I had an impromptu workout pledge on Facebook yesterday. For every new Facebook friend I received yesterday I promised to do one minute on the treadmill last night.  I wasn’t disappointed.

While I probably shouldn’t have announced the campaign only to my existing Facebook friends, afterall, they’re already my friends and can’t personally add to the total.  But, with their help I gained 33 new friends yesterday and lost over 300 calories in the process.

I neglected to mention half of that time would be spent at max incline (15).

Let me tell you a little bit about the max incline on a treadmill.  It hurts.  It makes you sweat.  The steep is so much that you can’t possibly do the max incline without holding onto the treadmill in front of you.  I’ve tried to be a tough guy and literally try to hike the incline, but that only lasts a few seconds before I have to resort to reaching for something to grab.

I love the max incline.  It’s helping me reach my goals.

I’m determined to reach my goals.  I’m losing weight for a wedding in April.  I’m losing weight so I can get on television again (another news segment lined up when I hit my goal weight).  I’m losing weight for myself.

I’m losing weight for you.

I haven’t stepped foot on my beloved elliptical machine in over a month.

I’ve been addicted to running and keep pushing myself more and more to see what I can handle.  Currently, I’m following the 2:30/2:30 ratio.  Simply put, that means I walk briskly (3.6 mph) for two and a half minutes, then run (5.0 mph) for two and a half minutes, repeat 6 times (30 minutes) on a 2.5 incline.

That’s an improvement from the 4/1 ratio I was doing in June.

With this current ratio I can run over 2 miles in 30 minutes.  To put that into perspective, to pass the physical fitness test and become a South Carolina State Trooper you must be able to run 1.5 miles in 14 minutes.

I plan to start running outdoors more and more to train for the Cooper River Bridge Run.  By the run on March 27th I hope to have long-since abandoned the 5-minute ratio system and be able to run a solid two miles continuously without slowing down or running out of breath.

Not bad, considering walking two miles in January was a stretch.

With that being said, spending 30 minutes on the treadmill isn’t my only daily cardio at the gym.  I also spend 10 minutes on the StairMaster after every running session and burn around 100 calories climbing 30 flights of stairs.

I wouldn’t exactly call it a cooldown, though.

Would I recommend this cardio workout routine to someone just starting their weight loss journey?  Absolutely not, I know that I wouldn’t have been able to do it 9 months ago, let alone 3 months ago.  But, as you become faster, more agile, and more physically fit, you will realize, just as I did, that you have to stay ahead of your body’s resistance level to keep burning calories.

Unfortunately, the days when I could just hop onto the elliptical for 20 minutes and lose 5 pounds a week are long gone.  I have to earn every pound these days.

Hopefully, pound number 121 comes tomorrow.

I went through with the most recent workout pledge on Friday night.

Due to recent media attention this was the biggest workout pledge by far.  I was forced to stay on both the treadmill and elliptical for 93 minutes (plus two for cool down) — putting me in the gym for 3 hours and 10 minutes Friday night.

This was the first workout pledge I tweeted while I worked out.  It was a new experience, a positive experience I’d do again;  the support I received kept me going for the last hour when my legs started failing.

A few Twitter followers that provided support Friday night:

30Days2ANewLife
JackedDragon
JeffSarris
lsuaimzgurl
willwalters
theantijared
emilytate512

Recap of Friday night’s workouts

I started out on the treadmill machine a little after 7 PM Friday.  I maintained a speed varying from 3.4 (when I took pictures) to 4.0.  Incline levels varied as well, ranging from 1.1 to 5.1.  It was a brisk walk with some hills thrown in.

The 95 minutes on the treadmill were easy compared to the 95 that were soon to follow on the elliptical.  While I was on the treadmill daydreaming, fighting boredom, I realized I needed to make a bigger workout playlist for pledges.  Other than realizing I need to bring a book for “next time” and needing to urinate for the last 30 minutes, I had a smooth workout.

I burned nearly 1,000 calories and walked over 5.5 miles in 95 minutes on the treadmill.  Other than stiffness in the legs, I finished the workout unscathed.

It wasn’t until I stopped stretching and went to the rest room did the scary reality sink in:  I’m about to start the hard part.  I had only done 95 minutes on the elliptical before once (when I did 99), but that wasn’t following 95 minutes on the treadmill.  I was sore, tired, and wanted to go home.

The only place I was going, though, was on the elliptical.

I started my workout on the elliptical machine after a short break used to go to the restroom and fill up my water bottle.  After typing in level 20 (out of 20) into the machine it turned on and I immediately knew I was in trouble.  I got onto twitter for some support and found Lethal Weapon 2 on television (the one with Joe Pesci), settling in for a long, painful workout.

Looking back, I have no idea how I managed to keep going.

Around the halfway mark on the elliptical, about two and a half hours after my current cardio session started, my legs began to buckle.  I had to lean against the machine’s console so I wouldn’t fall down.  This was the moment I wanted most to quit and say “no thanks” to the remaining 45 minutes, but I didn’t.

I got back on twitter and looked for support — I found it and kept going.

With about 20 minutes left my water ran out and my cell phone battery was dying, which meaned no more twitter updates.  I turned off the music application on my phone (G1) to conserve the battery and simply ignored my water problem — I wasn’t about to quit now. Luckily, the battery in my phone lasted long enough to snap a final picture and I was able to wipe the machine down, stretch, guzzle down 20 ounces of water, and walk out of the gym alive.

It was easy to fall asleep once I got home.  My legs were sore and stiff, but I could walk.  I was a little sore Saturday and only did some light cleaning, but hit the gym Sunday hard and did 30 minutes on both the treadmill and elliptical.

I’ll be back at the gym tonight fully charged.

Hopefully, in a couple of days, I’ll be reminded why I do these workout pledges and why I felt the need to workout for 190 minutes Friday night.

I want the 230s.

My wife and I are considering setting up a home gym.

We’re contemplating it for a couple of reasons.  First, my membership at Better Body Fitness is up for renewal in a couple of days ($99 for 3 months).  I always like to know I’m getting the best value for my money.  Secondly, my wife decided to start an elliptical workout program to lose some baby weight.

So, we’re trying to decide:  home gym or gym memberships?

Cost Comparison

A gym membership for both of us at Better Body Fitness would be $198 every 3 months or $792 $460.80 for 12 months.  It has all the elliptical machines, treadmill machines, dumbbells, etc we could ever need.

While a home gym would cost more money upfront, I shouldn’t have to spend any more money for at least a few years assuming nothing breaks.  We already have a cheap elliptical machine (by ProForm) in the house that we purchased a few years ago for about $350, but to be frank — it’s crap.  I don’t think it’s ProForm (I’ve only heard good things), I just believe buying an elliptical (or any cardio) machine is a “you get what you pay for” kind of deal.

With that being said, if we did buy a new elliptical machine for a home gym we’d choose a more expensive elliptical model in the $750 range.  It’s worth it.

Convenience

If convenience was the only deciding factor, we’d pull out the Visa with 0% for 12 months and hit Dick’s Sporting Goods tonight!  My gym lacks any sort of childcare services, so that means either my wife or myself has to stay home and watch our daughter while the other goes to the gym.

That’s not very practical.

Space

A home gym, even a single elliptical machine, would take up a lot of room.  We live in your typical 4-bedroom suburban house consisting of an office, baby’s room, guest room, and masters.  While we could cram a small gym into our house, we certainly don’t have what you would call an abundance of space.

Privacy

My wife dislikes the lack of privacy in the gym.  In other words, she dislikes the perverts.  By talking to other females in my family, apparently my wife is not alone in this sentiment.  While I don’t think this is a problem in my gym (we’re a bunch of good ole’ country folks), I honestly wouldn’t notice if it was.

Personally, I don’t need privacy.  I’m a man.  I could show up at the gym wearing nothing but my underwear, unshaven for weeks, and jump on the treadmill and start running.  Men have no emotion or feelings.

Overall

Ultimately, I think my wife and I are going to workout separately.  We’ll end up buying an elliptical machine to go into a small home gym and I’ll stick with Better Body Fitness. While my wife wants to concentrate on cardio, I know I’ll begin focusing more and more on building muscle — requiring a smorgasbord of free weights and machines.  That’s how you get buff, afterall.

Where do you get buff every day?

I’ve used all of the popular cardio machines found in most gyms including the treadmill, elliptical, stationary bike, and stairmaster.  I wanted to share the experience I’ve had with each one over the past several months and hopefully help someone find the best cardio machine that works for them.

Stairmaster Machine

Honestly, I’m not a huge fan of the stairmaster.  Logistically speaking, using the machine makes my water bottle bounce out of the cup holder (no fat jokes, please).  It doesn’t seem as if the machines (I’ve tried a couple at my gym) are designed “properly.”  Overall, the stairmaster seems like a gimmick.

It’s a treadmill.  Cut down the middle.

Stationary Bike

Cycling is a low-intensity workout (good for beginners) that burns few calories in comparison to its counterparts like the treadmill and elliptical machine.  It probably has to do with the whole sitting thing, but don’t quote me on that.

Kidding aside, cycling is really fun.  It may not burn as much calories as running on the treadmill, but after all, what does?

Treadmill Machine

It’s undeniable that you can lose more calories by walking/running on the treadmill than any other machine.  Unfortunately, it takes a lot of “practice” before you’re able to clock in a hard, long workout session on the treadmill.

I originally started on the treadmill when I weighed 344 pounds, but even walking on the treadmill for more than 10 minutes was a hard task to accomplish.  The elliptical machine on the other hand…

Elliptical Machine

I’m biased.  I used the elliptical machine to help me almost exclusively lose 90 pounds.  While I’m glad I eventually switched to the treadmill, the elliptical machine will hold a special place in my heart for a very long time.

I actually use the same elliptical for every workout at my gym.  I’m attached.

The elliptical is a great cardio machine workout if you’re new to the gym.  If you’re just starting gym cardio workouts (and are overweight) you should find the low-impact motion of the elliptical machine much easier to handle than walking or running on the treadmill.

Ultimately though, the elliptical machine will only provide resistance for so long.  One day, months or maybe years from now, you’ll reach a point of diminished returns, much like I did.

Once that happens, it’s time to get on the treadmill.