Laverne

My personal trainer at my old gym described the appropriate elliptical body posture the best way Ive ever heard"stick your butt out, sit back a little, back straight, shoulders back."

The key is to make sure you are not hunched over. Keep your back straight and upright with your shoulders pulled back. Remember the good posture you mom has always nagged you about? Strive for that.

When you see people at the gym all bent over the stationary handle bars moving their legs so fast they look like they are going to flip the machine, know that they are definitely doing it wrong. Dont follow their example because (1) they are hunched over and (2) their heart rate is probably way to high.

You dont want to bounce around to much. Keep your butt out like you are about to take a seat and try not to move, bounce or sway your upper body too much. Of course if you are using moving upper body handle bars youre upper body will be moving but you want to keep you core from bouncing up and down or from rocking back and forth.

Keep in mind that a good trainer will be constructed in such a way as to help you maintain proper elliptical body posture during your exercise. You dont want to feel like you are leaning forward to reach for handle bars. Some of the cheaper ellipticals may encourage bad posture and an uncomfortable workout because of poor ergonomic design.

Working out on an elliptical machine is easy and fun, but it shouldnt be so easy that you dont work up a sweat and dont feel a thing. If you are bouncing all around and hunching over, you are making the workout too easy for yourself. You should feel a slight burn in your legs by sticking you butt out and squatting just a bit. Dont worry if you feel like youre ready to end your workout, usually if you get through the first 5-10 minutes youll be surprised just how long you can stay on. And dont forget to maintain proper elliptical body posture throughout your entire workout, warm up and cool down. Youll find yourself slacking on posture from time to time so just correct yourself when you notice it and keep moving. How you use an elliptical machine and maintaining appropriate posture is the key to avoiding injury and getting the most intense and rewarding workout.

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