Treadmill vs. Elliptical

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siriusciel
siriusciel Posts: 234 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I'm seeking advice from others on treadmill vs. elliptical for cardio exercise. I previously lost 50 lbs mainly by using the elliptical. Now that I am at this again, I am trying to mix up my workouts a bit. I've started jogging on the treadmill a few times a week but I am finding that I only burn about half as many calories as when I use the elliptical (keeping in mind that the numbers on the machines are not 100% accurate). I feel that jogging/running is a better full body workout but I am struggling with the whole calorie burn aspect. Thoughts, advice, tidbits are appreciated. Thanks!

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  • nordlead2005
    nordlead2005 Posts: 1,303 Member
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    If your heart rate is the same on both then calorie burn should be pretty dang close to identical. Do whichever you enjoy.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,876 Member
    edited September 2015
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    your diet is going to have far more to do with weight management than whether or not you're using an elliptical or treadmill. a nice bi-product of regular exercise is increased calorie requisites which makes weight management easier...but it certainly isn't the reason for exercise. if exercise was for weightloss, nobody maintaining would exercise...

    I ride a good 60 - 80 miles per week, cross-train with a 5K or some interval running once per week..lift 2-3x per week...do some hiking and swimming here and there...walk my dog and otherwise remain pretty active outside of my office. I've done the above and lost weight, maintained weight, and gained weight...the difference between those three weight management objectives had zero to do with exercise and everything to do with how much I was eating.

    diet for weight control; exercise for fitness.

    as exercise goes, you should find things that you enjoy doing...because you should be doing them pretty much forever, regardless of weight management objectives.
  • 999tigger
    999tigger Posts: 5,235 Member
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    The amount of calories you burn doing cardio will depend on your intensity, duration and weight. Not on the machine you are using. Whilsy the most importnat element is controlling the amount of consumption the calorie b burns from exercise can help with weight loss depending on the final result of the deficit, whih in turn depends on how much exercise you do.

    To give you some perspective Jogging on a treadmill for 60 mins per week you are looking at 300-500 calories, which is going to take you a long time to burn the 3500 cals needed for 1lb of fat. The piece of cardio thats closest to all body exercise is the rower.
  • beemerphile1
    beemerphile1 Posts: 1,710 Member
    edited September 2015
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    I hate both and would rather go for an outside walk or run. However I would wager that workout benefits of the elliptical and treadmill are probably very similar.

    One advantage with the elliptical is that it eliminates the impact of the treadmill that may cause injury.
  • Yi5hedr3
    Yi5hedr3 Posts: 2,696 Member
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    Elipticle usually works arms too.....more potential for caloric burn.
  • AdmireDeVoll
    AdmireDeVoll Posts: 46 Member
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    I prefer the elliptical because of the resistance options, arm involvement and it's easier for me to just keep going. Plus it doesn't hurt my knees and my thunder thighs
  • 20yearsyounger
    20yearsyounger Posts: 1,643 Member
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    Before I started running, I found that I burned more calories on the elliptical. Now that I run, it's outdoors mostly for me (except when I want to take the pressure of my legs and I go back indoors). An elliptical burns more calories for me at a lower perceived level of effort than walking on a treadmill incline.
  • ScubaSteve1962
    ScubaSteve1962 Posts: 612 Member
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    Depending on the elliptical you're using, it would be more of a full body workout if you're using the handles. As far as the calorie difference, this may be because elliptical miles are different from treadmill miles. If you were using a HRM you would see about the same as long as you keep your rate the same on both.
  • krdews
    krdews Posts: 124 Member
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    I do both! During the winter I did the elliptical for an hour and then ran on treadmill 2-3 miles; once the weather became nice I continued with the elliptical & ran outside a lot more (8-10 miles). I play tennis and other activities so I don't become too bored - nice to have options and mix it up.
  • hamlet1222
    hamlet1222 Posts: 459 Member
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    nothing burns more calories in less time for me than the treadmill. I used to prefer the elliptical because it's quieter and more comfortable, but started getting a weird flicking tendon issue with me knee on it.
  • onanci
    onanci Posts: 15 Member
    edited May 2017
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    I just saw this post is really old. Derp. Don't mind me. But, I left my reply anyway.

    I think maybe you just haven't gotten comfortable enough with the treadmill and aren't pushing yourself hard enough and that's why your calorie burn is low. Theoretically, you should be able to burn the same number of calories as long as you're working as hard on each machine. If you have a heart rate tracker like a Fitbit, you could use that to get a more apples to apples comparison of your calorie burn. You may find you're not pushing yourself hard enough on the treadmill if your heart rate doesn't hit the same level as it does on the elliptical. I used to use an elliptical and now I have a treadmill. I liked the workout with the elliptical, but I started to get concerned about my bone density, so I decided I would try a harder impact machine to help with that. I don't like to jog because it's jarring, so I do intervals and really make use of the incline on the treadmill to torch calories. If possible, I would alternate between the two machines to get the benefits while minimizing the chance for injury.

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