So I spent an hour on an elliptical yesterday. . .

[episodic]

Normally I either do the treadmill - use the exercise recumbent bike, or do spin. Yesterday, I thought - I'll try the elliptical. Got into it. Upped the difficulty level and stayed on it an hour. Noticed I was a little sore. Today - I wake up feeling as if all my muscles have revolted at the same time. I can barely move.

Literally.

 

[MJinZ]

 

[40sTheme]

LOL should've just lifted.
Squats boy squats
Lots of carbs
Squats
Get lean and strong

 

[Fingolfin269]

You just ended up using some muscles you haven't used before or in a long time. Enjoy the burn.

And I agree with 40s... squats...

 

[LittleNemoNES]

Sprinting or GTFO!

Seriously, though. Low intensity cardio is a POS.
I've never felt or looked better since I began sprinting.

A simple way to think about it is:

Aerobic exercises burn fat while you're doing them
Anaerobic exercises burn fat while you're doing them AND while you're sitting, sleeping, etc

 

[theflyingpig]

Sprinting or GTFO!

Seriously, though. Low intensity cardio is a POS.
I've never felt or looked better since I began sprinting.

A simple way to think about it is:

Aerobic exercises burn fat while you're doing them
Anaerobic exercises burn fat while you're doing them AND while you're sitting, sleeping, etc

lol. You have no idea what you're talking about, do you LittleNemoNES?

 

[LittleNemoNES]

lol. You have no idea what you're talking about, do you LittleNemoNES?

no I don't.

 

[MJinZ]

Sprinting or GTFO!

Seriously, though. Low intensity cardio is a POS.
I've never felt or looked better since I began sprinting.

A simple way to think about it is:

Aerobic exercises burn fat while you're doing them
Anaerobic exercises burn fat while you're doing them AND while you're sitting, sleeping, etc

Aerobic exercise is also boring as watching shit dry.

I don't "sprint" but I make sure to do like 10 minutes of high BPM and then I'm done.

 

[Chaotic42]

For some reason I can do the elliptical machine for hours on end. I did it one time until I burned 2000 calories (according to the machine). That was enough to convince me that I wasn't getting a real workout, because that should have almost killed me.

 

[bfdd]

Normally I either do the treadmill - use the exercise recumbent bike, or do spin. Yesterday, I thought - I'll try the elliptical. Got into it. Upped the difficulty level and stayed on it an hour. Noticed I was a little sore. Today - I wake up feeling as if all my muscles have revolted at the same time. I can barely move.

Literally.

Yeah those things are awesome. We had one in my condo's work out room, but I think someone broke it now we just have two bikes.

 

[bfdd]

LOL should've just lifted.
Squats boy squats
Lots of carbs
Squats
Get lean and strong

you don't even have to lift with squats, just doing squats period with your bodyweight is enough. then move on to the one leggers and when you can do a set of those you're beasty.

 

[MJinZ]

For some reason I can do the elliptical machine for hours on end. I did it one time until I burned 2000 calories (according to the machine). That was enough to convince me that I wasn't getting a real workout, because that should have almost killed me.

Why would that kill you? You have fat and muscles that could fuel you until you drop over from exhaustion. Or dehydration.

 

[TheVrolok]

I've had the exact opposite experience with ellipticals, I can hammer an hour out and feel next to nothing. It's odd, because I suck at cardio, running kicks my ass.

 

[BrokenVisage]

I've had the exact opposite experience with ellipticals, I can hammer an hour out and feel next to nothing. It's odd, because I suck at cardio, running kicks my ass.

Same here, even when I started getting back into exercising after like 4 years I found the elliptical even in the very beginning to be very forgiving the day after and easy to bang out an hour on while watching a movie/TV show or listening to music. The treadmill kills me.

 

[masterxfob]

if you're out of shape and overweight, elipticals are a great way to start up. very low impact and relatively easy to stay on for longer periods of time. however, if you're already in fairly good shape, they don't really seem to do shit.

 

[NikolaeVarius]

Hell, I'm not even that fit and I find the elliptical too easy. I don't feel anything. I sweat and stuff sure, but I don't feel tired.

I much prefer running.

 

[thecoolnessrune]

I personally use the exercise bike myself for cardio. I can't do running too well because my arches are flatter than Kansas! (Hurts like hell after about 15 minutes of a run). Me having been heavier than I should have been didn't help. I'm doing better with the running now that I simply got some of the weight off.

 

[kinev]

Ellipticals get you in shape to do the elliptical...that's it.

 

[gotsmack]

ellipticals are crap. Here is how to cheat on them. Set the resistance to at least 3, then just shift your body weight from left to right, using the elliptical's fixed circular motion to put your other foot into the top position ready for you to shift your weight to push it down. I once did the elliptical for 3 hours and was fine.

Also if you set the resistance too high, it'll mess up your knees after a while.

The best machine for cardio is either an air rowing machine or recumbent bike. which one you get depends on what other exercises you do. I like the rower, but had to get rid of it because I also have a pull up frame I use often.

Honestly, all you need a a set of adjustable weight dumb bells, gloves, a timer, a yoga mat, and a computer or tv that can stream this: http://www.youtube.com/user/charliejames1975 Shes hot too so it'll take your mind off how much the exercise sucks.

 

[AznAnarchy99]

Aerobic exercise is also boring as watching shit dry.

I don't "sprint" but I make sure to do like 10 minutes of high BPM and then I'm done.

Exactly. I cant run on a treadmill for an hour without wanting to kill myself from the boredom.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-intensity_interval_training

Its called HIIT. The way I did it was with some super steep slope sprinting. At UCLA there was this huge steep slope on my way back to my dorm. I used to sprint up it, and jog back down for a couple of sets.

 

[Chaotic42]

Exactly. I cant run on a treadmill for an hour without wanting to kill myself from the boredom.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-intensity_interval_training

Its called HIIT. The way I did it was with some super steep slope sprinting. At UCLA there was this huge steep slope on my way back to my dorm. I used to sprint up it, and jog back down for a couple of sets.

I've got a treadmill in my living room and I play Madden while I'm on it. It makes the time go by a lot faster.

Of course, I can't run while I play.

 

[TheVrolok]

Honestly, all you need a a set of adjustable weight dumb bells, gloves, a timer, a yoga mat, and a computer or tv that can stream this: http://www.youtube.com/user/charliejames1975 Shes hot too so it'll take your mind off how much the exercise sucks.

Holy shit. There's only one type of exercise I'd be doing during that video.

 

[TridenT]

Lifting weights gave me similar effects... except usually the really bad soreness set in within 20 minutes of completion of the workout. Couldn't move arms or legs sometimes. Made walking around school to get to class kinda difficult, and writing would be horrible.

 

[boomerang]

My all time longest stretch on the elliptical is 2 and a half minutes. Yes, you read that correctly. My quads get so painful that I can't stay at it any longer than that. I've asked every trainer, the owner and a number of others at the club their thoughts and nobody has an answer for me. Then, I talked to the manufacturer's rep and he said another brand might work differently for me.

It's a weird thing.