Treadmill vs elliptical trainer?

Quoted message said:

..I am looking at getting either a treadmill or an elliptical trainer for home use. My wife and I
run, usually at night, but being in central Florida, it won't be long before the heat / rain clouds
prevent us from doing so. So, we thought about getting an indoor machine for the times we can't go
out. ny suggestions / comments between these two types of equipment? Is one better for running than
the other?

Thanks in advance, TomC

Tom, No comparison, the eliptical trainer is a far more strenuous (and productive) workout than a
treadmill because it uses the upper body too for a "total body" workout. Get nothing less than
something like the NodicTrak CXT910 or equivalent, or you'll just be buying headaches. This comes
with state of the art electronics, and the ability to connect it to their website for great
workouts, scenery, or even simulated classroom workouts. In the classroom setting if you fall below
your recommended HR you get a stern warning from the trainer, and the second time a large boxing
glove comes out of the machine and punches you in the head, very realistic. Ok so I made that part
up, but it is a great machine with a 1 year 100% in home warranty. I never considering any machine
challenging or versatile enough to even consider buying until I tried this. It has adjustments for
useing the different muscle groups for walking, running, rowing, biking,

it's worth it's weight in gold. In the $800 range, but I've seen it on line for $599.

Bill R.

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OO

In article said:

I am looking at getting either a treadmill or an elliptical trainer for home use. My wife and I
run, usually at night, but being in central Florida, it won't be long before the heat / rain
clouds prevent us from doing so. So, we thought about getting an indoor machine for the times we
can't go out. ny suggestions / comments between these two types of equipment? Is one better for
running than the other?

If you want to run, get the treadmill. If you want to cross-train, get the elliptical trainer. We
have the latter, and it's a good non-impact calorie burner. But it's not equivalent to running, and
quite clearly uses the muscles differently.

Karl

I am by no means an expert on running, but I tried both the elliptical trainer and the treadmill in
the gym this winter to sort of prepare for my return to running this spring. Here is my experiences:

The elliptical trainer is a little to no-impact device - I have flat feet and troubled-knees and the
trainer never bothered them. Using the trainer was much less muscle-straining and I felt like I was
being a bit more productive as I was able to better control my heart rate, pace, etc without any leg
pains, etc.

The treadmill was a different story. For some reason it destroys my legs and I get shin splints and
my knees start acting up.

I think the trainer will build your cardio, but your legs may need reconditioned once you start
running on hard pavement again; I think the treadmill is closer to the physical demands of
running....

"TomC" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

This may not be the correct group to post this to, but I thought I'd ask anyway...I am looking at
getting either a treadmill or an elliptical

trainer

Quoted message said:

for home use. My wife and I run, usually at night, but being in central Florida, it won't be long
before the heat / rain clouds prevent us from doing so. So, we thought about getting an indoor
machine for the times we can't go out. ny suggestions / comments between these two types of
equipment? Is one better for running than the other?

Thanks in advance, TomC

Quoted message said:

If you want to run, get the treadmill. If you want to cross-train, get the elliptical trainer.

[censored]! The new NordicTrak has adjustments that are equivelent to running, not all makes and
models do. Obviously this numbnutz bought a cheapo $300 piece of [censored] that is worth nothing.

Bill R.

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OO

Quoted message said:

and I felt like I was being a bit more productive as I was able to better control my heart rate,
pace, etc without

Then you said:

I think the treadmill is closer to the physical demands of running....

These seem contradictory to each other. If you're able to control your HR etc etc better with the
eliptical trainer, how can you say the trteadmill is closer to real running? I found the eliptical
much closer to real running than a treadmill, but then again like I said in another post if it's not
the NordicTrak 910 then it may not have the adjustments required to simulate good running.

Bill R.

=============> - -- - (_!_)
OO

"TomC" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

This may not be the correct group to post this to, but I thought I'd ask anyway...I am looking at
getting either a treadmill or an elliptical

trainer

Quoted message said:

for home use. My wife and I run, usually at night, but being in central Florida, it won't be long
before the heat / rain clouds prevent us from doing so. So, we thought about getting an indoor
machine for the times we can't go out. ny suggestions / comments between these two types of
equipment? Is one better for running than the other?

It all depends on your goals. If you want to concentrate exclusively on running, then a treadmill
would be best. If you want to cross-train and/or vary your training and/or don't mind substituting a
run with an elliptical trainer session on days of inclamate weather, then get the elliptical
trainer. My gut reaction would be for the latter, since you can run outdoors when conditions permit,
but you don't have that option with elliptical training unless you have the machine.

--
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Hold on to the good." (remove '701' when replying via e-mail)
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