- So the past summer I was trying to decide the winner in the continuing debate between Ellipticals vs Treadmills.
- As we only had room for one unit in our home gym – I wanted to make sure it would be the right one! Now I enjoyed cross-country running during high school, but university took that time away, at which I started using ellipticals for my cardio workouts at the school gym. Since then this had been my cardio equipment of choice. So why you ask did we buy a treadmill??
- For me I have to do the research – I want to know the pros and cons of all sides of the story. Most of the articles I found online about this debate tended to favour the elliptical – I mean why not!!
- Ellipticals
- Provide an easier, gentler workout – with less perceived effort for the same amount of calorie expenditure
- Less Impact - women know the effect of gravity all too well, and running just seem to worsen the effect. And all that jarring must be bad for your body, right? (actually wrong – see below)
- Cross-training – I would have to say this one is truly debatable as very few ellipticals really work the upper body (Octane & Cybex Arc’s the exceptions) to the point that one really can feel any fatigue in your upper body.
- So why go with the Treadmill? well I still really want the Cybex Arc trainer – which is technically not an elliptical – but that’s a whole other blog!
- Benefits for treadmill use!!
- Prevent Osteoporosis! – yeah that’s right ladies, that impact as your feet land on the deck strengthens your bones and can actually reverse the effects of osteoporosis!! Osteoporosis is becoming increasingly prevalent, especially in women and it can really affects your quality of life as you age. Click here for more info about Osteoporosis and it’s prevention. It was this fact alone that really was the decision maker for me. NASA completed some studies after it was revealed that astronauts in space were experiencing severe loss of bone density while in the no-impact gravity free zone of space.
They implemented a program for their astronauts that they have to complete an impact exercise – essentially a treadmill in space- and this minimizes the effect. Your body is designed to take a beating and is strengthened by it! *if you can’t do without the elliptical – try to incorporate more time strength training as this too will help increase bone density*
- Natural Stride – well is quite simple – one is able to walk/jog/run in a stride that is natural to you without a fixed plane of motion. Ellipticals try to mimic this movement and have yet to succeed completely. It’s the complete freedom of movement that means your body moves in perfect ergonomic form - the way it should as opposed to some engineered ellipse.
- Pacing – With an elliptical as with running outdoors, one tends to slow down later into the workout, and you may not acheive a workout to your highest level. The speed on the treadmill is set and you are less likely to change it even if you have to push yourself near the end. I found personally when I started using my Polar Heart rate monitor, that I was slowing down well before my heart really needed me too. Normally 20 minutes into my workout I would feel the first bit of fatigue, and I would normally slow down – just a touch, however because of my heartrate monitor keeping me in the zone, I now realized I could push myself past it. And the treadmill makes this really easy to do!
- and there are more benefits- the variety of incline and decline options, less strain on joints forced into an unnatural movement, and did I mention increasing bone density?!? I’ve been converted to a treadmill user and I love mine!
- So this is for the ladies – you don’t have to go for a hard run to get the benefits of the impact of using a treadmill. You can choose an interval program that varies between high and mid level incline at a fast walking pace and you will definitely get your heartrate to a level of high cardio intensity that beats anything I could ever achieve on an elliptical. (oh and invest in a good sports bra!)
- ***** for anyone suffering from injuries, be it hip or knee or any kind of injury take the advise of your doctor with respect what exercise regime is right for you. Ellipticals were developed for rehabilitation purposes and they are great for people dealing with an injury or disability, and for a great new innovation in cardio equipment check out www.arctrainer.com*****
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