When you are on an elliptical it is important that you take the time to add some diversity to your workout. A lot of people think that the only way to use the elliptical is by pushing your legs forward time after time to feel a burn in your legs and chest.
In reality, you can get a fairly good full body workout when you are on one of these machines. It may take some practice, but eventually you can get a lot done on the elliptical making your workout more time efficient.
First, you should grab some free weights to use during your elliptical time. If you do not have free weights or if you feel that all of the free weight options are just to heavy for you, you should instead start by using water bottles.
If you are extremely worried about using anything when you are on the elliptical you can even start with empty water bottles. These will give you a feel for having your hands off of the handlebars and using weights.
Some people try to use empty water bottles and just do not like the feel of their hands being off of the handlebars. If you find yourself in this position you should not go against your natural instinct but instead use the handlebars to the best of your ability.
To increase the intensity of your workout you can always change the way that you use the handlebars. Many machines now have a resistance gauge that is used just for the handlebars instead of for the whole machine.
Try increasing this resistance so that your arms are getting a better workout. If you do feel comfortable holding the weights you should make sure that you take the time to get used to moving your arms with the weights in your hands.
First, you can start by just accentuating the natural movement of your arms while you are moving. When you do this you will be working muscles in your arms that you may not have worked before.
As you start to feel that this is easier you can increase the weight in each of your hands. It is important that you increase both of your hands at the same pace so your back does not feel pulled to one side more than the other.
Often times you may find that one of your arms feels stronger than the other and you feel like you could use a larger weight. Wait for your arms to both get this feeling so that you can improve the muscle tone in both of your arms.
After you have moved to a larger weight size you have to make sure that you take the time to keep your posture. It is easy to start to be lazy with your posture because the weights that you are carrying are much heavier.
When you feel that you have exhausted this option you can start to lift the weights above your head. When you have the weight above your head you can then lower the weight to your shoulder and push it straight up again.
By doing this you will be able to strengthen your shoulders during your workout. There are not many people that realize during a workout on the elliptical you can also train your shoulders and increase the muscle mass in your back.
If you do not feel comfortable working out your arms or your back on the elliptical you can always workout your core instead. Twisting from side to side is a great way to activate all of the muscles in your abdomen.
For some people, adding anything to the motion that you are going to be participating in on the elliptical is just too much. Instead of concentrating on working other parts of your body you can always work on intensifying your work out.
A great way to do this is to go back and forth between short sprints and longer arduous stints. When you are on the machine you will have to adjust the intensity and the resistance frequently to accomplish this.
There are not many people that will take the time to get more out of their workout than they are already getting. When you take the time and step outside of your comfort zone you will be able to notice a huge difference.
Your results will make you happier when you are putting in this kind of effort.
Jack R. Landry has been writing about the exercise and health industry for years. He recommends using an elliptical machine to stay healthy and fit.
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Jack R. Landry
JackRLandry@gmail.com
http://www.workoutwarehouse.com
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