Recent studies show that over 60% of our population is obese. If you fall into that category, you may want to find the most effective way to get fit and to lose weight. People are more apt to stick to a workout routine if they are able to exercise in the relative anonymity of their own home. For this reason people decide to purchase a home fitness machine. The question is should I buy a treadmill or an elliptical trainer. This is a review of the two fitness machines and will help you to decide which the best one to purchase is.
Calories Burned
Both a treadmill and an elliptical trainer will allow you to burn calories which is the goal in weight lost. The amount of calories that will be burned is based on the intensity of your exercise and the length of the exercise.
Generally if you are exercising at the same level of intensity and for the same amount of time on both machines, an elliptical trainer will burn more calories. This is because a treadmill only works out your lower body when either walking or running. On the other hand, an elliptical trainer will provide the same lower body workout but will also work out your upper body by incorporating arm movement during the exercise period.
If you are looking for the most calories burned, an elliptical trainer will do more than a treadmill.
Upper and Lower Body Workout
If you want to get fit then you need to improve your muscles as part of your workout routine. It is a snowball effect. As you workout you build muscles. Muscles burn fat which helps you to lose weight. The more you workout the more muscles you build which in turn burns more and more fat.
As I mentioned previously, a treadmill only works out your lower body. During the workout the muscles in your legs improve and get stronger. Muscles burn more fat than does the fat on your body. An elliptical machine will improve the muscles in your arms and your legs. This gives you more benefit as the muscles in both places burn fat.
Impact on Body
Running has always had a negative reputation due to the impact on the knees. It is possible to minimize the impact through proper form but you will never completely eliminate the impact. Most treadmills provide a cushion in their running track that provides less impact on your knees than running on concrete. This cushion helps in lowering the impact to your joints but the fact is that you still have the impact.
With an elliptical machine, there is no impact. You put your feet on the foot pedals and exercise. You are not pounding up and down on the foot pedal when exercising. An elliptical machine is an impact free exercise machine. An elliptical machine will not damage your knees.
Noise Factor
Both machines are noisy because they both have motors. The treadmill will have slightly more noise due to the ground noise that results from the echo of your running on the treadmill. The more expensive models of both machines provide quite a bit of noise dampening in the design of the products.
Space Requirements
Both pieces of fitness equipment will require quite a bit of floor space in your house. This can cramp a room if you are using the room for another purpose like a bedroom or a family room. Usually treadmills are longer. Both machines have approximately the same width.
Treadmills get the nod here because most treadmills have a folding option that allows you to pull the track up toward the display for storage. An elliptical machine does not fold. If you want to be able to conserve space when not in use then you want to consider a treadmill.
The goal with purchasing the best fitness equipment for a home gym is to lose weight and to get fit. The treadmill will work out your lower body only, burn calories and provide a better storage option. An elliptical machine will work out both your upper and lower body, burn more calories and will get your fit faster. An elliptical machine is a low impact fitness equipment. The best choice for a home gym has to be an elliptical machine.
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