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2016-01-06 3:08 PM

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Denver, Colorado
Subject: Elliptical vs. Treadmill
Hey everyone, happy New Year.

My gym is going a major renovation and the running track is closed (for another two years...). I have an option to run outside, which sucks when it rains, or use machines. Normally, I would just wait couple of weeks until the weather is fine, but I have my first half marathon in couple of weeks, so running as much as I can should be the only plan now.

I absolutely hate treadmill. I can barely do it for 4 minutes... I was thinking about those elliptical machines, but am wondering if they do the same (or very similar) work as running. Obviously, I will try to run outside anytime I have the opportunity, but I need plan B. During the week I have about 45-50 minutes for the workout. My goal for the HM is just to see how it feels, since it will be my first one. I am currently at around 8 miles.

Thanks for any feedback!


2016-01-06 3:30 PM
in reply to: marysia83

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Silicon Valley
Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill
Mary please accept this comment with the understanding that I am not a runner by any means. I have never liked running at all and on a treadmill...kill me now. However, after a major accident I only run 'on the road' during event. The rest of the time it's treadmill, soft track or grass.

I tried both and find the treadmill far better, at least for me. The elliptical was much harder on my knees and never felt like as good a workout. The thing that does make the treadmill tolerable are the ones with preset workouts that display the terrain and adjust both speed and incline based on the actual road. So you can run in China one day and the Monterey Peninsula the next.

I know lots of people who swear by the elliptical but given the choice, the treadmill is a close approximation to running outside but, for me at least, the elliptical is not.

2016-01-06 3:48 PM
in reply to: 0

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Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill

No, they do not do the same as running.  I went through a lot of rehab recently for a couple issues where I had no choice but elliptical.  elliptical may keep you in some kind of cardio shape, but won't keep you in running shape.  (IMO)   I was doing 60 minutes elliptical but when I went back to actual running on the treadmill I could physically barely do 5 minutes.  

A better alternative (also IMO) is aqua jogging.  That actually works.

But if you can do 45-60 on an elliptical (which is mind numbing to me) you can do that on the treadmill.  That's a mental issue.  And you're only talking two weeks.  Surely you can suck it up a bit here?

Then again, I know a guy trained for the NY Marathon with 3 hour elliptical sessions.



Edited by ChrisM 2016-01-06 3:49 PM
2016-01-06 5:48 PM
in reply to: ChrisM

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Melon Presser
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Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill

Originally posted by ChrisM

No, they do not do the same as running.  I went through a lot of rehab recently for a couple issues where I had no choice but elliptical.  elliptical may keep you in some kind of cardio shape, but won't keep you in running shape.  (IMO)   I was doing 60 minutes elliptical but when I went back to actual running on the treadmill I could physically barely do 5 minutes.  

A better alternative (also IMO) is aqua jogging.  That actually works.

But if you can do 45-60 on an elliptical (which is mind numbing to me) you can do that on the treadmill.  That's a mental issue.  And you're only talking two weeks.  Surely you can suck it up a bit here?

Then again, I know a guy trained for the NY Marathon with 3 hour elliptical sessions.

She's a very tough cookie, it's OK to tell her to suck it up, she can handle it

But yes, what Chris said.

Keep in mind that aquajogging is mentally even far worse than the treadmill, though.

However, with your recent swim breakthrough, you may want to continue keeping your swimming up, and hey, just aquajog after!

2016-01-06 6:16 PM
in reply to: IndoIronYanti

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Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill

Originally posted by IndoIronYanti

Originally posted by ChrisM

No, they do not do the same as running.  I went through a lot of rehab recently for a couple issues where I had no choice but elliptical.  elliptical may keep you in some kind of cardio shape, but won't keep you in running shape.  (IMO)   I was doing 60 minutes elliptical but when I went back to actual running on the treadmill I could physically barely do 5 minutes.  

A better alternative (also IMO) is aqua jogging.  That actually works.

But if you can do 45-60 on an elliptical (which is mind numbing to me) you can do that on the treadmill.  That's a mental issue.  And you're only talking two weeks.  Surely you can suck it up a bit here?

Then again, I know a guy trained for the NY Marathon with 3 hour elliptical sessions.

She's a very tough cookie, it's OK to tell her to suck it up, she can handle it

But yes, what Chris said.

Keep in mind that aquajogging is mentally even far worse than the treadmill, though.

However, with your recent swim breakthrough, you may want to continue keeping your swimming up, and hey, just aquajog after!

For some reason I can treadmill mostly fine (even without music) for 40 -50 minutes, and have gone nearly two hours when necessary, aquajogging was boring but it's at the pool, outdoors, so I could live with it, even up to an hour (which is a LOT of AJ).  But even the mere *thought* of doing an elliptical session, even 10 minutes, makes me want to crawl under the desk!

I guess we each have our own thing!

2016-01-06 6:46 PM
in reply to: ChrisM

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Denver, Colorado
Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill
Thank you all for your feedback!

To be honest, I've never done the elliptical, so I am afraid I would fail miserably with that machine... I guess I WILL suck it up and just run outside? I am now thinking that I cannot predict the weather on the race day (heh, Chicago...), so it would actually be good to have some experience with weird stuff in the air.


2016-01-06 10:08 PM
in reply to: marysia83


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Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill
Run outside rain or shine. It builds mental toughness. You never know what you are going to encounter on race day, but if you train in all weather than you are mentally prepared for it.
2016-01-07 6:37 AM
in reply to: turnip13

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Exton, PA
Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill
run on the treadmill, elliptical is not the same.

Yes the treadmill can be boring, it's all mental though. Last year due to really bad weather I did some 14 mile runs on the treadmill, it was mentally grueling but made the mental aspect of the marathon not so bad.
2016-01-07 8:13 AM
in reply to: marysia83

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Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill

Originally posted by marysia83 Thank you all for your feedback! To be honest, I've never done the elliptical, so I am afraid I would fail miserably with that machine... I guess I WILL suck it up and just run outside? I am now thinking that I cannot predict the weather on the race day (heh, Chicago...), so it would actually be good to have some experience with weird stuff in the air.

Good to see you're going to run! I'm on an elliptical a lot now because of an injury. Can't run. The elliptical is more to keep up something and to help slow the losses. You're trying to improve your running so make sure to actually run. Treadmill, outside, track, wherever. Keep running.

2016-01-07 8:46 AM
in reply to: brigby1

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Denver, Colorado
Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill
Thanks guys. Thankfully, the weather is going to be much better this week (wonderful 37 degrees!), so I'm going to take advantage of that. Next week is supposed to be around 20, but if it's sunny and not too much snow - I will try to go outside as well
2016-01-07 8:47 AM
in reply to: marysia83

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Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill
I run about a +/- thousand miles a year, and they are all outdoors. I live in Canada and it can be +30C to -40C with sun, rain, or blizzard. If you can make it out the door for 2-3 hour runs in that weather then you can handle anything a race can throw at you.

Since this is going to be a long term situation with no access to the track. I would learn to love the outdoors and embrace it. The changing routes, scenery, seasons, and terrain all make for interesting runs. I take my dog with me when ever I run and we meet interesting people and other dogs and lots of wildlife.


2016-01-07 9:07 AM
in reply to: turnip13

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Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill
Originally posted by turnip13

Run outside rain or shine. It builds mental toughness. You never know what you are going to encounter on race day, but if you train in all weather than you are mentally prepared for it.


This is exactly what I tell myself every time it starts raining during a run or the wind kicks up huge on a bike ride - I never know what I might face on race day.

I will admit that I struggle greatly with starting runs in the pouring rain, though. That's a special kind of crazy/tough that I don't have yet.
2016-01-07 9:38 AM
in reply to: CycloneVM

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Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill

Originally posted by CycloneVM
Originally posted by turnip13 Run outside rain or shine. It builds mental toughness. You never know what you are going to encounter on race day, but if you train in all weather than you are mentally prepared for it.
This is exactly what I tell myself every time it starts raining during a run or the wind kicks up huge on a bike ride - I never know what I might face on race day. I will admit that I struggle greatly with starting runs in the pouring rain, though. That's a special kind of crazy/tough that I don't have yet.

Getting some experience with hard conditions is fine, but it's not necessary to do it all the time. Running out in some bad conditions can compromise workouts, like trying to forge ahead with a fast paced one with a lot of snow having fallen. A lot of extra energy is expended just staying upright when the goal for the workout was more to develop more power to drive yourself faster. Ice is just plain dangerous to deal with, particularly for those who can only run when it's dark out. Traffic becomes more hazardous, even if it's just raining. I can manage to run in 38-40F when it's raining well enough, but roll an ankle and have to walk then it becomes dangerous hypothermia weather as I'll be soaking wet and won't be able to generate enough heat to counteract it. I'll call for a ride if needed, but don't think it's fair to expect others to be ready to do this all the time.

2016-01-07 10:50 AM
in reply to: brigby1

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Bartlett, TN
Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill

Glad to see this thread because I was thinking about doing the same thing, working in the elliptical some instead of doing the dreadmill. I was going to do it for a different reason though, because of my knees.  I am up about 10-15 pounds and have not ran since October, so on my first run, I could feel it.

 

Also I am supposed to get my Hokas in the mail today, so I am excited to try them!

2016-01-07 11:33 AM
in reply to: marysia83

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Chesterfield, Missouri
Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill
Just curious why you think you might hate the elliptical any less than the treadmill?
Elliptical has all of the same things I don't like about treadmills - no change of scenery, no wind, no fresh air.

I've done long workouts on both but I only do the elliptical when I have an injury that prevents me from running and I only do the treadmill if the weather is really bad/dangerous out.
2016-01-07 9:38 PM
in reply to: DeVinci13

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Denver, Colorado
Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill
Originally posted by DeVinci13

I run about a +/- thousand miles a year, and they are all outdoors. I live in Canada and it can be +30C to -40C with sun, rain, or blizzard. If you can make it out the door for 2-3 hour runs in that weather then you can handle anything a race can throw at you.

Since this is going to be a long term situation with no access to the track. I would learn to love the outdoors and embrace it. The changing routes, scenery, seasons, and terrain all make for interesting runs. I take my dog with me when ever I run and we meet interesting people and other dogs and lots of wildlife.


Fantastic point! I actually went for a run outside today during my lunch break and it was awesome. I think I actually like running when it's cold more than when it's hot haha I think it's just the lazyness, and maybe the fact that for the first couple of minutes it feels cold...?

Today the weather was pretty fine, almost 40 degrees. It will be awful next week, around 20, but again - I think I am ready to taste different seasons, different weather conditions, different terrains. No just because of the unknown weather on the race day, but for variations in the running. Exactly what you said above. I think I will enjoy running in whatever awful weather more than struggling with the treadmill


2016-01-07 9:41 PM
in reply to: brigby1

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Denver, Colorado
Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill
Originally posted by brigby1

Originally posted by CycloneVM
Originally posted by turnip13 Run outside rain or shine. It builds mental toughness. You never know what you are going to encounter on race day, but if you train in all weather than you are mentally prepared for it.
This is exactly what I tell myself every time it starts raining during a run or the wind kicks up huge on a bike ride - I never know what I might face on race day. I will admit that I struggle greatly with starting runs in the pouring rain, though. That's a special kind of crazy/tough that I don't have yet.

Getting some experience with hard conditions is fine, but it's not necessary to do it all the time. Running out in some bad conditions can compromise workouts, like trying to forge ahead with a fast paced one with a lot of snow having fallen. A lot of extra energy is expended just staying upright when the goal for the workout was more to develop more power to drive yourself faster. Ice is just plain dangerous to deal with, particularly for those who can only run when it's dark out. Traffic becomes more hazardous, even if it's just raining. I can manage to run in 38-40F when it's raining well enough, but roll an ankle and have to walk then it becomes dangerous hypothermia weather as I'll be soaking wet and won't be able to generate enough heat to counteract it. I'll call for a ride if needed, but don't think it's fair to expect others to be ready to do this all the time.




Good point, thank you. I think there needs to be some balance with everything.
2016-01-08 7:11 AM
in reply to: marysia83

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Bellevue, WA
Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill

I do a lot of winter training on my treadmill.  It's very time efficient to do my morning run in my training room which is next to my bedroom. I live in a very hilly neighborhood so I can't ever just run out my front door.  I've completed many 2 and 3 hour treadmill runs. Anyway here are my tips on surviving 20 mile treadmill runs:

I read a lot on the treadmill. I have a tablet stand (http://www.amazon.com/Exercise-Mount-iPads-through-generation/dp/B006B7R3Y2 but many exist) and it holds my Android tablet running Kindle app. Zoom up the text, swipe to the next page, voila. This is a portable solution so it works when I travel and run 30 minutes on a hotel treadmill.

Since I have my own treadmill at home, the best thing ever is a TV with DVD or Netflix or some such without commercials.  I have a 32" HDTV, Bose noise cancelling headphones, and a BlueRay player, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu..  I binge watch many TV shows, and often restrict a series to just watching on the treadmill.  I watched all of Fringe that way.  I also watch a lot of movies, like the entire James Bond collection.  Santa brought me the entire Breaking Bad series to watch this winter while running.  I also use this setup on the bike trainer.

There are a lot of gym treadmills this days with built-in screens where you can connect a phone or some other player and watch a saved show.  I'm going to try that sometime on my phone with the Xfinity app or HBO Go app or Amazon Prime Video app.  Something you can download beforehand rather than stream, maybe.

2016-01-09 6:57 AM
in reply to: 0

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Subject: RE: Elliptical vs. Treadmill
Personally I would go with running outside unless the weather (plus other factors like darkness and personal safety) makes the planned workout undoable (i.e. you were planning to do speed work and there's a few feet of snow out there) and/or unsafe (running in dodgy areas after dark, heavy traffic, icy roads and sidewalks). Then use the treadmill in those situations. Both develop valuable aspects of mental toughness (dealing with weather, dealing with boredom) that will help in race situations. Will admit that I almost never use the treadmill unless there is simply no other way to get a workout done, usually due to bad weather (thunderstorms here, ice in Oregon) and occasionally time constraints. As others have said, the elliptical really doesn't work the body in the same way and it's a less desirable substitute for running. I'd only resort to it if injured when aqua-jogging wasn't an option.

Cold weather in itself shouldn't be a huge issue. I have run (albeit not very fast!) in temps down to -20F. Dressing in layers (base layer, warm layers, windproof layer), wearing warm gloves, hat, and socks to prevent frostbite, and in really cold wind, maybe putting some Vaseline on your face, should get you through runs of an hour or more. If it's windy, heading out into the wind and back with the wind (at your back) is a good idea. As others have mentioned, with running in cold weather, especially if it's also wet, you do need to consider the possibility that you could, for example, turn an ankle and be unable to finish a run, and possibly end up dangerously wet/cold. I'd run with a phone in those cases, or, if no one was available for rescue, run along/ close to a bus route (and carry fare) or find a route or track where I could do shorter loops and easily get back home or to my car if things went bad.

Edited by Hot Runner 2016-01-09 7:04 AM
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