The elliptical machine for weight loss

You have surely heard people rave about the elliptical at the gym and you probably asked yourself ‘how effective is the elliptical?’

The elliptical machine is a great low-impact machine for a cardio workout and you can adjust how you use the machine for even more effective weight loss benefits. When used to its greatest effectiveness, the elliptical machine can get your heart rate going, burn calories, boost your metabolism, and help tone your body. As such, it can help to promote weight loss at even the low level and at a slow pace on the machine.

Are elliptical machines effective for weight loss?

Although you won’t lose weight overnight after a workout on the elliptical, this machine does give the option to boost your workouts and burn a significant amount of calories. You can burn on average about 330+ calories in 30 minutes on the elliptical machine.

To burn more calories and build muscle, be sure to push through your entire foot for every step. This activates more of your leg muscles and gives you the best effect per stride. It is also important to keep your abdominals engaged, both for the toning effects and to protect your back. If you want to focus on the calories you burn, you can also hold the handles and press and pull your arms so that you engage more muscle groups.

Start working out

Time spent on the elliptical machine can feel a bit repetitive, so to mix up your workout you can increase the speed for specific intervals. You can move the resistance up and down during your interval workouts and play around with how long you shift from your normal pace to your quick pace. This will also give you the extra weight loss benefits. When you do intervals, your body goes into fat-burning mode as your energy stores are depleted. Your body stays in that mode up to 72 hours after an intense workout, which means you will lose more calories and the benefits of your workout will last beyond the moment you step off the elliptical machine.

Elliptical machine weight loss results

If your goal is weight loss, it is important to combine diet with exercise so that you create a calorie deficit in your body that results in your weight loss goals. If you stick to an unhealthy diet, then the calories you will burn off on the elliptical will most likely be focused on the ‘empty’ calories you consumed rather than the ones to further your weight loss progress.