The short story is that after 20 minutes on the elliptical the balls of my feet are on fire. A week ago I went to a running store and got analyzed. My new aesics fit like a dream. But then it still happened. I went back a few days ago and got a good pair of running socks. It still happened. I don't understand what is going on. Is it just the pressure from the movement on the machine? This doesn't happen if I walk on the treadmill. I would rather go longer on the elliptical since I don't really like walking that much. The elliptical is higher pay off and doesn't bother an ankle injury from a few months ago.

Any advice or insight would be greatly appreciated.

Burning? Or is it more like a tingly feeling? If it's tingling, try loosening your shoelaces. If it's actual burning, I can't offer any advice. I've never heard of that.

My first thought and question would be....are you Diabetic? If so you could be suffering from Diabetic Neuropathy. My husband has a lot of burning in the balls of his feet because of this.
Here is a short description of it and a link with more info.

The areas of the body most commonly affected by diabetic peripheral neuropathy are the feet and legs. Nerve damage in the feet can result in a loss of foot sensation, increasing your risk of foot problems. Injuries and sores on the feet may go unrecognized due to lack of sensation. Therefore, you should practice proper skin and foot care. Rarely, other areas of the body such as the arms, abdomen, and back may be affected.

Symptoms of diabetic peripheral neuropathy may include:

* Tingling

* Numbness (severe or long-term numbness can become permanent)

* Burning (especially in the evening)

* Pain

In most cases, early symptoms of diabetic peripheral neuropathy will become less when blood sugar is under control. Medications can be taken to help control the discomfort if needed.

http://www.medicinenet.com/diabetic_...hy/article.htm

I hope this can help, I am sure there are more reasons to the burning, but this one is the first to come to mind for me. Like I said, only because of my knowledge of Diabetes.

I recently had blood work done and my doc cleared me for diabetes. So I hope it's not that! Would the neuropathy only happen during exercise?

Its like friction carpet burn and goes away quickly after I'm done.

I highly doubt it's diabetes! It's that darn elipticle. You can google how many people experience the same thing you are...just about EVERYONE who uses one. I own a Lifefitness eliptical, it's one of the best made and YUP...same problem. The more you weigh...the worse it is. It comes from the constant pressure on the ball of your feet. Since you don't lift up your feet (thereby relieving this pressure) like you do when your walking...its CONSTANT! Grrrhhhh...I hate that! lol

In any event...there are some things you can do to help. First, try wearing sneakers with lots of padding by the ball. Second, every now and again, make a conscious effort to actually lift up your feet. Make sure your sneakers are wide enough for your feet...tight sneaks bother me while doing the eliptical. My feet and toes have enough pressure on them just using the machine.

Bottom line, eventually (and as you lose weight), the pain will decrease and you will get used to it to some degree....but that's the one drawback to using elipticals. BTW, I just bought a treadmill..

Hope this helps!

Another thing you can do is to cycle in reverse every so often during your workout. Since you put most of the pressure on your heels when you cycle in reverse, it gives you a little relief. But its definitely the pressure on the balls of your feet because of the elliptical - I get the same thing!

ETA: It DEFINITELY gets better as you lose more weight - I promise! Now that I'm a little lighter, and more accustomed to it, I consciously make the effort to raise up the balls of my feet every so often.

My running buddy got this burning feeling on the sides of her feet when we ran... She got some custom made orthotics, not for this burning reason, but as soon as she got them the burning went away... HTH

Well I'm relived it's not just me! I'll just have to suck it up and do the rest on the treadmill when i cant take it anymore. Glad to know it will get better as I continue to lose. Makes sense. I must be putting so much pressure on the balls of my feet.

Sounds to me like the shoes are not right for you... like you have zero arch support and your arches are burning maybe?

It sounds like you got some great answers as to what could be happening. My only advice is to do the elliptical and as soon as you feel the burning or a bit after, you go walk and then after about 5 or 10 minutes, you go back on the elliptical and just keep alternating. What I do sometimes is do the elliptical and then I go do a weight without any breaks and then, back on the elliptical. It's actually a great workout that way.

Well it isn't the arches but the balls of my feet where all the preessure is happening.

Today I stopped the elliptical for 20 minutes then did some walk / jog intervals. No burning on the treadmill.

I had burning in my feet a few years ago.
The doctor told me to switch to whole milk, and drink a couple of glasses every day. And to stop drinking green and black tea.
And he said to rest my feet for 2 weeks. I also had to lose 20 lbs.
I did, and have had no problem since.
But I can't drink the tea or skim milk anymore. Or the burning comes back in a couple of weeks.
I lost another 20 lbs in the last 5 months.