Archive for the ‘Elliptical Weight Loss Articles’ category

Tips For Losing Weight With Exercise Machines

February 16th, 2010

Many people are looking for a way to lose the weight that they have put on over the years and they just aren’t sure how to go about doing it. Losing weight with exercise machines is a great option because you can change up the workouts so you don’t get bored. Many people quickly get bored with walking running, but losing weight with exercise machines work because you can always change the routines.

Make Weight Loss Possible

Of course, if you have just one weight loss machine you may get bored. This is where a gym membership will come in really handy, as you’ll have access to a wide variety of machines. When you have access to many different machines you will be able to change things up, keep them interesting so you don’t get bored and so you will continue to lose weight.

Losing weight with exercise machines works because you can work different muscles with different machines. Instead of just targeting one part of the body you can target them all. You can not only get a good cardio workout on exercise machines, you can work each individual group of muscles so you lose weight and tone up at the same time. Doing pushups and sit ups will get boring in a hurry, but when you are constantly changing machines you will feel like you are making progress and you may even catch yourself having fun.

Luckily, losing weight with exercise machines is the goal of many different fitness centers that have opened up in the last few years. Many of these centers offer a few different exercise machines and they help you develop a program where you will rotate from one machine to another for a 30 minute period. After 30 minutes you will have used all of the machines, worked all of your muscle groups, burned fat and calories, and then you’ll be on your way. These exercise programs are so fast paced and scheduled that you don’t get board so you can keep hammering away at those pounds, reaching your weight loss goals in less time that you would have ever thought possible.

Losing weight with exercise machines work, but it only works as well as you are willing to work hard. If you are not willing to put any effort into losing weight you could have all of the gym memberships and all of the equipment in the world and you wouldn’t lose an ounce. If you are willing to put some work into it, you will find with the help of the machines that you are able to shed the pounds quite easily and effectively.

Heather thinks the Bowflex Revolution or the Bowflex Tread Climber are great machines to start with. Check them out today!

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Treadmill Or Elliptical – 2 Home Gym Cardio Options

February 9th, 2010

There is some confusion when it comes to which piece of cardio equipment to buy for a home gym, but the big two contenders are the elliptical and the treadmill. Both of these machines have pros and cons, but both can get you into good shape if you actually use them.

The elliptical has become one of the most popular units of cardio equipment. At big commercial gyms they can even outnumber the time-tested treadmills. That would have been unthinkable a few years ago. As a trainer, I’ve found that the elliptical machines tend to force people to a higher level of output, mostly by virtue of the unfamiliar motion combined with hand movement. That’s of course great for total calories burned, and that’s what it takes for real fat loss to occur. The motion on the elliptical is somewhat similar to running. Although on the elliptical, there is no jarring impact like that experienced with jogging. The elliptical makes it easy for individuals with sensitive or “bad” knees and joints to get a fat-burning cardio workout.

As mentioned earlier, most ellipticals have moving arms. This really helps force the heart rate up. Pulse rate goes up because, as more working muscles join in, the cardiovascular system has to work harder. If you’ve never seen one in use before, the arm motion creates something like a cross-country-skiing motion.

Since the elliptical tends to be quite intense cardio, many personal trainers recommend it. It may be a good step up from jogging on the treadmill, especially for individuals interested in fat loss. This is very true if they’re not experienced runners. But for people who enjoying running, the treadmill can actually be superior.

A treadmill exercise machine is perhaps the basis for indoor cardio. Nearly every gym has enough for an array of exercisers. It accommodates many fitness levels, from an easy walk to a full-on sprint.

If you’re considering a treadmill for a home gym, think about the following: Be sure that you purchase a treadmill that has a jogging area of 3 feet wide by 50 inches long or greater. If you’re 6 feet tall, you’ll definitely need a surface that long, or longer. Be sure to try any possible treadmill purchase out before you buy. And, make sure it gives adequate shock absorbing. Also, look for a treadmill with a 1.5 horsepower engine or greater. This is what’s found in commercial gyms.

Regardless of what you choose, aerobic training has many benefits. Many individuals feel more “energy” from aerobic or cardio workouts. This is true partially because cardio helps to increase aerobic capacity. (This capacity is associated with a quicker metabolism too.)

How can you tell if your treadmill or elliptical workout has put you in the so-called cardio zone without a heart rate monitor? In general, you need to at least break a sweat, but you shouldn’t go so hard that you couldn’t carry on a conversion using short sentences. You should stay within your target heart rate for at least twenty minutes.

Both the treadmill and the elliptical have pros and cons. The one you finally decide on is a very individual choice. Whether you end up with a treadmill or an elliptical, you’ll get benefits as long as you use it regularly.

Find fitness info and a personal trainer:
http://www.scottsdale-fitness-training.com/find-a-personal-trainer.html
http://www.scottsdale-fitness-training.com/scottsdale-personal-trainer.html

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3 Exercises That Leads to Constant Weight Loss

January 31st, 2010

Daily exercise alone is great for burning calories, but if you are not doing it properly it’s going to be a long, slow road to getting the weight loss you desire. Cardiovascular exercises increases your metabolic rate causing the fat burning capacity of your body to increase dramatically.

The truth is, it’s not only about trimming and getting rid of fat, and it should be more on strengthening the abs muscle. Just remember, when we talk about developing the abs, exercises alone aren’t enough. Weight loss exercises have helped many people who failed at lose weight. This article will reveal you the procedure on how to lose weight quickly and the three of the most effective exercises you can do at home.

1. THE LONG ARM CRUNCH

The long arm crunch is a variation of the traditional crunch that works the upper abdominal muscles. This exercise is harder than the traditional crunch and if done properly will provide some great results.

The exercise is done lying on an exercise mat with your back flat against the mat and your legs outstretched with your feet flexed. Then extend your arms above your head while gripping together forming a long arm lever that rests against the mat. Then hold your neck in a straight line with your spine as if resisting bending your neck as the crunch is done.

To perform the crunches effectively make sure to keep your back and heels pressed against the mat while completing the crunch. Raise your shoulder blades and arms off the mat to come up into a basic crunch using your upper abdominals.

Take a deep breath in the resting position before you start the crunch and exhale as you come up into the crunch. Take another deep breath in as your return to the resting position. If you are beginner a set of 12 to 16 repetitions is enough to start with and the number of repetitions can be increased as you become more comfortable with the exercise.

2. CROSSOVER CRUNCHES

Crossover crunch is another great exercise for the ab muscles. It is recommended that you do the crunch slowly when you do the “crossover” part of the crunch to engage the oblique muscles.

To do this exercise lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor about hip-width apart and gently place your fingertips behind your head. Cross your right leg over your left leg so your right ankle is resting on your left knee. Inhale and Raise your right shoulders up and toward your left knee as high and as far as possible twisting your torso to touch your left elbow to your right knee. Begin exhaling when you pass the sticking point.

At the maximum twist position, hold momentarily and exhale the rest of the air in your lungs. Inhale and return to the startReturn to the starting position and repeat for the desired number of repetitions before switching over to the other side.Raise your crossing shoulder as high as possible when you go into the twisting action to get the best results.

3. The Captain’s Chair: The #1 Best Ab Exercise

The Captain’s Chair is fairly inexpensive equipment made of a metal or wood frame in the shape of an extended chair with no seat, built with a pair of high, padded armrests fitted with small vertical posts or handles. You have to be careful when doing this exercise to keep your lower back stable when dong the exercise. Do not arch your back during this exercise. If you can’t do it correctly, then you shouldn’t do it at all.

The exercise is done while in a standing position. Stand on the chair and grip the handles to stabilize your upper body. Press your back against the pad and slowly lift knees until your thighs are horizontal. Raise your knees until they almost touch your chest. Hold the position is for a few seconds, and then slowly lower your legs until they are in the vertical position again.

Make sure to keep your lower back firmly in place – otherwise you won’t be strengthening your abs. If you don’t feel the tightening and burning in your abs after a few reps you’re probably not doing the exercise properly. Repeat the exercise 10 to 15 times for each set. You can do the exercise while sitting on an ordinary chair if The Captain’s Chair is not available.

Performing some sets for each of the abdominal exercises above on a regular basis in parallel with proper eating habits should lead you to constant weight loss.

The Myth of Daily Exercise: Does daily weight loss exercise successfully lead to long-term weight loss? Click here to find out why most people disagree!

To read more about “amazingly simple to understand and easy to conduct” weight loss exercises visit: http://plansweightloss.com/category/exercises-to-lose-weight.

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Lose Weight by Treadmill Walking – Is It Possible?

January 19th, 2010

Treadmills and elliptical trainers are the two most popular pieces of cardio exercise equipment both at the gym and in homes. They’re renowned for giving a great cardio workout, and you can’t really go wrong in choosing either one.

But let’s say you prefer the treadmill. Is it possible to lose weight just by walking on this machine? Well, yes, it is possible. But there are a few things you’ll need to know to make sure you’re not wasting your time.

The first mistake many people make when trying to lose weight by treadmill walking is increasing their calories after starting the exercise program. Treadmills will help you to lose weight by allowing your body to use up more calories than you take in. However, walking does not burn as many calories as say, triathlon training or a game of racquetball. Even so, many walkers think they need to use some of the dietary ‘training ads’ intended for participants in more intense sporting activities.

If you decide to ‘fuel’ your walking session by having an energy bar beforehand and a protein shake afterwards, you may be cancelling out the caloric deficit caused by your treadmill workout, and therefore not lose any weight.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not advocating starving yourself. This is counter-productive and will just make your body start holding onto fat because it thinks there’s a famine going on. But eat your regular amount of calories or slightly less, and make it good clean food, not junk, in order to see weight loss from treadmill walking.

Also, in order to lose weight from treadmill walking, you’ll need to exercise hard enough to get into your “fat burning zone”, which is from 60-80 percent of your maximum heart rate. Just strolling easily on the machine will probably accomplish little visible weight loss, unless you can do it for six hours a day. Try and get to a point where you could just barely carry on a conversation. If you can sing, you’re going too slow, and if you can’t talk, you’re going too fast – unless you’re doing interval training.

What is interval training? With this type of workout, you would raise the intensity of the walking, say to a jog, for anywhere from 20 seconds to a few minutes, then return to easier walking for about the same amount of time. Continue alternating work and rest periods. By interspersing these hard and easy phases, you can get the same weight loss benefits from a 20 minute workout that it would take 45 minutes to an hour to achieve at a slower pace. That’s because interval workouts cause your body to burn more calories around the clock, rather than just during the workout as with the longer and easier walking sessions. If you do choose to use intervals, then try over time to make the work periods harder, decrease the rest periods, or both, in order to burn even more fat, which is of course what losing weight is all about.

To learn more about using a treadmill, or anything having to do with health and fitness, check out the Health and Fitness Guide at http://www.thehealthandfitnessguide.com

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Quick Weight Loss Tips For Using Elliptical Machines

January 17th, 2010

For the majority of fitness enthusiasts who use elliptical machines, they just see the equipment as another means of being able to perform cardiovascular exercise. What they don’t realise is the huge potential that ellipticals have for quick weight loss. These machines can have you shedding up to 14lbs in just one month if used correctly along with a good workout plan.

1. The first of my quick weight loss tips for using elliptical machines.

 

Most elliptical machines on the market which you may use at home or in the gym have dual action foot pedals and handle bars. It is very important that you make use of this, using both arms and legs during your workout. This means the entire body is being used and the heart has to pump faster which ultimately optimises your calorie burn for shedding fat.

 

2. The second of my quick weight loss tips for using elliptical machines.

 

Not only should you be performing total body workouts but if you are fortunate to be using elliptical machines with reverse motion, by all means use it. Reverse motion allows you to target muscles that you would not normally use in forward motion. As you are not used to using these muscles you may struggle at first but with the more muscles you are working, the more calories you will burn during a workout.

 

3. The third of my quick weight loss tips for using elliptical machines.

 

Just like with running, there are different forms of training that can be performed on elliptical machines to boost calorie burn and weight loss. Interval training has been proven to be a very effective method. . By alternating moderate with high intensity bursts at intervals of 1-2 minutes, you are not only mixing up the workout but your body is also burning stored fat to supply the heart with more energy.

 

4. The fourth of my quick weight loss tips for using elliptical machines.

 

Make use of power inclines and resistance settings. Many new elliptical machines come with power inclines. This feature allows you to work the backs of your legs but just like with walking up hills or even up stairs, this is an exercise that will have the body working overtime to burn calories. The greater the resistance the harder the body has to work. Which is why even if you are working at no incline, a higher resistance setting will effectively burn more fat.

 

I think it is clear from my quick weight loss tips that by fully utilising the features on elliptical machines and really working your complete body during workouts, you have the biggest advantage at burning more calories and shedding unwanted fat. By performing these workouts daily, you can be well on your way to a perfectly toned body.

Simon P is currently the author of http://www.elliptical-machines.net and is dedicated to providing fresh information and product reviews on everything about elliptical machines. Affordable for the home, they produce amazing weight loss results. Click here for more FREE information. You have nothing to lose but weight!

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