How to Use an Elliptical Trainer to Lose Weight (Even If You’re a Beginner)

Why People Love the Elliptical (and Why You Might Too)

An elliptical trainer combines the features of an exercise bike, a treadmill, and a stepper into one machine.

The elliptical is considered a fairly versatile tool for weight loss and staying in shape. So why is the elliptical trainer so popular among those looking to lose weight?

• Elliptical workouts combine strength and cardio training. When exercising on an elliptical machine, your body gets an aerobic workout, your heart rate increases, and your blood becomes oxygenated more quickly.
• During the workout, your body actively burns energy, helping you lose excess fat. This type of workout helps speed up your metabolism by tapping into the energy reserves already stored in your body, creating a calorie deficit, and helping you lose weight faster.

Thanks to regular elliptical workouts, you can even treat yourself to an extra serving of your favorite food without worrying that it will settle on your hips as extra pounds.

After all, it won’t be hard to burn off all those extra calories during a 30-minute session on an elliptical.

Read Next: Best 7 Ellipticals for Home Under $500

The Benefits of an Elliptical Machine for Weight Loss.

So, an elliptical trainer offers several advantages over other exercise machines if you want to lose weight without harming your body.

First, when you work out on an elliptical trainer, you’re guaranteed to burn a high number of calories. On average, a single 30- to 40-minute workout burns 300 to 400 calories, which is quite impressive. In other words, elliptical workouts are quite energy-intensive.

Also, due to the machine’s design, you engage several muscle groups during your workout, including your legs, chest, back, and arms. The main load falls on the thigh and gluteal muscles, but thanks to the movable handrails, you can simultaneously work your arms, shoulders, and core muscles.

Obviously, a workout that engages nearly half of the body’s muscles requires significant energy expenditure, which helps burn fat.

And, because you can adjust the angle of the pedals, you can control the intensity of the workout and choose the training mode that’s best for you.

So, by working out on an elliptical trainer, you’ll kill two birds with one stone: you’ll lose weight, build muscle, and generally strengthen your body and increase your endurance.

Versatile

An elliptical trainer is versatile. It can replace jogging, cycling, or even cross-country skiing for those who don’t have the time or opportunity to exercise outdoors.

Plus, when you work out on an elliptical, it’s like you’re running and cycling at the same time, which is great because it saves you time and helps you reach your goal faster. You’re guaranteed a great cardio workout and calorie burn in no time.

Mimics Running

Here’s another piece of good news: the elliptical machine is designed to mimic running or cross-country skiing, but unlike running, your heel doesn’t lift off the pedal during an elliptical workout, and your legs move along a precisely defined elliptical path, while your foot rolls from heel to toe, which eliminates impact on your joints.

Also, your legs are slightly bent during the workout. Despite the elliptical trainer’s similarity to a treadmill, using an elliptical trainer eliminates traumatic stress, and your joints suffer less than during regular running, so you don’t have to worry about the health of your knees.

Since your position on this machine is quite stable—thanks to the handrails you can hold onto—it’s ideal for overweight individuals and older adults.

You can start training on an elliptical machine at any intensity that suits you and your goals, regardless of your current fitness level—even if you find it difficult to climb a few stairs.

So, You Want to Lose Weight? Let’s figure out how to do it

So, how exactly should you use an elliptical trainer to lose weight? First, remember that one of the most important principles of training is consistency.

Don’t expect to see noticeable results by working out just once a week for an hour. All you’ll get in that case is muscle soreness, exhaustion, and fatigue.

To lose weight in the shortest time possible without hurting yourself, you need to follow some simple rules.

Workout routine. You should exercise regularly, at least 3 times a week, to see results in the form of weight loss.

If you’re a beginner, start with 20–30-minute workouts 3–4 times a week—no more—otherwise you’ll get tired, lose motivation, and end up hurting your body rather than losing weight.

People who have been working out at the gym for a long time can start with 45–60-minute sessions. Increase the intensity gradually, and make sure not to overdo it.

Don’t jump on the elliptical the moment you walk into the gym and train until you’re completely exhausted. Otherwise, in a few days, you simply won’t have the energy left to train, and you might end up with the opposite result of what you intended.

Early Morning is Best

It’s best to do elliptical workouts in the morning before breakfast, because fat burns more efficiently before eating. It all comes down to glycogen.

After a night’s sleep, your body’s carbohydrate stores are at a minimum, so if you work out on the elliptical before eating, your body will have to use the energy reserves it has already stored as body fat, which obviously promotes faster fat burning.

If that doesn’t work for you, then you can work out at any time that’s convenient for you, but remember to maintain consistency and frequency in your workouts.

Also, to burn excess fat faster, you can use the elliptical trainer after a strength-training session, since glycogen levels drop to their lowest after strength training.

But be careful if you have issues with blood sugar or metabolism. Too-intense workouts on an empty stomach can cause a rapid drop in blood sugar and dizziness. Avoid doing an elliptical workout for more than 40 minutes after strength training, or you’ll trigger muscle breakdown.

Maximum Safe Load

How to Maximize Results on an Elliptical Trainer

There aren’t any specific rules about exactly how you should move during your workout. You can push the handrails, pedal forward, or switch the machine to reverse mode to mix up your workout.

But remember, the more muscles you engage during your workout, the faster you’ll burn calories. So try to use all the machine’s features—especially since, as mentioned earlier, the elliptical is a great machine for working out multiple muscle groups at once.
Increase the intensity of your workouts gradually.

The elliptical is very convenient for adjusting the intensity of the workout. You can pedal faster or change the machine’s incline to simulate going uphill. This way, you’ll increase the intensity and give it your all during your workout.

Tons of Workout Programs To Choose From

You also have a great opportunity to diversify your workouts by choosing different programs.

Elliptical trainers offer a range of workout programs depending on your goals. They are divided into Manual, Fat Burn, Intervals, Cardio, Hill/Random, and Watt Control.

All modes are suitable for building muscle and losing weight, but if your primary goal is weight loss, you should pay special attention to workouts in the Fat Burn and Intervals modes.

Interval training is a training method in which you alternate short, intense periods of exercise with periods of rest or low activity.

For example, here’s a suitable plan for interval training on an elliptical trainer:
– warm-up: light walking for the first ten minutes, keeping your HRmax in the 40–50% range;
– active phase: brisk walking, with HRmax in the 60–70% range;
– slow walking for five minutes to bring your heart rate back down.

The duration of the intense intervals and rest periods, as well as the number of repetitions, depends on your fitness level, but remember that beginners should start with a less intense program where the active phase of the workout lasts up to 1.5 minutes and the rest period is 3–5 minutes, performing 8–10 such repetitions.

With this approach, you’ll see the first results in just 3 weeks.

Be sure to monitor your heart rate on the exercise machine’s display. This is very important to avoid overloading your heart during the workout and to keep your heart rate in the fat-burning zone, which makes the workout safe and truly effective.

The Fat Burn program involves a workout in which the resistance level is adjusted so that your heart rate automatically stays within the 60–70% range.

In this mode, the intensity is moderate but sustained over a long period (usually about 20 minutes). This type of workout is also effective for weight loss, as it triggers intense calorie burning and boosts your metabolism.

Another benefit is that your body will continue to burn fat for some time after the workout due to physiological processes.

Some Important Things to Remember Before Choosing an Elliptical

There are many different elliptical trainers with various functions and features. However, one of the most important factors to consider when choosing an elliptical trainer is its stride length. It’s very important to choose the right stride length that’s right for you.

Typically, a stride length of 40–45 cm suits most people. The taller you are, the longer your stride should be. This parameter directly affects your comfort during your workout and, therefore, your results. So always check whether the machine you plan to use is right for you.

You should also pay attention to the machine’s dimensions. The larger the elliptical, the higher the weight capacity. Keep this in mind before your workout to make it as effective as possible.

It’s also very important to consider how well your machine is equipped with various convenient features and components, such as adjustable resistance, a display showing your heart rate, speed, time, and calories burned, or non-slip pedal surfaces.

The more comfortable and modern the exercise machine, the more effectively you’ll train and the faster you’ll reach your goals. Plus, it’s simply more enjoyable to work out on a high-quality, modern exercise machine.

So, an elliptical trainer is an excellent choice for anyone looking to lose weight. With it, you can achieve great results: shed excess fat, boost your endurance, improve your health, and get into the shape you want. Workouts on an elliptical trainer are varied and never get boring, since you can constantly add something new to your routine by using all the features of this machine.

Plus, training on an elliptical machine minimizes risk and maximizes benefits. So if you want to achieve a great physique and feel confident, this wonderful machine is the best solution.