Eliptical?

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ivylaurenolsen
ivylaurenolsen Posts: 56 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
So, if I am trying to burn fat and get thinner (I feel like my butt is already big and I want to tone it, not make it any bigger :), how high of a resistance should I do on the eliptical and for how long? Intervals? And that goes for any cardio machine. What is the best way to get rid of fat on them?

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  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,627 Member
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    you cant spot reduce. your body will lose fat where it wants to.

    no matter what machine you are on.

    as far as calorie burn, i would focus more on endurance and length of time you are able to go without having a heart attack or stroke.

    when i first started, i could barely do 10 minutes on the elliptical. Now. I can do an hour without thinking about it.

    adjust settings to what feels challenging to you, but not so challenging you cant do it.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
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    Best way is to be in a deficit. And the best way to create a deficit is with your diet first. Exercise allows you to eat a bit more. You will not tone your legs on the elliptical, not that cardio isn't good for you.
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    Calorie deficit=weight loss, exercise=fitness. Do what you feel comfortable with, and make sure you log your food accurately.
  • DaveAkeman
    DaveAkeman Posts: 296 Member
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    The C25K running program is a great way to get into cardio if you are running. However, if you want to do something else, you might look at its intervals and use them for whatever routine you are doing. For example, my wife used the C25K intervals on a stationary bicycle. (Started by riding 1 minute and resting 90 seconds, then repeating 8 times, on day 1, etc) I assume you could do this on an elliptical. Either stop and rest or reduce the resistance substantially when C25K says to walk.
  • glasshalffull713
    glasshalffull713 Posts: 323 Member
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    Weight training can help increase calorie burn for up to 48 hours after a workout. You burn less during the actual workout than you would during the same time doing cardio, but the increased afterburn from lifting actually makes it more effective overall. You might want to consider adding a few days of weight training to your routine.

    I wouldn't worry too much about settings and all that just show up. Moving more is a good thing whichever way you slice it. Don't lean on the machines when your working out just so you can increase the settings. That defeats the purpose.
  • fastforlife1
    fastforlife1 Posts: 459 Member
    edited May 2015
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    High Intensity Interval Training is the best way to burn calories in the shortest time doing aerobic exercise. Dr Mercola has some excellent videos on how it works.
  • mccindy72
    mccindy72 Posts: 7,001 Member
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    ivylaurenolsen wrote: »
    So, if I am trying to burn fat and get thinner (I feel like my butt is already big and I want to tone it, not make it any bigger :), how high of a resistance should I do on the eliptical and for how long? Intervals? And that goes for any cardio machine. What is the best way to get rid of fat on them?

    you aren't going to make your butt any bigger doing any kind of cardio exercise. Even doing squats with weights, it's unlikely it would get bigger unless you were trying to bulk by eating excess calories and doing excessively heavy lifting. It's quite difficult for women to get bulky.
    Exercise is for fitness, eating at a calorie deficit is for weight loss. Interval training is a great way to add to your cardio workout and make your muscles work harder so they don't adapt to the workout, and resistance will add to the workout as it gets easier for you.

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