A few years ago, I was facing a great challenge: to lose 10 pounds in 2 weeks. I was browsing through the Internet, trying to find the best possible solution for this challenge. I’ve read tons of information and scientific data proving and disproving things – it’s been quite a journey, believe me!
And then I stumbled across one article describing the benefits of elliptical trainers and how they can truly transform your body within just a few weeks. I began looking into it, and you know what? I found hundreds of personal stories from people just like me – trying to lose weight quickly – claiming that exercising on an elliptical trainer is the thing that helped them achieve great results in no time.
However, it must also be noted that exercising on an elliptical trainer is not enough. You probably know by now (assuming that you’ve browsed tons of information, forums and websites about weight loss programs as well as scientific data) that it is practically impossible to lose weight without having a clean diet.
You’re a smart girl/boy, you know what foods are considered to be weight loss friendly, and which ones are not. So I’ll cover only the benefits of elliptical trainers in this article, without having to burden you with information that you’ve already read somewhere else.
Let’s begin with the basics. In recent years, elliptical trainers have become very popular among women for their ability to keep the body in good shape, strengthen the muscles and lose weight. Such exercise machines can be found not only in gyms but also at homes. Let’s look into the rules of practice and answer the question how many calories can you burn on an elliptical trainer during one workout.
Useful information about elliptical trainer as an effective tool to lose weight
An elliptical trainer can be easily called one of the most effective ways to lose weight nowadays. As we’ve mentioned in the introduction, weight loss is the result of training as well as a clean diet.
Elliptical is referred to cardio trainers that also include various riders, treadmills, exercise bikes and steppers. The main purpose of the elliptical trainer usage is an improvement of the cardiovascular and respiratory systems. But most importantly – that’s why we’ve all gathered here, folks – active and regular exercises help you burn calories and lose weight.
An elliptical trainer creates an elliptical trajectory of movements (now you know why this device has got such a name). While doing exercises, you move forward and backward, which targets different muscle groups – back, chest, legs, buttocks and so on. As a result, you also get the opportunity to reduce total body weight, tone up and improve endurance.
We must also note that elliptical trainers allow you to achieve the body of your dreams in combined with a healthy lifestyle and a balanced diet. By gradually increasing the intensity of your elliptical trainer workouts, you tend to burn a great number of calories, so keep that in mind! You can check the intensity by purchasing the trainer with an integrated on-board computer, which tracks the number of burned fat. Moreover, the computer can provide you with a specific program, after complete which you can get rid of a certain number of calories.
What should you know when buying elliptical trainer?
- In order to understand which model is best for you, do some exercises in the gym, using different models of elliptical trainers.
- If you don’t have the free space for the placement of a full-fledged device, choose folding models.
- If your budget allows you to – buy an exercise machine that has a convenient control panel, the choice of modes and smooth running of the pedals.
- If you really want to buy a trainer, decide what type of simulator you want to have:
- mechanical ellipticals. This is the kind of model I purchased during the weight loss journey I mentioned in the introduction, and I don’t regret my choice even a little! Such trainers have a simple and comfortable design and are set in motion by a person. These machines are low-cost devices that is why they are available to the ordinary consumer. By the way, one of the advantages is that such trainers are lightweight. Unfortunately it has some disadvantages as, for example, the fragility of the mechanism and some noise at operation.
- magnetic ellipticals. This model has a more complicated structure and smooth running, no noise production at operating, and have a magnetic braking system. They have a higher price than the mechanical devices that do not require a network connection.
- electromagnetic simulators. These are the most expensive machines in its class and of the highest quality. This model has a wide selection of programs to find the right intensity of your workout.
How to lose weight using the elliptical trainer?
As my story goes, I managed to lose 10 pounds in just 2 weeks. It’s all pretty simple – I gotta tell you. First of all, motivation is your best friend. Once you have the motivation and you know that you will go until the end and achieve the body of your dreams – go shopping for an elliptical trainer!
I did high intensity interval training with my elliptical trainer. You know what’s that right? Well, basically it means that you have to go as fast as you can for 30 seconds, and then go at your normal pace for 1 minute. You may want to increase the time for each cycle once you become more advanced. But the 30-second sprint/1-minute rest cycle will get you started just fine!
You must do as many of such cycles as you can. But do not overtrain – always check your heart rate monitor (if you have one). It is optimal to train 2-3 times per week.
I also have other recommendations on how to lose weight with an elliptical trainer. Do not ignore these ones, they are crucial.
- Pay attention to your diet. It is desirable to eat pre-workout protein foods and abandon the consumption of carbohydrates. Opt for such carbs as whole-grain products, brown rice, vegetables and fruit.
- Get a heart rate monitor.
- In addition to the training on an elliptical trainer do some other exercises – push-ups, abs exercises, pull-ups, sit-ups.
We don’t usually burden you with hard data, but unfortunately now is the time when we have to. The approximate level of calorie burning for women during half-hour sessions is as follows:
- When the body weight is 50 kilograms, you can burn about 241 calories
- When the body weight is 60 kilograms, you can burn about 310 calories
- When the body weight is 70 kilograms, you can burn about 387 calories.
Exercise program on the elliptical trainer that allows to burn calories
In one 30-minute workout you can burn from 240 to 380 calories. The number of calories depends not only on the intensity, but also on your own weight. The greater the weight, the more calories you will be able to burn.
- The first day. A 30-minute workout, with an average intensity is enough.
- The second day. 5 minutes of exercise with an average intensity level (warm up) three minutes with fast high load, two minutes of quiet exercises. This program is repeated 4 times (not including warm-up), and then completed with a 5-minute cool down in a calm pace.
- The third day. A 5-minute warm-up, then gradually increase the intensity for 15 minutes, followed by a gradual decrease of the load for 15 minutes.
- The fourth day. The training begins with a 5-minute warm-up and ends with cool down and includes training with the average speed and minimal resistance.
- The fifth day. After a 5-minute warm-up followed by 3 minutes of acceleration, 2 minutes of training with maximum intensity on high speed follow. A set of exercises is repeated for 4 times and completed with cool down. As a result, in a single week of exercise, you can lose a total of from 1,200 to 1,900 calories. Do not forget that in order to lose weight, you should burn more calories than you consume.
Results from the use of the elliptical exerciser for burning calories
Besides the traditional 240-380 calories that can be burned during 30 minutes of training on elliptical, you also get the opportunity to:
- reduce the total body weight
- strengthen the heart muscle
- develop the muscles of the arms and legs
- improve blood circulation
- decrease heart rate at rest and under different loads
- increase body endurance
- get the energy for the day (if you have the morning workout)
- relieve stress
You can lose weight with the help of elliptical trainer only in combination with a clean diet, maintaining a healthy lifestyle and regular workouts at which caloric expenditure will be maximized.
It is better for you not to run immediately after the training to the refrigerator for the next portion of sweet and fatty food. Before training you should pay attention to the protein food and limit the consumption of carbs.
How many calories can you burn in a single workout on the elliptical trainer?
I have mentioned before that in half an hour session, you can burn a minimum of 240 calories. On average, during one minute of training you can burn 13 calories, in an hour you can reach the burning of 780 calories.
Do not forget that the intensity of movements affects the number of calories burned. The intensity should be chosen depending on your level of athletic training. Remember that you should not increase the pace, if you feel uncomfortable. It will be reasonable to stop training, and at the next workout, reduce the intensity to a comfortable level.
We can’t stress enough that in order to get a perfect body, you must combine elliptical trainer workouts with a clean healthy diet – that’s the thing that helped me lose 10 pounds in just 2 weeks. It’s also great that nowadays you can easily find information about the caloric content of foods and components from which this food is made of.
Have you faced any challenges, trying to use an elliptical trainer? Let me know in the comments below.
