Does the cardio machine matter?

Hello, It makes two months that I have been working out regularly.  Old thinking and fear kept me form exercising earlier in my journey.   I have been going to work out regularly 3-5 times a week for the past two months and I feel amazing.  Each week I try to do something a little different.  I usually start off slowly, again old thinking, and then amaze myself at the things I can do. Anyway I've used the elliptical most of the time I've been exercising, because it works the arms and is easy on the knees. I've tried other cardio machines, like the bike and notice that I am not burning as many calories.  I don't have a lot of time, because I workout during my lunch break, so I want to get the most bang for my time. What machine burns the maximum amount of calories or does that matter? Thanks, Teah

Teah,  Congrats on starting your exercise journey!  I love the elipticall because you do get good calorie burning with lots of movement. However I would not necessarliy focus just on the number of calories your burning but more on how your body is working during the exercise. Fo instance if you try biking you may have to have a higher resistance to get the same cardio effect. Your not only burning those calories your making your heart good and strong!  P.S. don't forget to go backwards on the elipticall it will work your butt and hamstrings too! Michelle

Hi Michelle, Thanks for the reply.  I do notice that I have to have different resistance on different machines.  I also noticed that some get my heart rat going a lot quicker than others do and i found that the more I do the elliptical, the easier it is. So I've been doing the elliptical for 15 minutes and then using my other 15 minutes to try out different machines. Thanks

Hi Neecee,

Thanks for the response.  Yours was very similar to the instructor's response when I asked about different machines.  She also added that by mixing up the machines you may not have plateaus and you may be able bust through plateaus faster because the variety keeps your body guessing.

Teah