Lose the eliptical!

[stevesmi]

I see the same people in the gym everyday on the eliptical. getting absolutely no where. day in and day out. they are just wasting their time. yes THEY ARE WASTING THEIR TIME. did u know a brisk 15 minute walk or a 5 minute sprint gives you the same cardio workout as 45 minutes on the eliptical gives you?

so get off the eliptical and get on the treadmill!! or better yet get outside and find a trail to run or a track. you will get much better results. ask any runner and they will tell you that when they've used just the eliptical for a week while training they've LOST speed on their 5K times. I lost 1 minute off my 5K after using the eliptical for 1 week without running.

you want to get good at running then RUN. you want to really give your body a workout then RUN!

 

[Vinny65]

Ahh, it drives me crazy to see people on ellipticals! I feel like it is common knowledge that they are counterproductive. It is just an easy thing for people to do at the gym for an easy workout--lazy people! At least they aren't crowding the gym for the rest of us I guess...

 

[Roofus]

ask any runner and they will tell you that when they've used just the eliptical for a week while training they've LOST speed on their 5K times. I lost 1 minute off my 5K after using the eliptical for 1 week without running.

This is good scientific evidence.

 

[stevesmi]

This is good scientific evidence.

if you are gonna go off scientific crap when it comes to workout out and not go with people on here who are more experienced then you are only hurting yourself.

the common sense reasons are that the eliptical is way way way easier to get 1 mile on, then it would be to run a mile. it helps you get that 1 mile. it takes very little effort on the body's part. hence it is WASTING TIME.

45 minutes on the eliptical isn't as good a workout as running or walking much less time.

anyone who works out on a regular basis knows this.

the only people who should be using eliptical are people who suffer from injuries which makes running not possible or people who are trying to slowly make their way back from an injury other then that no matter what your endurance level you should be walking and running.


So why doesn't the elliptical work? Because you just don't do as much mechanical work as you do when you run or cycle. Basically, it's just easier and less effective. Getting your heart rate up is not the key determinant of fat loss.

Your body is a well programmed machine. It's 'wired' to increase heart rate and breathing as soon as it senses motion (that's why you start to breathe heavily after taking a single flight of stairs - it's not just because you are unfit).

But even then, I still don't think using a high resistance level on the ellliptical will get you the results you are looking for. Yet despite their ineffectiveness, elliptical machines and the like remain a popular training method. But that's only due to the human condition - like flowing water, we seek the path of least resistance. We'll will do anything to get around obstacles rather than doing the real work required to overcome the obstacles. Given the choice, humans always go with the easiest option.

Compare the elliptical to the Stairmaster. Stairmasters are more effective but less popular. Why? Because we've found something easier (the elliptical) that still gives us the comfort of a sweat and an elevated heart rate (even if we don't get the results). And now millions of gym goers pat themselves on the back after flailing around on the elliptical for 30 minutes and thinking they've been shedding fat.


so stick with those scientific reasonings (funded by the eliptical companies no less), to justify your wasting time and getting nowhere. I will stick with the common sense report which shows that the eliptical is ABSOLUTE SHIT. I wouldn't even use it to warmup

 

[stevesmi]

Ahh, it drives me crazy to see people on ellipticals! I feel like it is common knowledge that they are counterproductive. It is just an easy thing for people to do at the gym for an easy workout--lazy people! At least they aren't crowding the gym for the rest of us I guess...

the only good thing the elipticals do for me is that I enjoy watching the hot chicks on them.

I really do believe that people actually think it does something for them. I swear like I said in my post above.. the same people are on it day in and day out, and they are getting absolutely nowhere. if they would just run 2-3X per week they would blow their eliptical workouts away.

 

[BLM Shot]

I think it is hilarious when people hop on with no resistance at all and just start cruising along. I crack up when people go balls out and there is no resistance. I do think that if the resistance is all the way up, the elliptical can help, but really one should just get in a bad ass hill day. HILLS!!!!

It also cracks me up when people are on the treadmill with the incline cranked up, but they are leaning back and hanging on to the top of the machine (by the tv) for dear life. It is a simulating hill lean into it like it is a HILL. Or better yet, go outside and run a HILL.

 

[stevesmi]

^^^^^ Yup. hills are freakin awesome. and even if you live in a flat area you can always find them..

 

[BLM Shot]

Some days I just cruise on hils and adjust pace as needed. Even better and more fun -I love to play a game that I never slow down for hills. If I am having a day where I am hammering on the flats and I hit a hill I better keep hammering. I will puke before I slow down.

 

[The Instrumentalist]

ellipticals have their place... parked right in front of me supporting a tight little hottie in yoga pants!

 

[rouss]

he is absolutly right. If you want a good cardio workout ,get out of the gym and get on a 400 meter track. When I satarted , I could hardly do a lap. Now I can do a 10k or more, stopwatch in hand, with a 20 pound weight vest. I look and feel better.. The gym in for weights.