is the elliptical a good cardio workout for a big guy?

[javy33]

34 yr old, 350lbs male, Is the elliptical a good workout for a big guy like myself? I in my 2nd week doing about 35 mins 5x per wk minimum.

Thanks

[Dominique]

If your joints (knees) are OK with it, sure! You'll have to manually log it, as Fitbit is not very good at tracking this kind of non-step-based activity, but you're probably aware of it if you have been doing it for a couple of weeks already.

[steff]

If you aren't doing weight resistance; start!  Men have amazing upper body strength and that's where they can really build muscle to burn fat!

[gerrymcd · Accepted solution]

The important thing is to not try to do too much too soon. You say you are in your 2nd week -- I'm presuming you mean of a new diet and exercise regime? If you  are doing well, and doing quite a lot of exercise ( if you've changed from a fairly sedentary lifestyle). That said, you are now working specific joints for 2 1/2 hours a week. It might be worth considering swapping some elliptical time for other workouts to prevent too much stress being put on the same joints/tendons. At this stage, low impact cardio like cycling or swimming is best. I lost a lot of weight quite quickly by doing spin classes - these days I typically burn 800 to 1000 calories per class and take 4 classes a week.

Also, its worth remembering our bodies quickly adapt to doing the same exercise regularly. So changing from doing elliptical workouts to a mixture of activities will also help keep your metabolism fired up, and give you the maximum benefits from your workout time.

Otherwise.....keep at it. At this point, your goal is to get active, and stay active rather than meet some goal or other. Consistency is the way forward.

[javy33]

thanks for the advise

[javy33]

thanks for the advise. will note it.

[Chic_Malik]

I am new to discussions so please bare with me. I just wanted to added there are some cool apps for our smart phones/tablets that might give you some low-impact routines. I have the 7 minute workout and find it's a good guide of diffent concepts to try. 7 minutes for me a day is not going to make a dent in my personal goal but thought the ideas were helpful. Here is the URL for 7 min.: https://7minuteworkout.jnj.com/