You will often see a crowd in the gym, also in the cardio section. In the morning and evening, people are running on the treadmill, while others resort to an elliptical machine for hand and foot exercises. The elliptical machine is known as cross trainer. So, today we will be telling you about amazing cross trainer exercise for weight loss.
What is Cross Trainer?
Cross trainer is a machine in which both hands and feet are exercised simultaneously. Cross trainer exercise is listed among one of the effective exercise for weight loss.
The machine was invented by fitness company Precor in 1995. Since then it has been identified as a major machine in gyms and fitness centers around the world. However, like other gym equipment, there has been a long-standing debate on how effective the cross trainer is.
In the midst of all this, in this article, we will tell you the benefits of exercising through cross trainer machine and every little information related to it.
How Does Cross Trainer Work?
Cross trainer is one of the machines used for exercise that you will easily find in almost all gyms and fitness centers. This machine has two handles and two foot pedals. To start exercising with the machine, at first you have to hold the handle with both hands by placing both your legs on the pedal.
As the name suggests, the cross trainer combines different activities and exercises to create a great workout. Exercises such as walking, running or climbing stairs can be performed simultaneously with the help of this machine. This allows you to engage your entire body at once.
On the cross trainer machine you can easily adjust yourself to exercise different parts of legs, hips, back, core, chest, shoulders and arms. You can exercise different muscle groups together while pedaling the machine.
While exercising on the cross trainer machine try to get rhythm and speed as soon as possible. Take special care of your physical condition throughout the exercise. Adjust the machine correctly as you like, before starting practice with the machine.
Keep in mind that your back should be straight during practice. Do not bend your back forward by resorting to the handle at any time. Not only that, keep your heels steady, don’t pick them up with pedals.
What is a Cross Trainer Good For?
There have always been a variety of questions in people’s minds about elliptical machines as compared to treadmills or other cardio-based machines. Fitness experts believe that using a cross trainer is very easy and effective. Practicing it you can easily engage your entire body.
If you have any complaints of arthritis or knee pain, it is better to practice on a cross trainer other than running on a treadmill.
Practice for just 20 minutes on the cross trainer is helpful in burning calories. For warm-ups you can start with gradual practice on the machine. At the same time, if you want to lose weight, you can exercise at full speed.
Cardio exercise increases heart rate, improves lung capacity as well as strengthens the body. Similarly, working out on a cross trainer can also give you all these benefits. With this one machine you can get benefit in many ways. You can then set the speed of the machine by changing its settings to the best of your ability.
You can exercise daily with this machine at home or at gym-fitness centers if you like. The biggest advantage of a cross trainer than a treadmill is that, you can also exercise your shoulders and arms through a cross trainer.
Cross Trainer Exercise For Weight Loss.
Cross trainer exercise also beneficial for weight loss. It is one of the most effective calorie-burning exercise. Through this you can easily burn 270 to 400 calories in just half an hour.
The more your body weight, the more calories you burn. Your calories will be burn depend upon the speed of cross trainer. In addition, since cross trainer are low intensity exercises, overweight people can also do this exercise safely without putting too much pressure on their joints.
People with body mass index (BMI) between 25 – 29.9 are considered overweight and people who have BMI between 30 – 39.9 are considered obese. BMI is a measure of the ratio of length to weight.
How Long Should You Exercise on A Cross Trainer To Lose Weight?
According to an article published in the Harvard Health Journal, you can burn more calories in less time through a cross trainer than in different exercises.
If you spend 30 minutes on it, you can easily burn between 270 and 400 calories. However, how many calories can be burned in a session is determined by the intensity of exercise.(1)
Can Cross Trainer Reduce Belly Fat?
Since the cross trainer uses the upper and lower two parts of the body, it is a great exercise to reduce belly fat. This requires practice at medium to high intensity. So that you can burn calories faster.
The elliptical trainer also helps in muscle growth along with reducing fat from the body. During the exercise, many muscle groups work together, which are effective in strengthening the muscles.
The cross trainer strengthens your arms, buttocks, thighs (front and back muscles), chest and back as well as core muscles and reduces excess fat.
Here you need to do your daily exercises with it and keep increasing the intensity of exercise to the best of your ability.
If you are in the early stages of exercise, keep the pace slow. Practicing on a cross trainer at a high speed can increase your breathing within a few minutes.
You may experience lactic acid build-up in the feet early on if you start pedaling very fast. If you feel any such discomfort, it is important to stop and rest the body for a while. Usually the pain of the feet and the problem of breathlessness heal automatically in some time.
Once again you can start exercising after a while of rest. Your speed and capacity will improve over time. During exercise, try to increase your heart rate by 50-85 per cent more than normal. Reduce your age out of 220 beats per minute to know your maximum heart rate.
Is Cross Trainer Better Than Treadmill?
Whether you are in the early stages of exercise or have been exercising daily for a long time, you will be used to certain types of exercises.
Treadmills are the favorites of those who want to run long or walk. People who are beginner or who don’t like running too much, can spend more time on cross trainer.
The biggest advantage compared to treadmills is that cross trainer are low-intensity exercises, while treadmill training requires continuous pounding of feet.
Since both machines have their own advantages, fitness experts recommend that you should exercise with both machines optionally or everyday to get maximum benefits.
What Is The Cost of A Cross Trainer Machine?
Like other electronic exercise machines, cross trainer is one of the expensive devices. Starting from
USD 135.25, its latest models are available in the market for millions. If you are planning to take a machine for use at home, look at these points before that.
Location: Since you need more space for this machine. Make sure you have enough space to keep the machine comfortably and practice on it.
Electricity: Before buying the machine, know from the seller what will be the electricity consumption rate? This machine needs more electricity, so take advanced technology and low power consumption machine, don’t increase your electricity bill.
Machine Maintenance: It is also important to use the device regularly. It has to be used regularly to run smoothly. Get the machine serviced from time to time to run it for a long time.
Maintenance Expenses: If you use the machine regularly, you will not have to spend too much on its maintenance. Since, there are very few parts in this machine as compared to treadmills which are very dynamic, the cross trainer machine does not require much maintenance.
Take A New or Second Hand: You can also buy a second hand elliptical machine. If you find a low-use machine in the market at a cheaper price, you can also take it second hand.
However, before buying second hand machines, run them thoroughly and check them. On the other hand, you can also get a new machine from the showroom if you want. Taking a new machine gives you a warranty. More or less this depends on your budget.
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Bottom Line.
So, now you can understand the effectiveness of cross trainer exercise for weight loss. However, it will also helpful to keep you fit and healthy. Apart from this, it is also a great exercise for those who want to shred pound to maintain a healthy and fit lifestyle.
+1 Source
Freaktofit has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, educational research institutes, and medical organizations. We avoid using tertiary references. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and up-to-date by reading our editorial policy.
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1. Precor : https://www.precor.com/en-us