Starting with Cardio machines (For all newbies)

The first time you enter a gym all the machines can scare you a bit, at least I was intimidated. All the machines looked complicated and all the people using them looked fit...so I did feel a little out of place...but once you enter the gym you have to do something , you can’t just stand there can you? That would be worst...

The first machine I started with was the treadmill, I only walked at a very comfortable speed...you can actually say I walked really slow and not once did I leave the handle..I held on like my life depended on my grip :) after about 10 minutes the next thing I tried was use the stop button and the pause button, just to see how fast the machine stops if I’m about to fall...that gave me the confidence to increase my speed a little..I was still walking and holding on tight...but I increased my speed a little...then I reduced my speed a let go of my hands...but I had my hands very close to the stop button...just in case...this is how I started with my tread mill

So basically if you are new to the tread mill do the following:

·         Walk really slow and hold on to the bars

·         Increase to a comfortable speed continue holding tight

·         Play around a little with the stop/pause buttons so you get the confidence to let go of the bar

·         Reduce speed walk without holding

·         Increase speed...hold on for a minute and leave hands for a few seconds..do this till you can leave your hands for more time..

·         Finally increase speed to a brisk walk but try jogging at that speed..keep your hand close to the stop/pause button just in case

·         Slowly you will get comfortable..I think 2 -3 days you should be comfortable with the tread mill

The next machine I tried was the elliptical..

I was a lot more comfortable with the elliptical because you can’t fall off can you?? I started with only legs and then moved to using my hands also...here I played around with different  levels and I also focused on my heart rate...usually these machines have options like cardio/fat burn/manual etc/. I started with using the manual option and moved to fat burn/cardio,  these options usually display what your heart rate should be. Usually if you selected any one of these options the resistance levels are adjusted so as to maintain your heart rate, that’s why I prefer using one of the options

The other machine I enjoy a lot is the step machine. (I think this one is great for you glutes)

It’s all about not touching the ground...step on the machine and act like you are climbing the stairs...the aim is to not touch the ground...one common mistake that a lot of us do is hold on to the side bars..when you do that you reduce the effort actually put in by your legs and increase a lot of pressure on you hands...instead hold on to the bars in front of you..till you get used to it...reduce the resistance if you have to but try and avoid holding on to the sides or leaning all the way in front

(hope this was useful, in my next post I want to share with you how to get maximum out of each of these machines)

Keep Reading I will Keep Writing 

Tanvee