Elliptical vs. Treadmill

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Replies

  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    This, exactly. I run on the treadmill and am transitioning to outside. The more the weight comes off, the better my knee feels. They are two different ducks though. Much easier running on the treadmill. Couch to 5K is the way to begin. Good luck.

    I have always run outside and I find it is MUCH easier to run outside. The stead y pace of the treadmill has me winded before I ever hit a mile. Outside I can speed up and slow down as my body requires it and I can run 3.1 in under 30 minutes. On the treadmill I struggle to get to 2 miles.
    I never could understand why the treadmill was so much more difficult, but that makes so much sense! (Of course, I also hate working out in the stuffy gym, no matter what I'm doing.)

    OP -- also wanted to add that you will use some different muscles running vs. elliptical, so it's a good idea to do both. And the elliptical helps a LOT with endurance, so you will probably find running easier than you expect.
  • jenniferwgarrett3
    jenniferwgarrett3 Posts: 10 Member
    My gym has a machine that I think is called an adaptive motion trainer. It kind of looks like a stair stepper but works more like an elliptical. With it I get a range on motion closer to running than on the elliptical with no pounding like the treadmill. The last time I tried to run on the treadmill it killed my knee for days.
  • beachlover317
    beachlover317 Posts: 2,848 Member
    This, exactly. I run on the treadmill and am transitioning to outside. The more the weight comes off, the better my knee feels. They are two different ducks though. Much easier running on the treadmill. Couch to 5K is the way to begin. Good luck.

    I have always run outside and I find it is MUCH easier to run outside. The stead y pace of the treadmill has me winded before I ever hit a mile. Outside I can speed up and slow down as my body requires it and I can run 3.1 in under 30 minutes. On the treadmill I struggle to get to 2 miles.
    I never could understand why the treadmill was so much more difficult, but that makes so much sense! (Of course, I also hate working out in the stuffy gym, no matter what I'm doing.)

    OP -- also wanted to add that you will use some different muscles running vs. elliptical, so it's a good idea to do both. And the elliptical helps a LOT with endurance, so you will probably find running easier than you expect.

    The reason, I find, that it is easier to run on a treadmill has more to do with my knee. It's more of a cushioned surface. When I run outside, I have to run on the road or a nearby track (asphalt). It puts more pressure on my knee and that causes some pain. When I run on a softer surface (grass or dirt road), it feels better. As I lose more weight, I'm sure that will change. The pace is not the issue. It's the surface.
  • paulperryman
    paulperryman Posts: 839 Member
    This, exactly. I run on the treadmill and am transitioning to outside. The more the weight comes off, the better my knee feels. They are two different ducks though. Much easier running on the treadmill. Couch to 5K is the way to begin. Good luck.

    I have always run outside and I find it is MUCH easier to run outside. The stead y pace of the treadmill has me winded before I ever hit a mile. Outside I can speed up and slow down as my body requires it and I can run 3.1 in under 30 minutes. On the treadmill I struggle to get to 2 miles.
    I never could understand why the treadmill was so much more difficult, but that makes so much sense! (Of course, I also hate working out in the stuffy gym, no matter what I'm doing.)

    OP -- also wanted to add that you will use some different muscles running vs. elliptical, so it's a good idea to do both. And the elliptical helps a LOT with endurance, so you will probably find running easier than you expect.

    The reason, I find, that it is easier to run on a treadmill has more to do with my knee. It's more of a cushioned surface. When I run outside, I have to run on the road or a nearby track (asphalt). It puts more pressure on my knee and that causes some pain. When I run on a softer surface (grass or dirt road), it feels better. As I lose more weight, I'm sure that will change. The pace is not the issue. It's the surface.

    Run on grass or soft surfaces then, the treadmill is rubber so it gives more but you aren't running in as natural a state as you would outside then when you go to a surface thats not the treadmill it feels very different cause you are having to propel yourself not the ground
  • mtbwell
    mtbwell Posts: 20
    Do both! 20 treadmill and 20 Elliptical.

    But ultimately, you want to graduate to the dreaded STAIRMILL.

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