The Cybex Arc Trainer is a stationary glute machine that works out your lower body. When using it, you stand upright on its footplates and balance yourself with the moving arm bars. This is a dynamic exercise machine with plenty of adjustable options, so read on to learn about how you can use it to get the best results.
Building Glute Muscles
One of the great things about the Arc Trainer is its versatility. This cross training machine has tons of adjustable features and power levels. Because it focuses on your lower body, it’s a worthy investment for those looking to train their glutes specifically.
According to research done by Cybex, your Arc Trainer can be adjusted to target different muscle groups.
A low incline setting, between 0 and 10, will focus the burn on your glutes. Higher incline settings from 10 to 20 will shift your body and the result will be a workout that benefits your quadriceps.
For the most effective glute workout, it is recommended that you keep your Arc Trainer at a low incline and keep your rate of movement high.
Benefits of Cross Training
Cross training machines like the Arc Trainer let you work out your whole body at once. This kind of machine burns fat quickly and gives a good cardio workout, but it’s also useful for strength training.
By using the arm bars on the Arc Trainer, you can put weight on your arms and tone them while you move your legs in an arc movement below. If you keep up rigorous motion in both your arms and your legs, it’s easy to build muscle over time.
Depending on the angle, you can work out your glutes, hamstrings, or focus solely on your quadriceps. For best results, you can switch your routine to focus on different exercises (and thus target different muscle groups) per day.
Weight Loss with the Cybex Arc Trainer
One of the best things about the Arc Trainer is that you can burn a lot of calories in a single session, and the machine has programs to help you meet specific goals. Indeed, the Cybex Arc Trainer is one of the most effective pieces of fitness equipment for burning calories.
To really focus on burning fat, you’ll want to keep up the intensity of your exercise. Since the Arc Trainer comes with a screen that shows a detailed readout of your heart rate, strides per minute, and the overall time of your session. The resistance on the machine is load-dependent, meaning that it can automatically adjust to your weight.
Cybex suggests using interval training both as a general exercise and as a way to burn fat. During interval training, you’ll switch off between doing intense, fast movement and then rest with slow, low-resistance movement.
The machine lends itself to interval training, because you can adjust the settings easily. Try using the Adaptive Power setting, which increases resistance as you pick up speed, and lowers resistance as you slow down.
Arc-uate Path Exercise
The Arc Trainer has several advantages over an elliptical machine, and many of them have to do with the difference in body movement and how your weight is distributed on the machine.
The mechanics of the Trainer are like an elliptical machine, but the footplates have a different path of movement. Instead of moving in an elliptical, oval-shaped path, the footplates move in an arc pattern, guiding your body into an arc of movement. This movement path actually reduces stress on your knees and joints.
The machine only generates force when you’re in a load-bearing stance, which evenly distributes the pressure between your hips and knee joints. When the pressure is shared between those areas, your joints are under less stress.
There’s also the added bonus of a more rigorous session with more intense muscle training. The overall effect is better fitness with less stress on your body.
Adjustable Settings
To get the most out of your machine, learn about how the various settings can be a tool for having a better training session. When you adjust the incline, you can target different muscle groups in your lower body. That setting offers versatility, and it’s helpful when you want to do more specific kinds of training, like focusing on your glutes.
The power settings are also adjustable, and can impact how you use the machine. For example, the Constant Power settings keep up the same level of power, even if you slow down or speed up. The machine does this by adjusting its resistance in relation to your speed.
When you slow down, the machine automatically increases the resistance so you’re still getting a certain level of rigor. On the other end, it lowers the resistance level when you start to go faster.
You can take a look at the Arc Trainer manual and their website for more detailed training suggestions.
Cybex Arc Trainer Vs. Treadmill
The Arc Trainer and a treadmill are both useful exercise machines, but they serve very different purposes in terms of your workout.
Treadmills let you walk or run at your own pace, and you can adjust the incline for a more or less rigorous workout. Compared to the Arc Trainer, it’s a fairly simple design. It’s a cardio workout, but it doesn’t offer much in terms of strength training. The Trainer is designed to offer the kind of resistance that builds up muscle in your lower body, from your glutes to your quads.
Treadmills do let you customize your routine to a certain extent, with adjustable speed and adjustable incline. However, the Trainer will allow you to do strength training in addition to cardio.
Should You Get an Arc Trainer?
Is this machine right for you?
If you want to train your lower body thoroughly, this fitness equipment will deliver. It can help you get the glutes of your dreams, and build up powerful quadriceps. If you want to sculpt your arms at the same time, the arm bars can help you get full-body motion in, so you can tone your arms and core at the same time.
This machine also has plenty of personalization options, including preset programs that guide your calorie burning session or help you with interval training. There are a lot of ways to use your Trainer machine, including the tips in this article.
How will you make the most of your Arc Trainer? Let us know in the comments below!
