Learn not to lean.


Ready to burn more calories while using your favorite piece of cardio equipment? Put away the books and magazines and stand (or sit) up tall. Stop hunching and leaning!!

While it may seem comfortable, these habits won't get you the results you desire. And believe me, I understand that it can get a bit tedious going nowhere fast on a machine. I've spent many a training session entertaining clients and keeping them preoccupied during the cardio portions of their workouts. It is important to keep your goals at the forefront of your mind when you're working out alone, however. You're there to burn calories, increase your endurance and get in shape. You'll get more bang for your buck if you put on some fun, energizing music and get lost in the moment than you will from aimlessly meandering on the equipment.

Try these quick tips:

* If you've been working out for a while, it may be time to manipulate all those handy, dandy buttons on the console. Try out those pre-programmed workouts.
* Work the machine! Mix it up by changing the elevation, trying different resistances, and moving the incline/decline as available on your machine.
* If you have more than one piece of equipment at your disposal, mix it up with 5-10 minutes on each.
* Have fun. Make a game of it by seeing how many revolutions or mile increments you can reach in a certain period of time.
* Interval train. Change the intensity of your workout by mixing your weight training with 1-2 minutes on the machine.

Got ideas of your own? Let me know what you do to make your cardio workouts more fun and interesting!

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