Let’s face it, we could all stand to lose a few pounds. If you’re someone who is motivated to trim their waistline, the next logical question is: “What is the best way to lose weight?”
The simple and scientific answer is to calculate your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) and execute a plan that creates a daily caloric deficit. Over time, this deficit will cause your body to burn fat. These newfound healthy habits will translate into you seeing a smaller number each time you step on the scale.
If dieting and exercise were easy, everyone would do it! Unfortunately, we all have our reasons as to why we DON’T do it. That’s why it’s important to develop a routine that specifically works for you.
What worked for me was creating a sensible routine that involved healthy eating and exercising on an elliptical. Here’s why I recommend using an elliptical for weight loss.
Is an Elliptical Right for You?
One of the most common reasons people stop going to the gym is that they find themselves in pain after a few visits.
Pumping iron certainly has its benefits but if you’re someone who isn’t used to the daily grind of the gym life, the pain you experience after lifting weights could serve as a demotivator.
So many newbie gym rats believe that they have to perform 2-hour pump sessions in order to drop some pounds.
The truth is, if you aren’t used to going to the gym, you should probably ease into the process of lifting weights.
But let’s get back to our main goal.
If your main goal is to lose weight, research from the National Institute of Health suggests that the best way to do this is to focus on cardio. That totally made sense to me.
What Exactly is Cardio?
Experts refer to cardio as aerobic activities such as walking, jogging, cycling or swimming.
I had a problem with each of these routines. For starters, walking and jogging is hard on my joints.
Cycling can be fun but I don’t enjoy sitting down for long periods of time and my city isn’t conducive to cycling.
While I enjoy swimming, I have to be honest, I was a bit intimidated going to the public pool and swimming laps around seasoned swimmers.
My solution was simple: I decided to use the elliptical machine. Why?
My elliptical weight loss solution allowed me to burn calories in a manner that didn’t strain my feet, hips, ankles or knees. I always “Felt the burn” after using the elliptical but I never felt like I was in so much pain that I couldn’t move after my workout.
Making the decision to base my weight loss regiment around using an elliptical was the key to success on my weight loss journey.
The Cardio Benefits of Elliptical Machines
All of the pieces to the weight loss puzzle were right in front of me. I just had to put it all together.
I knew I needed to focus on cardio but I wanted to make sure that my elliptical weight loss plan was an effective solution.
After all, I’d hate to waste all of this time, effort, money and energy using an elliptical if there were a better solution on the market.
As I performed my research, I discovered that my initial thoughts about using an elliptical for cardio were true.
Personal trainers from all over the globe agree that using an elliptical for weight loss is a safe and effective way for people to increase cardio activity.
This isn’t an opinion. It’s definitely a fact. Simply go to any gym at its peak hours and notice how many people are using the elliptical machine.
In fact, it’s not uncommon for there to be a wait. That’s one of the reasons I decided to buy my own.
How the Elliptical Helps You Lose Weight
The elliptical machine helps you lose weight by increasing your heart rate. As you move your arms and legs, your heart must pump more blood into your muscles.
Consequently, your body requires more oxygen to perform these activities. In order to provide energy for this activity, your body uses its fat reserves to facilitate this process.
The end result is that over time, your body begins to look more sculpted and those jeans you could wear as a teenager finally begin to fit again.
Outside of that, the elliptical increases your stamina. As you become more accustomed to providing blood flow and oxygen to the extremities of your body, activities that left you short of breath might seem a bit easier to perform.
Getting the Most Out of Your Elliptical Routine
Simply hopping on an elliptical for 30-60 minutes at a time can get kind of boring. While some exercise is certainly better than no exercise, your goal should be to get the most of your elliptical routine.
That being said, for the first week or two, find a good pace on the machine that will help you establish an activity baseline.
Make it a priority to spend at least 30 to 60 minutes on the machine during the first two weeks. Ensure that you’re using the machine at least 3 to 4 times per week.
If you find it difficult to hit 60 minutes of activity, set your goal at 30 minutes of activity and work your way up from there. Don’t overdo it, just focus on getting into the habit of using the machine.
Perfecting Your Routine
After you’ve established a baseline, you can begin to work on different routines. The best way to perfect your elliptical weight loss routine is to begin incorporating high interval training.
During Weeks 3 and 4:
If you’re comfortable doing 30 minutes on the elliptical, consider adding a single 5-minute period into the routine where you use the machine in a manner that leaves you nearly out of breath.
If you’re comfortable doing 60 minutes on the elliptical, considering adding two 5-minute periods into the routine that leave you short of breath.
These bursts of activity will help accelerate the process of burning calories. After you’ve completed these 5-minute high intensity intervals, simply moderate your pace and regain your breath and focus on finishing your workout.
Weeks 5, 6 and Beyond
After a month of regular use on the elliptical, you should take a step back and analyze your progress.
Just the fact that you’ve made it through one month of training is quite the accomplishment. I was certainly proud of using my elliptical regularly for a month.
If you’re still doing 30 minutes, work your way up to 60 minutes. If you’re already doing 60 minutes, add more high-intensity intervals.
The more calories you burn, the faster you’ll get to your weight loss goal.
Accurately Predicting Weight Loss with an Elliptical
The best thing about incorporating an elliptical weight loss strategy is that you can predict your weight loss progress with eerily accurate precision.
Most people lose 1 pound of fat when they burn 3,500 calories. The amount of time you spend on an elliptical is directly proportionate to the number of calories you burn.
When you couple this with a sensible diet, you can create a daily calorie deficit.
To predict how much weight you’ll lose, simply add up your daily calorie deficit and multiply that by 7.
If you’ve created a 500 calorie per day deficit, you should burn 3,500 calories per week. This means you’ll lose 1 pound of fat per week.
Beware of “Newbie” Weight Loss Progress
Losing weight is as simple as doing a 4th grade math problem. At its core, weight loss is an input versus output equation.
However, you should be aware that if you’re going from a sedentary lifestyle to an active lifestyle, it’s entirely possible that you’ll begin shedding pounds at a much more rapid pace than the equation I provided above.
The reason for this relies on a variety of different factors.
For some, sweating might cause you to shed water weight. For others, the movements you perform on an elliptical might cause you to loosen your bowels.
Not to get too gross but it’s not uncommon to store up to 10lbs of stool. It’s important to bring this up because that number on the scale might surprise you as you’ve changed your eating habits and increased your activity levels.
It’s important to recognize WHY you can rapidly lose weight at the beginning of your elliptical weight loss journey.
On the flip side, your weight loss progress might seem to taper off after a few weeks.
As long as you understand WHY this is happening, you’ll understand that this is entirely normal.
IMPORTANT: Be aware that this isn’t your weight loss progress stalling. This is your body getting used to its new weight loss regiment.
While you may see significant weight loss in the first few weeks, don’t be discouraged if you aren’t seeing the same dramatic results on weeks 4, 5 and beyond.
Becoming Mentally Prepared for Dropping the Pounds
I specifically highlighted the phenomenon of “Newbie” weight loss progress because you shouldn’t expect to lose 5-10 pounds per week, every week that you use the elliptical.
I just needed to highlight why so many people see immediate results when they implement these lifestyle changes.
Being mentally prepared for your weight loss journey is just as important as being physically prepared.
If you can manage your expectations properly, you can get the most out of your experience using an elliptical machine.
The Weight Loss Plateau Trap
One of the traps mentally unprepared individuals fall into is what health professionals call “The Weight Loss Plateau” trap.
Just because you aren’t losing weight like you did in the first few weeks doesn’t mean that your elliptical weight loss strategy isn’t working.
It’s easy to trick yourself into thinking your progress has plateaued when you’re simply burning fat at a normal rate.
Remember, 3,500 calories burned is roughly equivalent to 1 pound of fat. The other part of this equation is that as you continue to do cardio, you might be replacing fat with muscle.
Instead of solely relying on the number you see on the scale, you should also measure your progress using a BMI calculator.
Use Other Metrics Besides the Scale
An even simpler method is to measure your progress is to take chest and waistline measurements.
Your weight might stay the same for a bit but your measurements could be getting smaller. This is entirely normal for individuals who are using an elliptical for weight loss benefits.
The main takeaway from the weight loss plateau fallacy is to never give up.
If you micromanage your elliptical weight loss strategy, you’re only setting yourself up for failure.
Trust the process and don’t get discouraged if your weight plateaus. This is only temporary and you’ll continue to lose weight as long as you stick to the plan.
Final Takeaways for Losing Weight with an Elliptical
Male or female, young or old, using an elliptical for weight loss is an excellent tool to implement in conjunction with your weight loss strategy.
As you make your final decision, consider these key takeaways when deciding whether or not an elliptical is right for you:
- Ellipticals require far less maintenance than a treadmill
- Ellipticals are easier on your joints
- Ellipticals can provide detailed health analytics such as calories burned, etc
- Ellipticals are extremely safe to use
- Ellipticals take up much less space than a treadmill
Before you start a weight loss plan, it’s always important to consult your physician. No one knows your personal health situation better than your physician so be sure to get your doctor’s blessing before you make any drastic lifestyle changes.
While weight loss revolves around the concept of calories consumed versus calories burned, your doctor can give your important details regarding the specific nutrition you should be incorporating into your weight loss plan.
For example, should you reduce your sodium intake? Should you incorporate more fatty acids?
Your doctor can help point you in the right direction on much of this because they’ll take blood and analyze the results in order to give you an accurate assessment of your current health status.
The most exciting part of this is that you’ll be able to see the before and after results when you visit your doctor for a follow up appointment.
If you execute your weight loss plan with precision, brace yourself for a barrage of compliments and congratulations from your peers. They’ll notice your success and ask, “How did you do it!?”
