By Mark D. Faries, Ph.D. on Sunday, 20 April 2014
Category: Exercise

Elliptical Handles: Cheating Calorie Burn?

The latest myth to be brought to my attention is one of the top 10 exercise cheats "that blow your calorie burn." — holding onto the handles while doing the elliptical machine.

Since this made the top 10 of all exercise cheats, get ready to see a bunch of people in the gym refusing to hold on to the handles while doing their cardio!

The Health.com article, which was re-posted by Yahoo! states:

" ...hanging on tight to the handles of the elliptical trainers cheats you out of the largest possible calorie burn..."

The argument is based on the idea that holding onto the handles will take effort away from your legs, thus you will tire faster. Although plausible at first glance, the research actually tells us something quite different.

What Does the Research Say?

Two studies have actually directly tested this question, and both support — given everything is the same (e.g. intensity, resistance, time) — that greater energy expenditure occurs when using the arms compared to not using the arms on the elliptical.

Study 1: Mier & Feito (2006)

Study 2: Sullivan and colleagues (2013)

Conclusions

Use the handles . . . or don't. The calorie difference is not going to be that much more (~0.20 to 0.50 calories per minute). 

Despite what these internet articles would have believe — using the handles is NOT going to blow your calorie burn.

Note:

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