Weight loss with Elliptical??

Sytera

I've only been at it officially for a couple weeks, but I'm only doing elliptical (a mini one). I get it on it daily for 30-60 minutes. I don't plan on doing any weight training right now. We plan on having one more kid after my husband is home from deployment so I will wait until after that to bust my *kitten* to build muscle. Right now I just want to get my weight down and get in decent shape. Burning calories to get my deficit, be it from elliptical, walking my dogs, or breastfeeding our 6 month old, is all I need to do right now.

weight2go

Well I tried the random setting and I got to admit, I feel like I do when Ive done 65mins. I only did 35. Thanks for putting this out there.

2012asv

Try switching up your routine a little bit- Do you use weights on the elliptical ? Try it. Also try doing squats on it or turning up the resistance high.

secretlobster

I did lose weight by exercising on the elliptical with a high intensity, but I also made sure my calorie intake was lower.
The weight you lose from exercising is directly related to your heart rate.

The people who don't lose weight on the elliptical machines (and there are many) are the ones who go through the motions without ever breaking a sweat. If your eating is great, you should look honestly at the intensity of your cardio workout.

If exercise isn't difficult, it's probably doing nothing for you.

marckilgore

All I use is an elliptical, and I am having great results after I got one that had a heart rate monitor built into it.. I do it 6-7days a week for 30-40 minutes. I set the elliptical for 80% heart rate (136bpm for my weight/age) and keep it there for the workout. The elliptical automatically adusts the intensity to keep my heart rate at 80%, and it works absolutely fantastic for me. Without that capability, I don't think I would work out at the level required to get maximum calorie burn. The machine I use is an Octane Fitness Q45e, and I don't think it would be worth it to own an elliptical or treadmill that didn't have this same tie in between the heart rate monitor and workout modes. The nice thing is that I can switch between cardio and strength workouts on my model. Of course, none of this matters if you don't count calories that you consume every day.

cca1984

I been using the elliptical 5 times a week and I believe it's working. I do intervals and I really feel list working for me.

sskrzypek090

Get yourself a heart rate monitor. Calorie assumption on an elliptical is on the high side of estimation. To be accurate, you have to keep your heart rate in the fat burning zone. You can't just go on and half it expecting to get the results you want. That's the mistake a lot of people make.

pinky_pinkster

I do 30 mins on level 3 - but not sure if its really doing anything, I feel tired afterwards and my heart rate goes up, reading these posts makes me think maybe I should be going at a higher level?

deminimis

Most everything already discussed here, but do not go by what MFP states as an elliptical calorie burn. For me, MFP results are nearly twice actual results (I go with roughly 100 cals/10 minutes-which is a bit less than my reading with my HRM). Also, if you've already taken exercise into account when setting up your profile, then do not delete elliptical cals from your daily cal allowance (a mistake I made early on---oops, cost me 500/cal day). Another trick is to understate your weight when entering your information on the machine by 10 pounds or so, to help get a less inflated reading. Also as stated above, mix it up. I like the interval program and tweak it as I work through it (backwards for 1-2 min here and there, pushing 1 min here and there, pulling 1 min here and there, free arm (the vast majority), sprinting 1 min here and there upwards of 200 rpms, gutting out a minute at a resistance of 15, etc., etc. -You get the idea). Generally keeping rpms at 130-ish, but will go as low as 100 for a minute if needed to bring down my HR and as high as 200 rpms while sprinting. Even after the 5 min cool down, my legs are noodles when finished. If you start with some weight training before, even better. Yes, Virginia, ellipticals can burn a lot calories, but you've got to put in the effort.

indybost

I have always had Great resluts with my elliptical, I do bust my butt on it though keeping my hr pritty hi, I was told it takes six weeks for ur body to gain mucel. Then the weight falls off. On the elliptical anyway I also let go of the handels and use my core to pedel I dance on it to lol also take ur meserments.!!!!!! Dont just watch the scale

Timshel_

Any advice would be appreciated.

I walk and lose weight. I would suspect it is more about calorie intake than exercise. Maybe too much/too little. But worth looking at.

34blast

You can lose weight doing any type of exercise if you have a caloric deficit.

I use it once or twice a week when my legs are shot from running or squats. The key like any cardio exercise is to monitor you heart rate. I find it extremely more difficult to get my heart rate as high on an elliptical as running. To get your heart rate up after warming up, jack with the ramp height and the resistance level. Make it hard enough you get into the target heart rate you are looking for. Adjust the variables as needed to stay in the heart rate zone you are looking for. I tend to use the elliptical for a longer lower heart rate training session e.g. 60 - 70% of max. Sometimes near the end I have to lower the resistance a little bit to lower my heart rate a little bit.

It is possible the calories it says burned are inaccurate. Maybe 33% too high, but hard to say for you without another measurement such as a polar heart monitor with the calories burned option(which they can be somewhat inaccurate as well). During logging the exercise calories, I use net calories for the EFX. Let's say for me while I'm awake and doing nothing I burn 100 kCal per hour. Let's say on the elliptical I do it for 1 hour or 700 calories. My net difference is 600 so that is what I log. It is probably pretty accurate for me if I really push it, but if I'm not working hard it probably overestimates a little bit. Overall, I find the F7 calories burned for me to be close to the commercial gym machine numbers and myfitnesspal.

mohammedfaraj7524

Try to make it one hour in a day, and you will see the changes and greatly results about only one one week.

mohammedfaraj7524

One hour on the standard level

mohammedfaraj7524

For five days in a week

ShaunConley

I'm 16, a month ago I weighed 290 lbs. I use the elliptical for 20 minutes a day, everyday. I eat as good as possible, honestly, a lot less than I should, but that's not an issue. I've lost twenty pounds in the last month, I now weigh 270. I'm sure soon I'll have to start working harder, longer, with different workouts, but right now, it's working a lot.

TheFitnessTutor

It doesn't matter. Eating is more important than type of exercise if your chief goal is weight loss. You're just trying to create a caloric burn. What happens 99 out of 100 times. People try to go too fast, eat too little, exercise too much, based on typical industry marketing based expectations, so a person is netting 12, 1300 calories a day or less. As you lose mass your metabolism is going to slow down regardless, Stress it with too much work and not enough nutrition and it will slow further. Now your metabolic rate is a weak sauce 1000 or something, as an example.

No I'm not a fan of this but as far as what you're asking it doesn't matter what kind of exercise and your body will adapt,yes, to the work, but your fat burning mechanism has little to do with this adaptation. You're always burning fat. Every second of the day. Period. People simply don't understand basic physiology and it's lead to what A FEW of us are hinting at. Eating.


Weight/resistance training combined with proper intake trumps typical cardio in EVERY facet. And if you're trying to rebound from an illness you're looking at some great adaptations that will help with that rebound from various metabolic related factors, when it comes to strength training. You don't have to lift maximum weight, but resistance period is almost a requirement for optimal health. Screw endurance. You're not training for a marathon I don't think?

Again the intake must match the work for optimal,healthy, and sustainable results.

With simple math and explanation but to make a point.....Look around and see how many people are coming in at 200 calories under their "goal" or more every day... Great, giggle, giggle, awesome burn yo! Guess what, at the end of the month your metabolic rate is 200 times 30=6000 calories weaker. Great way to lose 2 more lbs, but after a few months or year, the body's set point is 6000 calories a month less efficient than it could be.Setting one up for that industry standard GainBack. Don't make the common mistake of underrating and over exercising in an attempt to do anything. I should put this as an automatic signature since I say it all the time.

Dewymorning

Turn up the resistance. Vary the resistance. Vary your pace.

These is what the panda does.

MattWilleyPT

Go in bursts. Try going about 80-90% capacity for about 30 seconds, then take 90 seconds at about 50-60% to rest. Keep going back and forth like that. Thats How Ive seen my best results, when you are going the same speed, your body just gets set in a groove, when you keep it guessing you burn more calories.

If you can manage to do that 5 times a week, even for as little as 30 minutes a day you should see results, (obviously i have no idea of the shape you are in so take the times with a grain of salt, but try to keep that ratio)

Azdak

I have been exercising on the elliptical exclusively for a few weeks, 4 days/ week, 30 minutes each session.
I am not sure if it is just me but I am not losing any weight with whatever I am doing.
Have any of you had success with losing weight and using only the elliptical?
If so, how many days a week did you use it and for how long each time etc....?
Any advice would be appreciated.

You are probably burning less than 200 calories per workout.

MexicanOsmosis

Dietary choices resulting in calorie deficit = weight loss
Exercise (including strength training) = fitness/look better naked

Polarpaly05

Anybody else realize this thread is 2 years old? THREAD NECRO!!!!!!

MermaidSweat

Calories always calories.

btreatcpa

Shaun,

I hope you are still going strong. My husband is a little over where you started. I'm counting calories on MFP and training on the elliptical. I've only lost a few pounds and those were only when I'd do the elliptical on a regular basis.

Keep up the good work