Elliptical instead of treadmill

Cary K

Cary K

Well-known member
The treadmills at my gym suck. Who likes doing an elliptical instead of a treadmill?
Pros and cons please. I need to start doing cardio and I don't want to do cardio on the sucky treadmills.
 
I like the elliptical but I've got a bunch of foot problems so running is something I tend to avoid
 
Cary K said:
The treadmills at my gym suck. Who likes doing an elliptical instead of a treadmill?
Pros and cons please. I need to start doing cardio and I don't want to do cardio on the sucky treadmills.
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I've feel like I can get a much better workout in either running outside or on the treadmill. I like doing HIIT though which you can't do on an elliptical. I've had a few knee surgeries so I should prolly do the elliptical but I find it so boring.
 
nicksox15 said:
I've feel like I can get a much better workout in either running outside or on the treadmill. I like doing HIIT though which you can't do on an elliptical. I've had a few knee surgeries so I should prolly do the elliptical but I find it so boring.
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Yea, running in one place is very boring. Its getting colder outside in the mornings so running outside is out.
 
Cary K said:
Yea, running in one place is very boring. Its getting colder outside in the mornings so running outside is out.
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I hear ya man, after daylight savings time I'm pretty much going to have to be inside as well. Dark in the morning when I go to the gym and dark when I get off of work.
 
seeing as how the human body is not design to ellipt, i say do other things that work your heart instead of the elliptical.

try this. do 100 KB swings a day for a month. start as heavy as you can and add about 5lbs every week. come back and let us know all the benefits.
 
HIIT is definitely the best option and far less boring than static speed jog/run. I have knee issues so I can't be running too much, I try to do it on the bike. I wish I could swim more - I love swimming thats the best of all IMO
 
I think the elliptical is great work. I used it extensively for conditioning for MMA. Now it wasn't the elliptical alone, I used it 2-3 days a week and did sprint work 2-3 days a week. That was in addition to regular fight training/padwork/sparring.
 
I use the stairmaster & the e... :)
 
Using exclusively its a poor piece of equipment. First, you are not using as much musculature as when running, so your overall caloric expenditure is lower. Second, it does not mimic running, and will actually encourage poor running motor mechanics.

Nothing beats running on solid ground. And treadmill running does not compare. Get some underarmor cold gear and get outside, its really quite refreshing once you get going.
 
Oscar said:
I like the elliptical but I've got a bunch of foot problems so running is something I tend to avoid
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sam with me and my knees.......i can haul ass on the ET with out having a crying session afterwards
 
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