What Is an Elliptical Machine?

Elliptical machines are large pieces of equipment used to provide you with an aerobic or cardiovascular workout. Regular aerobic exercise helps you lose weight and manage your blood pressure, and is part of an overall program to prevent and manage heart disease, diabetes, cancer and many other chronic conditions. To get the most benefit from your workout, it is important to do a variety of activities. Using machines such as the elliptical can help you change up your workout and provide a good cross-training option if you tend to do the same activities all the time.

History

The elliptical machine was developed by the Precor company back in the 1980s. At this time, popular cardiovascular machines included the treadmill and the stair stepper. While the treadmill is a great piece of equipment, there is some impact on your feet and joints as you walk. With an elliptical machine, your feet stay in contact with the pedal, so there is virtually no impact. With the stair stepper, while it does get your heart rate up and burn calories, it requires the user to do a repetitive up-and-down stepping motion, which can be rough on the knees, hips and back. Precor developed the elliptical movement concept to minimize impact and to create a movement that is less stressful on the joints. The circular motion provides a more aerobic workout compared with straight walking, yet the movement is smaller and not as stressful as climbing or stepping.

Types

Elliptical machines vary greatly in size and design. You can buy smaller and less-expensive machines that are good for home use. They also can be quite large and expensive and specifically designed for use in health clubs, where they will encounter a lot of wear and tear. There are multiple manufacturers of elliptical machines, and if you are buying one for home use, it is good to comparison shop. Other variations can include the way they provide resistance and how many parts of the elliptical you can adjust to fit your body shape and needs.

Features

Elliptical machines have many different features to look for. One feature is called stride length. Some are more straight up and down, which provides less of a circular motion with your legs. In these machines, the movement is part stair climbing as well as slightly circular. Others machines are longer and the pedals travel in more of a forward and back motion, which is closer to a walking motion. In these machine, the pedals still go up and down slightly; however, the motion is much more circular. Another common feature on some models are handrails that move. This allows you to work your upper body as well. All machines have the option of holding onto handrails that do not move.
Machines also vary in the types of programs you can do. Some have built-in timed programs that will automatically adjust the tension and steepness of the incline, while others require you to manually make these changes. In addition, some machines allow you to make adjustments to the pedals or handrails so you can better fit the machine to your size.

Benefits

There are many benefits of working out on an elliptical machine. Since the arms can move on many of the models, you get a full-body workout versus just moving your legs. You can also put the machine on an incline to simulate walking uphill to take your workout to another level. Due to the design of the elliptical, you tend to have better posture using it than you do with a stair-stepper machine. Since many models allow you to adjust the tension, you can really tone your buttocks and thighs even more so than walking. Ellipticals are a good option to help you cross-train and add variety to your aerobic workout.

Warning

While the fundamental design of the elliptical makes it a safer choice than a stair stepper, you still need to maintain good posture and techniques. If you are not using your arms, stand up straight and do not lean on the hand rails. It is common to see people in gyms resting their upper bodies on the rail, which puts you in a bent-over position and strains the back. Leaning forward pulls your whole body out of alignment, which puts a lot of stress on the knees and hips. If you choose to use the arms, do not overextend your reach. Stop with a slight bend in the elbow, and never fully extend or lock the elbow. To avoid shoulder injury, keep the shoulders in line over the hips and avoid grasping the handles too hard.

Resources

• All Ellipticals website