Treadmill Vs Elliptical Vs Bike Vs Stairmaster

This is the ultimate mega comparison between Treadmill, Elliptical Trainer, Exercise Bike and Stairmaster. Know their pros, cons, and how these are different from each other before making your decision of buying one for your ultimate home gym in India.

Personal Research Opinion Based

Treadmill vs Elliptical vs Bike vs Stairmaster

Elliptical vs Treadmill

Calories burned treadmill vs elliptical – Elliptical due to its full body workout nature burns little more calories than the treadmill. But elliptical improves your body balance which treadmill does not. And treadmill workouts are little monotonous.

Elliptical

Treadmill

Best for	Full body low impact workout	Lower body workout
	Improve balance	Want to lose weight
	General Fitness	Preparing for a race
	Upper body workout	Only lower body
Calories Burned	200-300 in 30 minutes	200-300 in 20 minutes
When to Use	Active Recovery	Preparing for a Race
	Non impact conditioning for Runners	Warm ups before workout
	Easy Quick Full body workouts	Relieve Stress
Cons	Locked Pattern	Stride area is shorter
	Less weight bearing effect	Can be hard on joints
	Does not strengthen bones	Excessive running can lead to muscle loss
When not to Use	N/A	Knee injury

Elliptical vs Stair climber

Stairmaster vs elliptical for weight loss?

Both home gym weight loss equipments burns similar amount of calories. But if you are severely overweight then elliptical will provide you with low impact workout whereas straimaster is not so low impact. Also there is a tendency of leaning on stairmaster mostly due to it requires more strength and it is a monotonous pattern.

Elliptical

Stair climber

Best for	Full body low impact workout	Increasing lower body strength
	Improve balance	Lose weight
	General Fitness	Toned lower body
	Upper body workout	Lower body workout
Calories Burned	200-300 in 30 minutes	200-300 in 30 minutes
When to Use	Active Recovery	Addition to lower body workouts
	Non impact conditioning for Runners
	Easy Quick Full body workouts
Cons	Locked Pattern	Monotonous movement may cause round back, forward leaning
	Less weight bearing effect	Bad posture can lead knee pain
	Does not strengthen bones	No upper body movement
When not to Use	N/A	Knee Injury

Stairmaster vs Treadmill for fat loss

Treadmill vs Elliptical vs Bike vs Stairmaster 1

Is stairmaster better than treadmill? Depending on your use, if your goal is to increase strength in your lower body then straimaster is for you. Or just casual running or training for mararthon with fat loss is your goal then treadmill is for you.

As far as calories burned concerned, both are similar.

Stairmaster

Treadmill

Best for	Increasing lower body strength	Lower body workout
	Lose weight	Lose weight
	Toned lower body	Preparing for a race
	Lower body workout	Only lower body
Calories Burned	200-300 in 30 minutes	200-300 in 20 minutes
When to Use	Addition to lower body workouts	Preparing for a Race
		Warm ups before workout
		Relieve Stress
Cons	Monotonous movement may cause round back, forward leaning	Stride area is shorter
	Bad posture can lead knee pain	Can be hard on joints
	No upper body movement	Excessive running can lead to muscle loss
When not to Use	Knee Injury	Knee injury

Bike vs Walking

Bike

Walking

Best for	Cycle Race Preparation	General Fitness
	Low impact Cardio Workout	Stronger bones
	Lower body workout	Improve Balance

Calories Burned	100-150 in 30 minutes	200-350 in 1 hour
When to Use	Physical Therapy	Cardio
	Active Recovery
	Cycle Race Preparation
Cons	Low calorie burn compared to other activities	Could stress more on leg joints
	Less Challenging than outdoor cycling	Treadmill speed control can make it challenging
	No Versatility	Versatile depending on terrain, treadmill speed and form
When not to Use	If you are Ill	If you are Ill

Stationary Bike vs Elliptical for knees

With an exercise bike your foot does not leave the paddle but when using elliptical trainers you have to take your feet up for the stride.

Thus Stationary bikes are less harsh on your knees than elliptical trainers. Consult your doctors before choosing one.

Is walking on Treadmill is bad?

Stationary bike vs elliptical for weight loss

Elliptical burns little more calories than exercise bikes since it is a full body workout. Combined with proper diet if only losing fat or weight is your goal then you should go for a Elliptical trainer.

Elliptical vs Bike vs Treadmill

Elliptical

Bike

Treadmill

Best for	Full body low impact workout	Cycle Race Preparation	Lower body workout
	Improve balance	Low impact Cardio Workout	Want to lose weight
	General Fitness	Lower body workout	Preparing for a race
	Upper body workout		Only lower body
Calories Burned	200-300 in 30 minutes	100-150 in 30 minutes	200-300 in 20 minutes
When to Use	Active Recovery	Physical Therapy	Preparing for a Race
	Non impact conditioning for Runners	Active Recovery	Warm ups before workout
	Easy Quick Full body workouts	Cycle Race Preparation	Relieve Stress
Cons	Locked Pattern	Low calorie burn compared to other activities	Stride area is shorter
	Less weight bearing effect	Less Challenging than outdoor cycling	Can be hard on joints
	Does not strengthen bones	No Versatility	Excessive running can lead to muscle loss
When not to Use	N/A	If you are Ill	Knee injury

Stair Stepper vs Treadmill vs Elliptical

Stair Stepper

Treadmill

Elliptical

Best for	Increasing lower body strength	Lower body workout	Full body low impact workout
	Lose weight	Want to lose weight	Improve balance
	Toned lower body	Preparing for a race	General Fitness
	Lower body workout	Only lower body	Upper body workout
Calories Burned	200-300 in 30 minutes	200-300 in 20 minutes	200-300 in 30 minutes
When to Use	Addition to lower body workouts	Preparing for a Race	Active Recovery
	Strength training Legs	Warm ups before workout	Non impact conditioning for Runners
		Relieve Stress	Easy Quick Full body workouts
Cons	Monotonous movement may cause round back, forward leaning	Stride area is shorter	Locked Pattern
	Bad posture can lead knee pain	Can be hard on joints	Less weight bearing effect
	No upper body movement	Excessive running can lead to muscle loss	Does not strengthen bones
When not to Use	Knee Injury	Knee injury	If you are not Ill