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01-15-2005, 04:36 AM

Reposting to include the bike newsgroup. I made a boo-boo
the first time.
....thehick
On Fri, 14 Jan 2005 22:14:26 -0500, Bernie Cosell
<bernie@fantasyfarm.com> wrote:

>I exercise with an elliptical trainer and one thing I've never understood
>is the tradeoff between resistance and speed. Assuming that I work out for
>however-long with my pulse in the correct "zone", I'm never sure whether it
>makes a difference [and what difference it makes] if I get to that zone by
>working against a higher resistance [and so moving more slowly] or working
>against a lower resistance [and so moving more quickly]. Is there some
>rule of thumb or whatever for this sort of thing? thanks!
ok. Here's something to think about. I read this is reference
to biking, but you can figure it out for the elliptical.

When biking in a big gear, your legs will get tired out quickly.
So you lower the gear. This moves the effort to your lungs.
Now, say you're in too low a gear (spinning too fast), your
legs will be laughing, but you'll run out of breath.

So, generally, when just biking for fun, you'll select a gear to
utilize all of your body. Not too high. Not too low.

I hope someone else can explain this better than me
because I realize this explanation sounds silly. But it
made sense when I read it somewhere.

One thing you need to figure out is your goal in "exercising"
on an elliptical. This is not so easy as most think. If you
know something you'll probably say "cardio-vascular".
OK. Then think about what muscles you want to improve.
Your legs? Move your feet close to the front of the pedals
and stand erect. Your butt? Feet close, lean back.
Your arms and back? Use more arm pull/push, less
leg involvement. Everywhere? Change around through
the session.

Realize that time is your friend. Endurance doesn't come from
doing something hard for a short period of time. You earn it.
With time. and a relatively low level of effort. Not crazy hard.
Think LongSlowDistance.

If you are one of those that exercise to "burn off calories",
good luck. I try to view it the from the other side. You
exercise to improve a bunch of stuff, you eat better
to stay healthy and feel good, the calorie burn is just
a by-product. Free so-to-speak. Allows you to eat
MORE to workout harder/farther/faster etc...
....thehick.

01-15-2005, 04:36 AM	#4 (permalink)
frank-in-toronto Posts: n/a	Re: Resistance vs speed (repost) Reposting to include the bike newsgroup. I made a boo-boo the first time. ....thehick On Fri, 14 Jan 2005 22:14:26 -0500, Bernie Cosell <bernie@fantasyfarm.com> wrote: >I exercise with an elliptical trainer and one thing I've never understood >is the tradeoff between resistance and speed. Assuming that I work out for >however-long with my pulse in the correct "zone", I'm never sure whether it >makes a difference [and what difference it makes] if I get to that zone by >working against a higher resistance [and so moving more slowly] or working >against a lower resistance [and so moving more quickly]. Is there some >rule of thumb or whatever for this sort of thing? thanks! ok. Here's something to think about. I read this is reference to biking, but you can figure it out for the elliptical. When biking in a big gear, your legs will get tired out quickly. So you lower the gear. This moves the effort to your lungs. Now, say you're in too low a gear (spinning too fast), your legs will be laughing, but you'll run out of breath. So, generally, when just biking for fun, you'll select a gear to utilize all of your body. Not too high. Not too low. I hope someone else can explain this better than me because I realize this explanation sounds silly. But it made sense when I read it somewhere. One thing you need to figure out is your goal in "exercising" on an elliptical. This is not so easy as most think. If you know something you'll probably say "cardio-vascular". OK. Then think about what muscles you want to improve. Your legs? Move your feet close to the front of the pedals and stand erect. Your butt? Feet close, lean back. Your arms and back? Use more arm pull/push, less leg involvement. Everywhere? Change around through the session. Realize that time is your friend. Endurance doesn't come from doing something hard for a short period of time. You earn it. With time. and a relatively low level of effort. Not crazy hard. Think LongSlowDistance. If you are one of those that exercise to "burn off calories", good luck. I try to view it the from the other side. You exercise to improve a bunch of stuff, you eat better to stay healthy and feel good, the calorie burn is just a by-product. Free so-to-speak. Allows you to eat MORE to workout harder/farther/faster etc... ....thehick.