Which Comes First, Cardio or Weights_ - Alex Hutchinson [13]
The most recent attempt to unravel this mystery comes from researchers at the University of Virginia, who used high-speed cameras and special treadmills with force-measuring surfaces to compare joint motion and impacts. The results, published in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise in 2008, show that there are some statistically significant differences, such as knee orientation and peak force. But overall, the researchers concluded that the biomechanics of running on a treadmill are close enough to “overground” running that the differences don’t matter.
This is the same conclusion that many running coaches have reached through first-hand experience. “There are differences, but they’re very minor,” says Peter Pimm, a Toronto distance-running coach who has guided Olympians as well as recreational runners for more than 25 years. To compensate for the lack of wind resistance, Pimm has his runners set their treadmills at a 1 percent incline.
One key advantage of treadmills, he says, is that they’re generally softer than sidewalks and roads. “People often notice that it’s gentler on the knees,” he says. “So if you’ve had joint injuries, it may even allow you to train more.” This may also be the treadmill’s greatest weakness: if you stick to the treadmill all winter, the lack of pounding means you don’t build the same level of specific muscular endurance that you would from running outdoors. So if you jump straight into a road race, Pimm says, “you may develop muscle soreness and tightness earlier in the race than you otherwise would.” The same caveat applies to running on grass and trails, Dombroski says. The treadmill won’t develop the stabilizer muscles that keep you upright on uneven surfaces.
In any case, the answer is simple: variety. Try not to rely exclusively on the treadmill—and if weather does keep you indoors for several months, make sure you start with a few easy outdoor runs before jumping into a 10K race.
Is the elliptical machine just as good as running?
More than 23 million Americans used elliptical trainers in 2007, according to the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association, triple the number that used them in 2000. Canadians have also eagerly adopted the low-impact, pseudo-jogging machine. But researchers are still debating how the elliptical stacks up to its higher-impact rivals—whether it really does reduce injury risk and how hard a workout it provides.
A pair of representative studies, both from 2005, illustrate the debate. In one, researchers from the University of Scranton asked volunteers to exercise at a level that felt “hard” on either a treadmill or an elliptical machine. The subjects had higher heart rates and burned more energy on the treadmill, suggesting that they unconsciously chose to push harder when running. In contrast, when researchers at the University of Idaho had volunteers exercise at identical heart rate and energy consumption levels on an elliptical, a treadmill, and a recumbent bike, the volunteers reported that the elliptical felt easiest. Subsequent studies haven’t managed to settle the debate—and that suggests that any actual differences are probably too small to matter.
An Irish study published in the Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness is the only one to tackle the practical outcomes that most people are concerned about: fitness and weight loss. A group of 24 women performed a 12-week fitness program using an elliptical, a treadmill, or a stair-climbing machine. Cardiovascular fitness increased and body fat percentage decreased to the same degree in all three groups, confirming that any calorie-burning