Elliptical vs Treadmill

tmzana

Does anyone know why you go a longer distance on the elliptical vs the treadmill when you go the same speed on both? Like the other day I did 28 min on Elliptical and went 3.6 miles and did the 26 min on treadmill and only did 1.27 miles.

Thanks!

tjwanek

I don't pay much attention to the distance, because there's no way to know exactly how each system is computing it. I've often wondered about my elliptical, because there's not really a direct relationship between that motion and actually walking somewhere. I would assume the treadmill is closer to being a 'true' distance, but I can't prove it. If the elliptical was accurate, that would be 7.7 mph, which is a pretty good clip (7:45 miles).

For me, it's all about getting a set number of calories burned, and keeping my heart rate at the right level. Even there, I see differences. I use a Polar FT7 HRM, and the calories burned on it are probably 15% less than it shows on my elliptical. I'd like to think the elliptical is more accurate, because it can directly measure power, but no way to know for sure.

weightofyourskin

I have an elliptical at home and I find that it really underestimates the distance I go. In fact I wonder if something is wrong with it or the display because there's no way after 15 minutes I've only gone a quarter-mile. (My usual WALKING speed is around 3.5 mph.. when the sidewalks aren't totally iced over...)