Cross Trainer for Weight Loss?

romperstomper

Hi all,

Just wanted a second opinion on some advice I was given. I'm 15st and 5'11 and have am pretty overweight. I did an assessment and the advice I was given was to stick to the cross-trainer for weight loss.
Has anyone else used this machine extensively and will it work as the mainstay of an excercise program?
I'm doing 50 - 65 mins at level 18 which keeps my heartrate in the weightloss range for age which is 27(supposedly), 4 or 5 times a week some other stuff too but this is the main one.

Thanks

My diet is pretty good and I watch what I eat most of the time.

rubadub

I would 3 full body workouts a week using heavy weights in the 8-12rep range. Then do the cardio/crosstraining on your 2 other days.

I started out near to 15stone at 5'11''. Cycling brought me down to about 13stone, I sort of plateaued then took up weights I am now just over 12stone. I have been the same weight for ages now, but am getting thinner, i.e. putting on muscle and losing fat at the same rate. So do take measurements since your weight can be the same though you are losing fat.

Hanley

romperstomper wrote:

.

My diet is pretty good and I watch what I eat most of the time.

I have to say this will be your number one friend when it comes to weightloss. Much more so than the crosstrainer!

romperstomper

not too sure what you mean by that, as I have been very careful to cut out alcohol and junk from my diet for months now, and although I certainly haven't gotten any bigger, I haven't lost anything either.

a good mention about the weights, but unfortunately I have 2 longterm injuries (hip and back) so i was advised I would have to bbe very selective about which muscle groups I worked.

I appreciate the weight is no indication of the effectiveness of the routine, and my way of measuring things is actually waist size.

so far the xtrainer is not getting too much of an endorsement here. i also use the rowing machine (5k workout on max res) and swimming. should i be focusing more on those? swimming i can't really get into (once a week is about it) and the rower is killer i.e. after that 5k, i'm only good for the shower

Hanley

Watching what you eat and implementing changes to actively try to lose weight are 2 completly different things my friend...

BossArky

romperstomper wrote:

i also use the rowing machine (5k workout on max res) and swimming. should i be focusing more on those? ...... and the rower is killer i.e. after that 5k, i'm only good for the shower

Is this a concept 2 style rower with 10 settings? If so, bring the resistence down to about 3/10. It will be easier, thus allowing you to build up a decent rhythm using proper form. You will also get the heart rate up without keeling over.

There was a thread here recently about rowing - search or have a look back - good reading.

hunnymonster

I'd go for the rower over the cross trainer so long as it doesn't aggrevate your old injuries. The reason being that a lot of commercial equipment is set up to fit most people most of the time. There is less imposed geometry on the rower so you're less likely to force some body part in a way it doesn't want to be forced. That being said I find the rower the most boring thing on the planet (and I'm someone who can happily pedal on a bike for 5 hours!)

Other things to consider are
Diet is a multi facited thing. How you time your food will maximise your loses. Splitting your intake into smaller frequent meals will help. Is your balane of macreo and micro nutrients correct. Use fitday.com for a couple of days and see. I thought I knew what my diet was doing for me but only by religiously filling in the details helped me to really see what was happening. Use the info in the stickies to determine what amounts you need.

Can you introduce more movement into your daily life. It's a cliche but walking up the stairs rather than taking hte lift is a few other calories that would otherwise be on your hips, waist, .....

siochain

romperstomper wrote:

a good mention about the weights, but unfortunately I have 2 longterm injuries (hip and back) so i was advised I would have to bbe very selective about which muscle groups I worked.

For this reason alone the x trainer is the best if you have injuries. If its one of the better makes if should be able to accommodate all body types and there is very little if no impact on the joints. As a suggestion stick mostly to the cross trainer and swimming unless you have really good form on the rower.

olaola

Here is some info from wiki:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elliptical_trainer