Are Elliptical Trainers Better Than The Old Treadmill?

When it comes to cardio workouts we have so many options. Elliptical trainers, exercise bikes, treadmills, rowers, stair climbers… the list is endless. However, many people are confused as to which is best. I thought I’d take a look at whether the popular Elliptical trainer is better than the even more popular treadmill.

Are elliptical trainers better than treadmills?

These days the most popular cardio equipment devices are the ellipticals and the treadmills. My gym recently had a big upgrade and we now have more ellipticals than treadmills! This was a big surprise for me so I thought I would take a look at see which is better.

Advantages of Treadmills

Here are some of the advantages of the treadmill:

- High impact and good for athletes who need to train to run
- Can go on an incline
- Mimics real running very well
- Many settings to make more challenging
- Develops coordination and running skill
- Higher end of cardio (intense) is more intense than any other machine

Advantages of Elliptical trainers

Now I will look at some of the advantages of ellipticals:

- Low impact so protects joints and damaged muscles (main advantage)
- Involves arms in the workout so upper and lower body gets worked
- Can go backwards and forwards
- Mimics running in a non-shocking way

Conclusion

Whether you like treadmills or ellipticals is up to you. I personally think the treadmill provides a better workout but the elliptical has many features that the treadmill does not. If I was to purchase one for my home I would probably go with the elliptical as I can go for a normal run any old time. Some days it might be nice to give my joints a break.

Get a price on Elliptical Trainers at Amazon.
Get a price on Treadmills at Amazon.