Elliptical 75-90 Mins Low Res High Reps

i use the eloptical machine at Golds Gym for 60 minutes and i use either the weight loss program or the variety program and i burn between 200 to 300 calories in one hour.

Bottom line up front: Burn as many calories going as hard as you can.

Aerobic exercise is when your body combines fat with oxygen to create ATP, the energy your muscles need to contract.
Anaerobic exercise is when your body utilizes the glycogen stored in your muscles as fuel. This does not require oxygen.

The Aerobic process is a relatively slow one. As long as your heart rate is below 60% of your threshold from cardio type exercise, it will utilize primarily fat as the fuel source. As your HR gets above 60% more and more glycogen gets used, until finally about 90% of the fuel is coming from glycogen.

So, you may think to yourself, "Aha, what I want to do is keep my HR below 60%". Not really. Here's the thing, it's not like your body STOPS using fat at a higher HR. It's just the relative percentage. 100% of 10 calories a minute (10) is not as much fat as 80% of 15 calories per minute (12).

Also, when your body consumes glycogen it wants to replace it. So if you burn a calories worth of glycogen, then the next calorie of carbohydrate you eat gets turned back into glycogen. So, no fat gain from that food. And your body can't use it to supply energy, so it has to metabolize fat. It's a free calorie!

Next, when you push your HR up into the cardio zone, above about 75%, it gets stronger. Much stronger. Your body becomes more effective at pushing oxygen around. This lowers your resting HR (a good thing) and allows you to work at higher intensity levels at the same HR. So early on a HR of 60% may only burn you 10 calories per minute, but through consistent cardiovascular training you can push that up to about 15 calories per minute.

Now, about that resistance level. It needs to be HIGH before it becomes an anaerobic process. You're probably on either a Precor or maybe a Cybex elliptical. With the Precor's you're talking about 13 to 18 on the resistance (depending on your leg strength) before it becomes similar to lifting weights. If you aren't seriously straining to get a stride in, it's fine.

So go hard, hard, hard for about 30 minutes. Maybe look into some High Intensity Interval Training. Then, for the next half hour keep your HR below 60%. You will burn more calories in the short term. Improve your heart's health. And enable your body to burn even more calories in the long run. And still plow through plenty of fat.

As to the calorie burn, the most effective method of calculation is to use a HR monitor, along with knowledge about your VO2 Max, Lean Body Mass, gender, age, weight, etc. Although that's an entirely different discussion. Basically, just use whatever the machine says. It will all be an estimate either way.

Bottom line up front: Burn as many calories going as hard as you can.

Aerobic exercise is when your body combines fat with oxygen to create ATP, the energy your muscles need to contract.
Anaerobic exercise is when your body utilizes the glycogen stored in your muscles as fuel. This does not require oxygen.

The Aerobic process is a relatively slow one. As long as your heart rate is below 60% of your threshold from cardio type exercise, it will utilize primarily fat as the fuel source. As your HR gets above 60% more and more glycogen gets used, until finally about 90% of the fuel is coming from glycogen.

So, you may think to yourself, "Aha, what I want to do is keep my HR below 60%". Not really. Here's the thing, it's not like your body STOPS using fat at a higher HR. It's just the relative percentage. 100% of 10 calories a minute (10) is not as much fat as 80% of 15 calories per minute (12).

Also, when your body consumes glycogen it wants to replace it. So if you burn a calories worth of glycogen, then the next calorie of carbohydrate you eat gets turned back into glycogen. So, no fat gain from that food. And your body can't use it to supply energy, so it has to metabolize fat. It's a free calorie!

Next, when you push your HR up into the cardio zone, above about 75%, it gets stronger. Much stronger. Your body becomes more effective at pushing oxygen around. This lowers your resting HR (a good thing) and allows you to work at higher intensity levels at the same HR. So early on a HR of 60% may only burn you 10 calories per minute, but through consistent cardiovascular training you can push that up to about 15 calories per minute.

Now, about that resistance level. It needs to be HIGH before it becomes an anaerobic process. You're probably on either a Precor or maybe a Cybex elliptical. With the Precor's you're talking about 13 to 18 on the resistance (depending on your leg strength) before it becomes similar to lifting weights. If you aren't seriously straining to get a stride in, it's fine.

So go hard, hard, hard for about 30 minutes. Maybe look into some High Intensity Interval Training. Then, for the next half hour keep your HR below 60%. You will burn more calories in the short term. Improve your heart's health. And enable your body to burn even more calories in the long run. And still plow through plenty of fat.

As to the calorie burn, the most effective method of calculation is to use a HR monitor, along with knowledge about your VO2 Max, Lean Body Mass, gender, age, weight, etc. Although that's an entirely different discussion. Basically, just use whatever the machine says. It will all be an estimate either way.

PHEW!!! Long winded, but dead on!! Go Hard Hard Hard for 30! I've been at this for a couple yeatrs now, and the elliptical has been a go to for me the whole time. GO HARD!! you wont regret it!

An elliptical can be an effective tool in obtaining basic cardio fitness and weight loss. Especially for someone who can't run (knee issues, bad weather, etc.).

Going at a steady pace will allow you to burn a steady stream of calories and based on your heart rate (exertion) you will burn a mix of carbs, fat and muscle. If you're doing this in a fasted state, there will be limited carbs used, and the energy will come from fat and muscle. Studies have shown that HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) is the most effective way to burn fat. An elliptical is a great machine to do HIIT training.

After you've gotten warmed up, try adjusting the resistance (i.e., from 3 to 8) and stride as fast as you can for thirty seconds and then switch back. Let your heart rate return to where it was when you started the "sprint." Repeat this several times during your workout. Over time, you'll find you can increase the base resistance and the sprint resistance. You're getting more fit.

As for the calories burned, the machine is giving you an estimate. That estimate can be off by as much as 20%. Instead of counting every calorie burned as a reason to eat, pay attention to your energy level, your sleep quality and how you look and feel in general. That is a better gauge of whether you're doing the right things.

The man knows of what he speaks :-)

Hi I have a question. If I go on the elliptical for 40 minutes and burn 501 calories at 6'0 200lbs female, is that just moderate effort or is it at the high intensity everyone's talking about.