According to research done by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey more than two in three adults are either overweight or have obesity. On the other hand, one in six children between the ages of two and nineteen suffer from obesity.
What’s more, being overweight and having obesity is the second leading cause of preventable deaths in the US behind tobacco use, claiming an estimated 300,000 lives each year. These facts are not meant to alarm you.
They are meant to serve as a wake-up call for you to accord health and fitness the seriousness it deserves. Owning an elliptical machine might just be what you need to start you off on the right path.
This article explores 5 benefits of owning an elliptical machine. Read on.
1. Low Impact Exercise
When you run or jog, every time your legs hit the ground, your body gets a jolt from the impact. Research shows that this jolt translates 2.5 times your body weight.
This has long term repercussions on your legs and your lower back. With an elliptical machine, however, the potential for impact is non-existent.
The elliptical motion is such that your feet never leave the pedals. So, in essence, it’s like you’re walking or running mid-air.
You’re probably wondering how to use elliptical machines. The elliptical movement mimics the natural foot and leg motion that occurs during walking, running or jogging.
The foot pedals adjust to your stride which further reduces the strain on your joints. Given that there’s no reverse action, the ankles, knees and hip joints move in the same way they would in a natural stride.
2. Works on Both the Upper and Lower Body
If you find the whole concept of “leg day” and “abs day” confusing, an elliptical trainer, is the perfect answer to that. It is the only fitness equipment that has the capability of combining both an upper and lower body workout concurrently.
Think of it as a cross-trainer. If you’re wondering, “What muscles does the elliptical machine work?” Well, it allows you to work out your biceps, triceps, chest, glutes, hamstrings, and quadriceps all in a single session.
So, if you want fast results, more so since summer is around the corner, the best elliptical machine will get you the summer body you’ve been dreaming about. It’s important to note that in order to get the full benefit of the dual workout, you should try to evenly distribute the resistance between the upper and lower body.
Most people only work on their lower body and use the handlebars to simply go through the motions. Make sure your upper body isn’t left out in the workout.
3. Calorie Burning Machine
Perhaps one of the best elliptical machine benefits is their fat-busting power. Since you essentially work on multiple muscle groups simultaneously, you can tone more areas of your body.
It’s an excellent way to build muscle strength in different parts of your body more so in your legs. It allows you to use up your energy expenditure which means you burn loads more calories in a fraction of the time it would ordinarily take.
This might come as a surprise since elliptical machines create the illusion of minimal exertion. The reality is, you‘re actually exercising a lot harder than you think.
4. Low Maintenance Required
Unlike any other fitness equipment you may own, elliptical machines are easy to maintain. This can be attributed to the fact that it has fewer moving parts and the elliptical motion means that impact on the machine is minimal.
A single maintenance session per year will suffice. All you have to do is check for any friction or squeaking noises during striding.
This might require you to lubricate the seals, screws, and bearings. That’s pretty much it. You don’t even need to hire a professional to do it.
If you want to extend the life of your home elliptical machine, all you need to do is make sure you use it regularly. To prevent the bearings from getting rusty and damaged keep the parts moving.
5. An Elliptical Machine Provides a Weight-Bearing Exercise
Unlike other fitness equipment like stationary bikes, elliptical machines provide weight-bearing exercises. Weight-bearing exercises force you to work against the force of gravity.
These types of workouts are important for inhibiting the onset of osteoporosis by building up one’s bone strength. Running, jogging and walking are all great sources of weight-bearing exercises that build bone strength but they’re high-impact activities.
An elliptical machine, however, doesn’t present this problem. What’s more, you can’t very well run or jog in the outdoors when it’s cold or raining.
You could, but who wants to? Owning an elliptical machine means that you can no longer use the weather as an excuse to not to work out more so when the health of your bones is on the line.
The Bottom Line
If you’ve never used an elliptical machine before, do yourself a favor and get yourself one. With its dual action workout, you’ll find that you’re killing two birds with one stone.
While elliptical trainers can be used by people of all age groups, it’s especially useful to the aging baby boomer generation. These machines are more forgiving to aging and aching joints.
Are you looking for new or used gym equipment? Get in touch with our friendly team today. They’ll be happy to assist.
