focus phase. Maintain this pattern for a total of 20-30 minutes, adjusting resistance levels as needed to suit your fitness level.
5. Cool Down: Conclude your workout by reducing the resistance and maintaining a steady pace without using the handlebars for 5 minutes. This will allow your muscles to relax and your heart rate to return to a more resting state.

The Total Body Burn workout offers a balanced approach to cardio and strength training on the elliptical. By effectively using the handlebars and alternating the focus between the upper and lower body, this workout ensures a comprehensive session that targets multiple muscle groups, promoting weight loss and overall fitness.

Tips for Maximizing Weight Loss with Elliptical Workouts

1. Proper Form and Posture:
   • Engage Your Core: Tighten your core muscles to maintain stability and promote proper posture throughout the workout.
   • Upright Posture: Avoid leaning heavily on the handlebars. Stand tall with a straight back, which helps in better muscle engagement and reduces the risk of strain or injury.
   • Full Foot Contact: Ensure your entire foot, from heel to toe, remains in contact with the pedal throughout the elliptical motion. This distributes the work across the entire leg and optimizes calorie burn.
2. Incorporating Strength Training into Routine:
   • Balance is Key: While the elliptical is fantastic for cardiovascular exercise, combining it with strength training exercises can boost metabolism and muscle definition.
   • Post-Elliptical Workouts: After your elliptical session, consider incorporating bodyweight exercises like squats, push-ups, and lunges or using weights for exercises like deadlifts, bench presses, and rows.
3. Consistency and Duration Recommendations:
   • Consistency: Aim for at least 3-5 elliptical sessions per week for noticeable weight loss results.
   • Duration: Each session should last between 30 to 60 minutes, incorporating various workouts to prevent plateaus and maintain engagement.
   • Listen to Your Body: While consistency is crucial, ensure you’re giving your body enough rest between workouts to recover and avoid overtraining.
4. Dietary Considerations to Accompany Exercise:
   • Hydration: Drink plenty of water before, during, and after your workout. Proper hydration aids muscle function and recovery.
   • Balanced Diet: Pair your exercise routine with a well-balanced diet rich in whole foods – lean proteins, complex carbohydrates, healthy fats, and plenty of fruits and vegetables.
   • Pre-Workout Nutrition: Consume a light snack 30-60 minutes before your workout, like a banana or a protein shake, to fuel your session.
   • Post-Workout Recovery: After your workout, consider a meal or snack that combines protein and carbohydrates to aid muscle recovery and replenish glycogen stores.

Remember, while the elliptical is a potent tool in your weight loss journey, it’s the combination of consistent workouts, strength training, and a balanced diet that creates the perfect formula for sustainable and effective weight loss.

Conclusion

Elliptical machines have firmly established themselves as a cornerstone in the realm of fitness, especially for those targeting weight loss. Their unique ability to provide a full-body, low-impact workout makes them a preferred choice for many, regardless of fitness level. The varied workouts they offer, from intense interval training to the strength-building hill climb challenge and the comprehensive total body burn, ensure that there’s something for everyone.

However, the true magic lies not just in the machine but in the user’s commitment. Consistency, paired with the right techniques and dietary considerations, can lead to transformative results. As you embark on or continue your fitness journey, be encouraged to try out the suggested routines. Remember, fitness is a personal journey, so feel free to adapt and personalize these workouts to better align with your goals and needs. With determination and the right approach, the elliptical can indeed be a powerful ally in your quest for weight loss and overall health. Keep pushing, stay motivated, and witness the incredible potential of elliptical workouts unfold!

REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING

1. SELF. (n.d.). Elliptical workouts that will actually make you enjoy using the elliptical. Retrieved from https://www.self.com/story/elliptical-workouts-will-actually-make-you-enjoy-using-the-elliptical
2. Cosmopolitan. (n.d.). Best elliptical workouts. Retrieved from https://www.cosmopolitan.com/health-fitness/a37577521/best-elliptical-workouts/
3. Garage Gym Reviews. (n.d.). Best elliptical workout. Retrieved from https://www.garagegymreviews.com/best-elliptical-workout
4. Women’s Health. (n.d.). Elliptical workout. Retrieved from https://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/a35981843/elliptical-workout/
5. Shape. (n.d.). Elliptical workout for beginners. Retrieved from https://www.shape.com/fitness/cardio/elliptical-workout-for-beginners
6. BarBend. (n.d.). Elliptical workouts for weight loss. Retrieved from https://barbend.com/elliptical-workouts-for-weight-loss/
7. Anytime Fitness. (n.d.). Quick HIIT: A 20-minute HIIT elliptical routine. Retrieved from https://www.anytimefitness.com/ccc/workouts/quick-hiit-a-20-minute-hiit-elliptical-routine/