How to work out on a cross trainer
Toning muscles? Losing weight? Staying in shape? No matter what your objective is, follow what the coach has to say and check out the cross trainer workout programmes best suited to your goals.
The versatility of a cross trainer
A cross trainer is an ideal piece of equipment to get you started on working out again.
Accessible to everyone, the it combines the effects of steps, rowing, running and exercise biking to give you an all-round workout that's not too strenuous.
The benefits of cross training
Working out with a cross trainer will help you stay in shape and can also help with rehabilitation after an injury. As you push away on the pedals, you'll be using 80% of your body muscles, all without any damaging impact on your joints.
- Your weight-loss partner: you'll also burn off a lot of calories, between 500 - 1,000 for every hour you spend on the machine.
- The rhythm of working out on a cross trainer will help you develop and maintain your cardiovascular endurance.
- The scale of the movements you make engages the whole body, helping to build all your muscles.
Domyos Club coach Delphine has three training programmes to recommend, each for different levels and objectives.
Need more advice on how to use a cross trainer? It'll help you get the very best results.
Objective 1: stay in shape
This programme is designed to help you maintain your fitness levels.
Anyone can do it, though it's targeted at beginners or people looking to gradually ease themselves back into physical activity.
PROGRAMME NO. 1: DEVELOP YOUR CARDIOVASCULAR AND RESPIRATORY ENDURANCE
This programme is designed to get you working out fully for 30 minutes by gradually building up your work rate and intensity.
The Exercise:
- Work out for two minutes at a high intensity and then for three minutes at a more moderate pace.
- Keep switching for 30 minutes.
Varying the intensity is vital to making progress. It'll also keep your motivation levels up.
PROGRAMME NO. 2: CONTINUOUS TRAINING
Exercising on a cross trainer at a constant pace builds up your stamina and keeps your weight down. To achieve results, though, you'll need to combine it with another form of exercise.
The Exercise:
- Do three to five sessions a week, working at a constant pace for 30 to 45 minutes and then warming down at a slower pace for 10 minutes.
Did you know? Varying the intensity levels is vital to improving your performance.
Your body quickly becomes used to exercise and gets into a comfort zone.
That's why it's important to keep pushing your boundaries, so you can carry on making progress.
Objective 2: tone your muscles
This is the training programme for you if you're looking to tone up. You use the cross trainer regularly, you're starting to find your level and you want to set yourself some real targets.
This is an exercise that will engage all of your muscles:
- Upper body: shoulders, arms and back
- Abs, for balance
- Lower body: glutes, quadriceps and calves
You can enhance the effects of this exercise by incorporating it into a circuit.
PROGRAMME: CIRCUIT TRAINING
With circuit training, you switch between ten-minute sessions on the cross trainer and two to three body weight exercises. Adjust the resistance of your cross trainer to suit your level.
Choose your additional exercises depending on which part of the body you want to work on: push-ups for your upper body, squats for your lower body and sit-ups for your abs.
The Exercise:
- Do three ten-minute sequences on the cross trainer followed by four 30-second sets of each body weight exercise.
- Work out at a steady pace and rest for 30 seconds between each set.
Objective 3: losing weight
Working out on a cross trainer can help you lose weight and slim down. The movements you make engage 80% of your muscles.
In the process you'll burn off a lot of energy.
By way of example, a one-hour workout on a cross trainer burns up between 500 - 1,000 calories.
PROGRAMME NO. 1: INTERVAL TRAINING
The aim here is to alternate between periods of intense activity and recovery periods of a low to moderate intensity.
The Exercise:
- Fifteen seconds at a high pace followed by 45 seconds at a slow pace, for ten minutes.
PROGRAMME NO. 2: TRAINING ON AN EMPTY STOMACH
To help you lose weight or as part of a fat-reduction programme, you can do one session a week on an empty stomach, at a moderate level of intensity and for 45 minutes.
You can take things a step further by monitoring your heart rate during your training sessions.
When you're working out, it should ideally be between 60% and 80% of your maximum heart rate.
