When you are on an elliptical you may not feel like you are working very hard. There are a lot of people that refuse to use an elliptical machine when they are at the gym because they do not think they can get a good workout on the machine.

Although the machine does not inflict as much impact on your joints, you have to realize that you can get an excellent workout on these machines. If you have a personality that pushes you to go the extra mile this may be the machine for you.

When you first step on the machine you have to start pushing the pedals for the screen to activate. Most elliptical machines will not light up or start up before you begin to push the pedals because the machine will be powered by the energy from your pushes.

After the screen turns on you will be prompted to enter in some information about yourself. The machine will ask for your age and your weight and you will be able to type these numbers in on the keypad right next to the screen.

Entering in this information is not necessarily important to achieving an intense workout. The reason that the machine will ask for this information is to determine what your target heart rate will be.

When the machine knows where your heart rate should be it can adjust the incline or the resistance on the machine to help you get to this heart rate. If you feel that you have a good understanding of your heart rate and where it needs to be this setting is not important.

As you are on the treadmill you should make sure that you are taking your heart rate on a regular basis. When you are able to take your heart rate consistently you will know if you are keeping your body engaged properly.

Getting your heart to your target heart rate will be very important if you are looking to see results from the workout. The majority of your workout should be spent with your heart beating within your target heart rate zone.

This means that your heart will be working as hard as it needs to be to get stronger. If you do not feel comfortable with taking your own heart rate and determining the correct heart rate zone you can always use the machine.

If you decide to use the settings that the elliptical provides you have to enter in your information honestly. If the information is not correct that you are entering into the machine your workout may be very self-defeating.

Keeping your heart rate at the correct number is something that will dramatically change the results of your workout. Take the time to decide if you want to do this on your own or use the tools provided on the machine.

After you have decided how you are going to keep track of your heart rate you should decide how you want to shape your workout. Your workout should be used as a way to get your body into a healthier state.

If you are working to gain muscle mass you may want to find a way to utilize weights in your workout. When you use weights on the elliptical you will notice that new muscles are sore and that you can target muscle zones that you were not able to in Viagra Jelly the past.

When you are not strong enough to use weights you can start with holding a water bottle in each of your hands and pump your arms. As your arms begin to get stronger you can put sand in the water bottles instead of water.

There are also weights that have been designed to go around your ankle. The padding on the weight will keep your feet comfortable and also give you the benefit of strength training.

When you are not interested in these types of changes you can always use the programs that are installed on the machine. These programs will change the incline and the resistance of your workout throughout your workout.

After you have taken the time to get to know what you need on the elliptical make sure that you focus on your body during the workout. When you can be focused mentally you will be better equipped to complete an effective workout.

If you did not like your workout on the elliptical you can always keep this mentality and move to a new machine.

Author Bio: Ignacio Lopez is a personal trainer and has authored hundreds of articles relating to physical training and elliptical machines. He has been a health expert and physical trainer for over 15 years.

Contact Info:
Ignacio Lopez
IgnacioLopez09@gmail.com
http://www.nordictrack.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Category2_-1_10301_12401_19053_Y

Category: Fitness/Equipment
Keywords: elliptical machines