Boosting your endurance on a cross trainer is definitely possible! On one condition: your workouts have to be consistent and designed for progress.
Endurance is an important component of any sport that helps you keep going harder and longer. Whether you're trying to get back in shape, maintain your fitness, or lose weight, a cross trainer has a range of benefits and can boost your endurance and cardio strength.
Tip no.1: consistency is key
Consistency is key if you want to get better at any sports activity. It takes a while to feel the benefits of good endurance. There are no shortcuts: you have to put in the time and be patient. Just remember that you can't get better without consistency.
Tip no.2: work out regularly even if time is short
When it comes to consistency, know that it's not just about how intensely you work out. To get results, you need to continually put in regular efforts over time. You'll also be building up your resistance to physical and mental fatigue, which is essential to see improvements.
In short, it's better to do 30 minutes every day than to go all out for two hours once a week. You're not trying to beat your record for time spent on your cross trainer. To stay motivated and keep up a good training rhythm, plan two to three workouts of 30 to 60 minutes every week.
Tip no.3: set a goal
Everyone needs a well-defined goal that aligns with their fitness level to make training worthwhile. A cross trainer endurance program requires patience to get visible and lasting results. The most important thing is to work out regularly, plan your workouts around your everyday life and choose a performance or health goal you want to accomplish (get ready for a race or hike, get back in shape, lose weight, etc.) based on your physical and cardio fitness levels as you follow your endurance program.
Tip no.4: level up your training
Endurance training goes hand in hand with cardio. Doing cardio will help you be able to go harder without getting out of breath while also building your muscle strength. You need to monitor your maximum heart rate (HR max) during your cardio workouts. If you want to train effectively, you need to know this figure. Basically, your HR max is the maximum number of times your heart beats in one minute. Knowing this number can help you gauge your efforts and work harder when training.
If you have a heart rate monitor, you can get alerts to stay in the right cardio zone as you work out.
Tip no.5: do intervals to get better
Along with traditional training, interval training on a cross trainer will give you good results. You'll do both fast and slow phases during a single workout. These different phases are called intervals. Intervals vary depending on the pre-set program available on cross trainers (1-1, 1-2, 3-4 etc.). The aim is to alternate hard effort levels with recovery times. Interval training can also help you improve your cardio fitness level.
Tip no.6: Endurance workouts
Get motivated for a classic workout! Once you have a regular rhythm established, you can add interval training to your weekly workouts. Plan your schedule for the week with two weekly workouts: alternate between one classic training workout and one interval workout. If you feel ready to do more, you can do three weekly workouts: alternate two interval workouts and one classic workout.
Workout rhythm:
To improve your endurance, you shouldn't do more than two 45-minute interval workouts plus one 45-minute classic workout per week.
