What muscles does a stair stepper work?

The stair stepper won’t give you an upper body workout. What the stepper will do is give you lower body a solid workout. Your calves, quads, gluts and hip flexors will be exercised by this machine meaning this equipment is great for toning legs and buttocks. An elliptical trainer would also work the quadriceps on the front of the thighs, but a stair stepper will only start to act on this group of muscles once you start getting to the higher intensity level of exercise. Of course depending on how much effort you put in the stair stepper can also work your heart muscles.

Is a stair stepper good for cardio?

A stair stepper will get your heart rate up and give you a good cardio workout. The problem with this machine is that you are not using your upper body at the same time. Exercise machines that use upper and lower body tend to provide better cardio workouts in as neither upper or lower body is over stressed. With a stair stepper your legs take a mauling. The result is that after 30 minutes of exercise you feel less exhausted coming off an elliptical where you have worked your heart rate up to a constant 120 bpm than you would having come off a stepper with the same results.

How many calories does a stair stepper burn?

I am 180lbs and various calculators suggest that with vigorous use of a stair stepper I might burn 386 calories in a 30 minute period, this compares with an elliptical where I might be expected to burn 600 calories in a 30 minute period.

The truth is most of the calculators and formulas for working out calorie burn are pretty hit and miss as they really require detail such as your sex, weight and age on an individual basis and then use generalisations on exercise intensity to make the calculations. What we can say is that if calorie burning is your goal then other types of equipment such as treadmills, bikes and elliptical trainers are usually considered better burners.

However, you can maximise your calorie burn on a stair stepper by either exercising at 65% of your max heart rate, this will put you in a fat burning zone which experts believe will allow you to burn 300 calories in 30 minutes or by using interval training techniques to get more from your workout.

Is a Stair Stepper Good For Weight Loss?

As we have discussed earlier a stair stepper will give you a cardio workout and can help you burn calories but if I had to choose an exercise machine to lose weight the stepper wouldn’t be it. The main reason I would opt for a different machine is that achieving a consistent workout program on a stepper is difficult, in short, it hurts to much. An elliptical burns more calories at less stressful levels so would probably be the best way to go.

What type of workout are stair steppers good for?

To conclude, a stair stepper can give you a good workout depending on your goals. If you are motivated to primarily lose weight other machines are more effective but you can get some good benefits from a stepper. If you are looking for a cardio workout other machines are easier to use and stay motivated to use over a period of time. If you are looking to tone up your legs and rear then the stepper is an excellent choice and will contribute to a cardio and weight loss workout program at the same time.

How they are used

Both items are easy to use but the elliptical requires a little more co-ordination. A stair stepper is essentially a never ending, rotating staircase. How do you use a stair stepper? The user simply climbs the stairs for as long as their workout lasts. Side handles are provided for balance. Most individuals have come across stairs before so using this type of machine comes naturally. Alternatively stair steppers may feature footplates that travel up and down under user motion rather than a revolving staircase. This type of stair stepper will also have side handles for balance.

An elliptical features footpads that travel elliptically under operator pressure and poles that are operated by the arms and shoulders. The poles and footpads are operated in synch with each other to provide a full body workout.

The margins of difference are minimal but on the basis of having to have upper and lower body co-ordination until the user is adept at using the elliptical, the stair stepper is easier to use for the first timer in general.

Joints

Both types of machine are low impact machines, at no time will both feet be off the ground, this means that wear or impact on ankle, knee and hip joints is lower than with high impact activities such as running on a treadmill or skipping.

Although both activities are low impact it is believed that steppers are a higher level of impact than ellipticals. On a stepper you are required to lift your legs and push down, on an elliptical no lifting is necessary and the action is smoother.

Small amounts of impact are considered beneficial in most cases because the impact promotes bone and cartilage growth, however if you do suffer from knee problems you will get less pain using an elliptical machine.

Muscles

Stepper exercise machines only exercise muscles in the lower half of the body whereas an elliptical trainer exercises upper and lower body. A stepper is particularly useful for exercising calves, thighs, hips and gluts leading to great tone in the legs. An elliptical will exercise the front of the thighs, hips and gluts as well as providing exercise to arms, shoulders and upper chest.

The stepper exercisers found in the gym will provide a more intense leg and lower body workout than the elliptical but the elliptical will give a more balanced workout at what feels like a lower intensity.

Calorie Burning

Both these exercise machines burn calories but the elliptical is far more effective. Calorie burn is relative to the individual, so for a 180lb individual exercising for 30 minutes the Health Status Calculator suggests that a stair stepper would burn 286 calories and an elliptical trainer would burn 456 calories. This result is not hugely surprising given that the stepper only utilises the lower body whereas the elliptical is a full body workout.

Something to carefully consider if you are choosing to use one of these machines is that the stair stepper workout is intense with a capital “I”. Even if you use both machines for the same length of time the elliptical will burn more calories and leave you feeling far less exhausted as the burden of exercise has been spread over your whole body. The knock on affect of this is that it is easier to use an elliptical for longer periods and to remain motivated over periods of months.

Cost

A good quality home gym stepper is likely to cost $1300 and upwards. There are a few cheaper models, notably mini steppers, but you have to question whether they are truly robust enough for the task and whether they will exercise your body in the same way as these more expensive models.

For $1300 you can buy a very high quality home elliptical machine. Unlike steppers, there is a huge range of choice in ellipticals from $500 upwards so the $1300 mark represents the premium level.

In conclusion, whichever machine you choose you will get a low impact cardio workout. If you want toned legs the stepper is for you. If you are looking for an overall body workout and to burn lots of calories to lose weight then opt for an elliptical machine workout. If cost is a concern then the elliptical offers the best potential to get a quality machine at a reasonable price.

How They Work

Although both machines look similar they actually work in fundamentally different ways. A mini elliptical is essentially the footplate only section of the traditional elliptical fitness machine. The users mounts the footplates and turns the elliptical footplates through an arc. The bodyweight is spread evenly over both feet throughout the exercise action and a walking action is produced.

With a mini stepper, the user mounts the footplates and depresses the plates to create an up and down stepping action. Essentially the users body weight is focussed through each leg during each step so more resistance to each leg occurs.

Impact

Both the machines are low impact machines. Essentially, high impact activities tend to involve periods where both the users feet are off the ground. When the user lands the shock of the users bodyweight slamming down through each foot causes stress on bones and joints which can lead to problems over time. Neither of these machines requires the user to leave the ground or leaves the user unsupported. Essentially neither machine should cause impact type injuries to joints.

In a direct comparison between the two machines it could be argued that the elliptical offers less impact than the mini stepper. The mini stepper requires you to lift your bodyweight and transfer it back down to the ground through different legs. This action probably incurs more impact than the elliptical where both feet are fully supported and bodyweight is spread evenly through out the exercise action.

Cardio

Both machines should offer a cardio aerobic workout as they use large muscle groups (thighs and glutes) during the exercise activity. Out of the two machines the mini elliptical is likely to offer the better cardiovascular exercise as there is no cheat option. The mini stepper, or any stepper other than a rolling staircase, can be cheated if the user does not use the correct technique. Many users have a tendancy to bounce on steppers and use bodyweight to displace the steps rather than using thigh power alone to move the steps.

A good cardio aerobic workout usually means getting your heart rate up between 60-80% of max heart rate (MHR = 220 – Age). At these levels the heart and lung muscles develop improved stamina . Fitter individuals find it takes high levels of exercise intensity and duration to reach these levels as their heart and lungs have better stamina. For a beginner these levels can be reached very quickly. If you are a beginner you are likely to get cardio aerobic benefits from both machines, although if aerobic benefits are the goal you might be better advised to opt for the elliptical. Fitter individuals may find these machines to be less effective.

Weight loss

If weight loss is your goal you want to choose the machine that is most effective at burning calories. We already investigated calorie burning in our post on mini exercise bikes where we gave formulas that could be used to calculate calorie burn. These formulas rely on a mixture of variables such as age and current weight, but heart rate plays a major role. Essentially the machine that allows the user to consistently maintain a higher rate is the machine that will burn more calories and therefore be better for weight loss.

We would expect the mini elliptical to be a better choice for weight loss bearing in mind our previous discussion on cardio aerobic workouts.

Muscle Toning

Although both machines use leg and lower torso muscle groups neither machine uses exactly the same muscle groups and furthermore the muscles used are not used in the same manner on each machine.

The mini elliptical will exercise the core muscles (mid torso muscles used for balance including abs, lats etc), the glutes, hamstrings (back of thighs), quadriceps(front/top of thigh) and calve muscles. The mini stepper places emphasis on the core muscles, calves, glutes, quadriceps and hip flexors.

The mini elliptical exercise action is a momentum action like walking or running. The muscles are used to propel the body rather than lift the body. The mini stepper action is a resistance action. Each leg is require to press through the action against resistance. Although both machines will tone legs, hips and butts, if your goal is a more shapely figure or improved leg shape and toning, the mini stepper is the better machine because of the resistance action.

In conclusion the mini elliptical is probably better for those individuals who are looking to concentrate on weight loss and improve general fitness levels. Check out the best selling mini elliptical on the market at our post on the stamina 55-1610 inmotion elliptical trainer. The mini stepper can contribute to weight loss and fitness but offers better results for leg and butt tone than an elliptical might.

How to use a mini stepper exerciser?

Mini steppers are pretty straightforward to use. You simply step onto the footplates and power the footplate’s downward alternatively with each foot in a stepping motion. The footplates offer resistance through hydraulics, which on many machines can be regulated depending on your fitness levels. The secret to getting the most out of the machine is to avoid cheating by bouncing the foot-pedals, you need to use thigh and leg power to depress the footplates rather than bodyweight.

There are more advanced mini steppers on the market now which allow you to carry out basic upper body exercises using resistance bands built into the stepper. With these bands you can do arm curls and the like whilst stepping through your routine.

How many calories burned on a mini stepper?

As we can see from the run down on how to use a mini exercise stepper the type of exercise you are going to get will be low impact cardiovascular exercise with a dollop of light resistance exercise. This cardio exercise will burn calories. Burning calories in exercise depends on factors such as your current weight, duration of exercise etc. Not all fitness machines or types of exercise burn calories at the same rate per hour. For a general idea of how many calories you might burn on a stepper with moderate exercise for 30 mins you can check this link : Calories Burned Estimator. If you compare calories burned compared to other machines the results are interesting. For myself, a 180lbs individual, I might expect to burn 286 calories in 30mins using a stepper. This would be the same if I was using a rowing machine, doing light jogging, or carrying out low impact aerobics. However, on an exercise bike at 10mph I might burn closer to 450 calories in 30 mins. So you will burn calories but maybe not as much as on other types of exercise machines.

Mini stepper to lose weight

If you can burn calories you can lose weight. Simply put, if you absorb more calories through diet than your body uses in normal daily functions your body will store excess calories for later use in the form of body fat.

Regular use of a mini stepper will help you use more calories than you would normally use. It is generally recommended that you should only look to lose one pound of body weight a week. To achieve this you would have to burn 3500 calories by exercise over the course of the week, to achieve this with a mini stepper i would have to do a 52 minute workout each day. Alternatively I could cut my calorie intake by 250 calories a day and do a shorter 30 minute workout and get the same result. Either way use of a mini stepper can help you lose weight but you have to be disciplined in your approach and use of the machine.

Mini Stepper To Tone Thighs?

As well as helping to lose weight a mini stepper can be used to tone up your legs. The resistance your legs meet when forcing the footplates downward not only give a cardio workout but also help strengthen and tone the various leg muscles used in the stepping action. The main muscles used are the thigh muscles but calves, hip muscles and gluts also get worked out. Within about a month of regular use you should notice thighs and legs becoming more toned.

To conclude a mini stepper exerciser can offer some reasonable health benefits if used consistently. You should be able to lose weight and tone your legs, hips and rear with consistent use. The machine will also offer a light but useful work out for your heart and lungs. You can get equipment that will work all these areas quicker and harder but for a cheap and easy to store machine the stepper offers some unbeatable benefits.

Best Price Bowflex TC5000 Treadclimber

The Bowflex TC5000 Treadclimber, like the 3000, is the ideal blend of stepper machine and treadmill all in one. This power walking machine will combine a good cardio workout with a tough stepper workout for toning, improved leg strength and power and increased aerobic fitness.

On a stepper or step mill you vertically lift your body, on the treadclimber it will actually feel like you are walking up and down real hills and slopes.

The best thing about these exercise machines is that you can use them as separate machines, you get three machines in one! If you want pure stepping the equipment can be set up in stepper mode, if you want a treadmill for power walking you can set up in treadmill mode. If you want to combine workouts go for full low impact treadclimber mode.

All the impressive features of the TC3000 are retained, you have speed control ranging from 0.7 – 4mph, you have 12 resistance levels, and all the standard electronic features to monitor your workout such as speed, distance, time, calories per minute, total calorie burn, and total steps taken.

The TC5000 goes further, now you can monitor heart rate at a glance to get the best out of your interval training or if you are looking for max calorie burn. This model comes complete with a wireless heart rate monitor and chest strap.

You want extra motivation during your workout? The TC5000 provides that with a total climb indicator that measures your elevation gain in feet. Now you can push just that extra 100ft and get more out of your workout.

This machine will remember all your previous power and resistance settings so you don’t have to set up every time. Input your height and weight the machine will calculate your intensity inputs to give accurate calorie burn calculations, no more guess work!

Bowflex are renowned for high standards of build quality and the TC5000 is no exception. With the TC3000 you got 3 years warranty on the motor, 2 years on parts and electronics and one year on hydraulics, with the TC5000 you get 5 years on the motor, 3 years on parts and electronics and 2 years on hydraulics.

If you want to push the envelope get the Bowflex TC5000 Treadclimber. Check the link at the top for the best price.

Hydraulic Rowing Machines

If you are looking for a basic cheap home rower then the place to start is with the hydraulic rowers. You can get a hydraulic rower for as little as $80. One of the best sellers on the market at the moment is the stamina bodytrac glider 1050 rower which comes in at circa $150. This is a basic rower by a recognised brand that has had lots of good reviews in the past. If you are looking for a premier hydraulic model you could consider a Kettler model such as the Favorit, this comes in at circa $400. The hydraulic rowers are not as smooth as others but can be a great start point and will give you a good workout.

Magnetic Rowing Machines

If you are looking for a rower that is smoother and quieter than a hydraulic rower then a magnetic rower could be ideal for you. The basic magnetic rowing machines tend to be a little more expensive than most hydraulics but offer an altogether better rowing experience, additional they tend not to have moving parts that are liable to wear although these rowers need to be placed near a power socket for use.

Basic magnetic rowers tend to start at as little as $270 for a non branded model but most quality home magnetic rowers are likely to cost in the $400-600 price range.

Air And Water Rowing Machines

Air and water rowers offer the nearest experience to true, on water rowing you can get. Most top level rowers will use an air or combination air/magnetic rower during off season to maintain fitness levels. You can get inexpensive air rowers starting from $300 but there are no guarantees that they will give a long and durable life. What you will get is a rower that progressively gets harder to power as you increase speed just as you would on water. The top home rower in this class of machine is the Concept 2 Model D rower which is world renown for being one of the best rowing machines on the market and is used by olympians in training as well as club and amateur rowers the world over. The Concept rower comes in at $900.

Whichever type of rower you want or whatever your budget we have the best rowing machines for sale at the best prices on the net. Click the link at the top of the page for our latest prices.

Low Price Mini Stepper Twisters

If you want more than just a stepping action you could opt for a mini stepper twister. These models are similar to mini steppers but have additional resistance bands that allow you to carry out an upper body workout whilst you do your traditional step workout. If you are looking for all round body tone, want to develop you upper bodystrength or really want to improve your cardio workout these are the mini steppers that will really push you.

Cheap Mini Stepper With Handles

Many users worry that balancing on a mini stepper or twister is difficult. For those individuals we have a range of low price mini steppers with handles. On some models the handles are a rigid set up for balance although we have some models that have pole handles that can give an upper body workout.

We have a large range of cheap mini steppers and low price mini stepper twisters. You can expect to pay from $48 upwards depending on the brand and extra functions you require. The sunny health and fitness twister stepper is our best selling and most popular model and comes in at just over $50. You can view our full range of mini steppers by following the link at the top of the page.

As with any exercise equipment, the key is how you use it. You can get the best results from an inexpensive pedometer by recording your daily totals so you can set targets for improvement. Studies have shown that individuals that record daily output in steps often push on subsequently and show dramatic improvement over even short periods.

Omron HJ-112 Digital Pocket Pedometer

I like the Omron HJ-112 Pedometer. I like items that are simple, robust and well thought out and the low price Omron HJ-112 is just that. With a lot of pedometers you have to wear them on your belt throughout the day but the Omron is more straightforward, you can just put it in a pocket and it will accurately measure steps over a 24hr period returning to zero at midnight, if you want to clip to a belt this is possible but for me, it is not always convenient enough (and I don’t like wearing gadgets in plain view).

This cheap digital pocket pedometer is easy to use. It has a large read-out so it only takes a glance to note how many steps you have taken and it will record your steps over seven days so you don’t have to remember to make a note each day. Set up is easy and just requires you to input your stride length (however as stride length varies if you are jogging or running you can’t really use this pedometer for anything except general walking exercise). I also dropped mine on a couple of occasions without causing damage so the unit is reasonably robust.

It is not the cheapest on the market even though it only costs $20 or so, but you get the usual (generally inaccurate) calorie counter and total miles walked features that lower priced models don’t have.

Overall I found this to be a good little model for walking exercise, it isn’t ideal for advanced exercisers (it won’t be accurate whilst you are running or using an elliptical etc.) but then the price reflects what it is for. In the end I gave mine to my sixty year old mother as it was easy for her to use and read and an easy way to motivate her to do a little extra exercise. So far she seems most enthralled with it.

If you are looking for a robust, inexpensive pedometer that will keep note of your daily steps the Omron HJ 112 is a good choice. You can get one through the link at the top of the page.

Mini Exercise Bikes For Weight Loss

A large group of all the individuals looking for exercise equipment are primarily looking for a weight loss solution. Mini exercise bikes can be used to lose weight as part of a calorie controlled diet. Weight loss will usually involve an individual running a calorie deficit, essentially you can lose weight by eating less calories, burning excess calories via exercise or a combination of both exercise and diet. So the question of how much weight you can lose using a mini cycle will come down to how many calories you can burn using the bike.

How many calories an individual burns during exercise depends on a plethora of factors from age, weight, heart rate, gender etc. In fact getting an accurate calculation at home is impossible but using the following formulas can get you a rough probable calorie burn dependant on heart rate, age weight :

Men: C/min = ((-55.0969 + (0.6309 x HR) + (0.1988 x weight) + (0.2017 x age)) / 4.184

Women: C/min = ((-20.4022 + (0.4472 x HR) + (0.1263 x weight) + (0.074 x age) / 4.184

(weight is in kg)

So, for a male, 39 years of age, 188 pounds, at a heart rate of 90 beats per minute (not fast enough to be sweating or breathing any more heavily than normal) he would burn 6.3 calories per minute or 189 in a 30 minute pedal.

In terms of weight loss, the individual would need to burn about 3500 calories to lose one pound of body weight per week. This gives you an insight into how much diet and easy peddling would be required for weight loss and that a mini cycle exerciser could be used effectively under a desk to burn calories and lose weight through the day. Using a mini exercise cycle under a desk or in front of the TV could be as effective as a regular gentle stroll.

Mini Exercise Bike For Toning

Will a mini exercise bike improve your body tone? When you lose excess weight it generally comes off in a uniform manner until you get to the very last tough sections. Using a mini exercise bike will improve your tone through weight loss. It will also exercise muscle groups which should, through extra use, develop better tone and definition. In particular, the users leg muscles should show improvement over time. Calves, hamstrings, quadriceps and hip flexors should all show improved tone and definition through extra use.

The big difference between a standard stationary upright exercise bike and a mini exercise bike is the seating position. On an upright exercise bike the user is perched upright in the saddle so core muscles in the mid torso area used for balance are gently used in the workout. With a mini cycle you are less likely to get this benefit unless you choose a suitable chair to workout on.

It is possible to use a mini exercise bike to tone stomach muscles, but this requires the user to target the muscles by placing the pedals further away from the body than might be usual and adjusting the chair position for some incline.

You will also see these bikes described as table top exercise bikes inferring that you can place the unit on a table top and get an upper body, shoulder and arm workout from the unit. Whilst this is possible, you might be better off just doing a few standard push ups. You certainly shouldn’t consider buying one of these mini exercise bikes if toning and adding definition to your upper body is a main goal.

Cardiovascular And Aerobic Fitness

Depending on your current fitness levels you may get some cardio and aerobic improvements from a mini exercise bike workout. Bear in mind these bikes are not built for people like Lance Armstrong, rather they are best suited for individuals who want to simulate walking exercise. The reason you can’t use them for high intensity workouts is that they just aren’t stable enough. Having said that, if you have done no meaningful fitness work they can gently bring you to an improved level of fitness over time but unlike a machine like a treadmill or exercise bike you couldn’t train to be an Olympic athlete on them.

What these bikes are good for is low intensity work that helps most users burn calories, helps moderate blood sugar levels, helps combat cholesterol, provides gentle toning, keeps joints mobile through gentle use and improves general circulation.

Motorised Mini Exercise Bikes For The Elderly

A special note should be made with reference to elderly users. As you peruse the stores for the perfect mini exercise bike you will come across electric mini exercise bikes. These models actually turn the pedals on behalf of the user. These are not magnetic mini cycle exercise bikes where the bike is plugged in and the power feeds a magnet that creates resistance. The purpose of the electric mini cycle with turning pedals is to therapeutically encourage gentle leg movement to help joints remain supple in older age. By gently moving the legs, muscles are also stimulated and encouraging better circulation.

So do mini exercise bikes work? Are they effective and are there any benefits using a mini exercise bike? Absolutely, these bikes are great at simulating a level of exercise similar to walking which can improve overall fitness, burn calories, improve tone, maintain healthy joints and improve circulation. They can be used under a desk or in front of the TV so are convenient.

Are Elliptical Machines Easy To Use?

Most of the time ellipticals are easy to use, the actual action takes some time getting right and if you learn bad posture habits you may develop niggling injuries and have a less effective workout. However, the main problem with ellipticals is that they are made for the average individual.

Not everyone is average. Before you buy, or commit to a regular workout on a gym elliptical you need to make sure the machine is comfortable for you. Check the stride length of the machine, a short stride length may give you a choppy unsatisfactory workout if you are long legged. A long stride length machine may leave you overreaching and lead to muscle strains if you are shorter.

Be sure the hip width is a natural fit for you. The hip width is the distance between the two footplates. They are set up to average hip width sizes, but if you are narrow or wide in the hip the resulting stance whilst exercising may lead to knees and hip problems.

Elliptical Machine Foot Numbness

An often cited problem with elliptical users is foot numbness. Typically this problem sets in at about 30 minutes into the workout. The basic cause of the issue is that the user has planted feet throughout the exercise so the circulation in the feet slows down. You could expect the same type of issue standing on the spot for to long.

Often users do not use the correct technique on an elliptical. Many lead with the toes instead of planting the ankle initially and then rolling over the ball of the feet onto the toes as you should do and as you would do walking naturally. If you suffer from or are concerned about elliptical machine numb feet or numb toes make sure you use the correct technique, try to avoid wearing running shoes, use a decent cross trainer shoe, try wiggling the toes during the exercise action or lift the foot slightly at the end of the action and intersperse the routine with backward intervals to mix up muscle groups and shift weight off your toes.

You Won’t Get Ripped

If you are looking for a machine that will build muscle this is not it. An elliptical will tone muscle groups, especially lower torso muscles but it will not develop or increase muscle mass. As with treadmills the muscles provide momentum on an elliptical rather than lift so there is little resistance with which to develop muscle size. If you check our article on stair stepper workout benefits you can see the difference. On a stair stepper each leg lifts your entire bodyweight vertically each time a step is taken. This resistance builds muscle. This inability to develop muscle mass may mean the machine is not the right choice for you or it could be an advantage depending on your workout goals.

Low Impact Is Not Always Good

Low impact exercise is often viewed as a good thing especially to individuals with weak or damaged joints, but low impact is not always good. Some impact may be beneficial.

Recent studies have shown that weight bearing exercise can improve bone density and help reduce the incidence of osteoporosis in later life (Arthritis Foundation). Essentially as you stress your skeletal structure it reacts by strengthening bone density. As well as strengthening the bones the surrounding muscles are exercised and strengthen leading to improved support for joints which may reduce the wear of cartilage in joints.

Other studies have shown that cartilage, under moderate amounts of impact, actually repairs and rejuvenates quicker (American College Of Rheumatology, 2005).

Limited Upper Body Workout

We already touched on the limitations of muscle building with an elliptical but we should also touch on the aspect, often quoted, that you get a upper body workout from an elliptical.

To a degree you do get an upper body workout from an elliptical but only to the degree it contributes to the cardio workout and limited tone. Again, the issue is that there is no significant resistance. There is enough to contribute to toning but you are not going to get an increase in shoulder or chest sizes. If you are looking to develop these areas of the body use weights or a pull up bar. An elliptical will help with weight loss resulting in the muscle you already have becoming more defined but any increase in muscle size will be small.

Elliptical Machine Pros and Cons

Elliptical machine pros and cons are varied, but on balance with the correct machine for your body type and technique, this machine is great for a cardio workout that will help you lose weight. The disadvantages are minor and in some cases actually advantageous to some users. The worst elliptical machine negatives are dependant on choosing the correct machine. Pick a machine you are comfortable with and you can avoid injury.