Treadmill Versus Elliptical Trainer

Two of the most popular machines for getting aerobic activity are a treadmill and an elliptical machine. These both provide excellent cardiovascular exercise, which can help your heart, lower your blood pressure and reduce the risk of major conditions and diseases such as hypertension, stroke and diabetes. These two machines work very differently and you may want to incorporate both of them in your exercise routine to give it variety.
Both the treadmill and elliptical machine can get your heart rate up. The hallmark of cardiovascular or aerobic exercise is to be able to keep your heart rate up for a prolonged amount of time. This can provide the heart benefit. It is good to do a half an hour of cardiovascular exercise most days of the week, in spans of at least 10 minutes. Many people are able to get their heart rate up to the target level with either the treadmill or the elliptical machine.
One thing that an elliptical trainer does offer that the treadmill doesn’t is that you can get a workout without impact. This can be both advantageous or disadvantageous depending on your circumstances. People who have issues with joints such as knee problems generally want to find something that is lower impact so as not to harm their joints. Someone who is older or has other issues might appreciate the lower impact workout. On the other hand, impact can help to strengthen bones. Someone who is looking for that may choose the treadmill.
One advantage to having the lower impact is that it can get you a more efficient workout. Because the impact will be going to your joints, you may be able to burn the same calories, but it will not feel as if you are working as hard.
One advantage of an elliptical trainer is that it can also work your upper body. Most of them have dual action handlebars that allow you to move your arms at the same time that you are moving your legs. In general, people walk or jog on a treadmill, focusing on their lower body. Elliptical trainers give you more of a total body workout.
One other benefit elliptical trainers is that you are able to change it into reverse. Depending on which way it is going, this can give you a very different feel to your exercise, and some people may like this variety.
A treadmill and elliptical machine are both excellent ways to get cardiovascular exercise. Think about which one you like the best and what provides exactly what you are looking for. Many people choose to use both.