Stigma around elliptical machines

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  • leahkathleen13
    leahkathleen13 Posts: 272 Member
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    I like eliptical so much I bought one. When I go to the gym I do weights and at home I do my cardio. I like it because I can get my heart rate high and I zone out on the time. I have an incline and resistance on it. It works great!
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,344 Member
    edited October 2016
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    GottaBurnEmAll wrote: »
    Oof... found a post from Mr. Glute himself. Smith Machines are cool by him for hip thrusting:

    https://bretcontreras.com/b-t-always-thrusting/

    Smith machine or not, just NEVER make eye contact while doing them.

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  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,523 Member
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    SCoil123 wrote: »
    I have a damaged MCL on one knee and spent 6 weeks recently for a meniscus injury on the other. I can't run or do high impact activities anymore. I love the eliptical as a source of cardio that doesnt hurt me.
    I almost detached my MCL and tore my menicus in the same knee at the beginning of the year. After a conservative rehab and strength program, I can run again, do squats and leg press again and even box jump (though I'm still staying under 40"). You CAN get back to being closer to 100% with a good rehab/strength program.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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  • nikkigaud
    nikkigaud Posts: 3 Member
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    I wanted to like ellipticals. I really did. But when I first used one at my gym I realized I couldn't easily go through the motions with the handles because I'd be stretching my arms up. :D Being 5ft tall makes it look a bit sillier than I had hoped. I definitely intend on mastering them at my height though!
  • Retakesfitness
    Retakesfitness Posts: 22 Member
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    Works great for me! Sometimes I do 30 on the elliptical and 30 on the treadmill! I push myself fast as I can for 60 seconds and do a moderate pace for 60 seconds, Im drenched by the end of the 30 minutes
  • Calyse90
    Calyse90 Posts: 147 Member
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    I prefer the elliptical over the treadmill.
  • Amberonamission
    Amberonamission Posts: 836 Member
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    I figure anything that leaves me breathless is good for my endurance. I am not big on the 'cardio for weightloss' thing. But, I do find that it serves the purpose of what I want to do. The treadmill hurts all of my joints i find it worse than stairs on my knees.
  • MostlyWater
    MostlyWater Posts: 4,294 Member
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    I use the elliptical. It's not my only workout though.

    You also need to do weights, and stretching of course.
  • thehexenbiest
    thehexenbiest Posts: 114 Member
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    My current workout plan includes 20 minutes on the elliptical (10 as warmup, 10 just to burn) and I don't have any problems with it. But then again, I could pretty much choose any of the other machines, except maybe those that are hard on the joints because of my weight. I have no idea if the elliptical is more effective but I sure feel more winded and get pretty much soaked through on that. For example those ten minutes per unit really leave me feeling like I worked hard whereas I can do 30 on a bike and still feel like I can do another round.

    Either way, it sounds like whatever the OP's doing, he's doing it right, judging by his success so far. I'm generally going with if it feels right and I see results, I'm okay.

    As far as young males on ellipticals are concerned, I find that a lot of male members at my gym avoid the cardio area as much as they can, so I don't think this is exclusively about that one machine.
  • Kira_72
    Kira_72 Posts: 11 Member
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    Cardio is never 'bad' or 'waste of time' :)
    Treadmill, eliptical, walking, hiking....just do it!
  • AnnyisOK
    AnnyisOK Posts: 121 Member
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    Some people like to knock them. I think it's like anything else fitness...you're going to have snobs.
    When I started out on my fitness journey I started with an elliptical. I lost 50 lbs with it.
    It was my first experience with a cardio machine that led me to get into running and now I'm running long distance races. The mileage on it isn't the same as walking/running on a treadmill, much like training on a treadmill isn't the same as training for a race outdoors.

    If it works for you, do it, plus, it's better for the knees.

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