Ellipticals are great for doing efficient cardiovascular training. People use them to burn calories and boost their heart rate. The machines allow users to train in one smooth motion without the intense impact of running. This is one of the reasons why these machines are liked by people with weak knees. This also makes ellipticals suitable for post-injury recovery training. But most users are unaware of the correct way to use the equipment. Ahead, we have pulled together some top tips that you can use to help your facility’s members enjoy a more effective elliptical workout.
Maintaining proper form is essential to maximizing your exercise gains. Ask users to keep their feet flatly planted on the pedals. Do not let them slouch or shift their weight forward as the session progresses. Once the legs start feeling the strain people can try to transfer their weight on the toes to get some relief. Also, tell the members to slightly bend their knees and elbows while exercising.
One of the common mistakes that people make is training at the same resistance level throughout a session. As your body gets used to the resistance, it becomes more efficient in countering the strain. This reduces the number of calories burnt while affecting muscle and endurance building. Tell your customers to start a session at a low resistance and gradually increase it every 5 minutes. Once it becomes very hard for them to talk, they must stop and initiate the cooling down process.
Another tip to make the best use of ellipticals for fitness centers is to throw high-intensity interval training (HIIT) in the mix. Ask members to train at high intensity for about half a minute. Make sure that they go fast and hard to make the most of this training method. Then tell them to recover for around one minute. They can repeat this cycle for 15 to 20 minutes depending on their comfort level.
Experienced users know when to hold the handles on an elliptical and when to let them go. Staying upright and pushing and pulling the bars while working the pedals, engages the abs and exercises ten shoulders. However, when you do not hold the handles and use only the legs, it increases the pressure on your lower body while engaging the core. Help your users strategically utilize the levers and enjoy a full-body workout.
Ask your users to modify the training routine every few days. As mentioned before, the human body adapts to the stress after some time and starts consuming fewer calories. Besides changing the resistance levels and using HIIT, you can be creative and also use other equipment like dumbbells. This will also help in maintaining users’ interest in the training.
Modern machines come equipped with smart features like pre-loaded workout modes, WiFi, and Bluetooth connectivity. Utilize these features to track and monitor your members’ fitness goals. It will also help you in assessing whether a training program is providing the expected results to a user or not. Moreover, it will also enhance the customers’ engagement with your business.
Ellipticals, if used correctly, can offer valuable fitness gains. Leverage the ideas discussed here to help your members make the most of elliptical training and forge enduring partnerships with your business.