The American College of Sports Medicine recommends that healthy adults under age 65 should get 30 minutes of moderate cardio exercise five days a week, or 20 minutes of vigorous exercise three times weekly. While ultimately you should use the cardio machines or activities that you enjoy the most, since you're more likely to keep doing them, comparing the relative merits of elliptical trainers and treadmills may inspire you to enjoy both machines more.
Impact
Both elliptical trainers and treadmills facilitate weight-bearing exercise which, according to the American College of Sports Medicine, expends more calories than non-weight-bearing exercises of the same intensity, along with maintaining bone mass and preventing osteoporosis.
There is, however, a difference between the two machines. Elliptical trainers provide a no-impact workout because your feet never leave the pedals as you run. Treadmills, on the other hand, although they usually come with padded decking to reduce impact, still cause jarring and pounding on your joints as you run.
Stride
Elliptical trainers are designed to mimic the natural running stride, but your stride will vary according to your technique and body mechanics. While some elliptical trainers feature adjustable stride lengths to help accommodate the differences in running and walking mechanics, they still cannot match the treadmill's adaptability. On the treadmill, there are no moving parts that have to be adjusted to fit your stride; you just walk or run naturally on the belt.
Accuracy
In a 2010 study at the University of California at San Francisco's Human Performance Center, researches found that, on average, cardio machines overestimated how many calories exercisers burned by 19 percent. The elliptical trainers tested overestimated calories burned by a whopping 42 percent, while treadmills overestimated by a more modest proportion of 13 percent on average.
Muscles Worked
Treadmills work your entire lower body, including glutes, quads, hamstrings and calves. Elliptical trainers also work your glutes, quads and hamstrings, but with less emphasis on the calves because your feet never have to plantar flex, since they never leave the pedals. Some elliptical trainers offer adjustable incline angles that let you pedal as if you were running up a steep hill, putting more stress on your calves.
Some elliptical trainers feature something that no treadmill can provide: an upper body workout. Moving handlebars slaved to the pedals' resistance let you work your chest, back, shoulders and arms as you pedal.
Features
Most high-end elliptical trainers and treadmills, particularly those you'll find in a gym, offer similar features. Most models of both machines offer adjustable incline, adjustable resistance on an elliptical which compares to adjustable speed on a treadmill, pre-set electronic training programs, built-in heart monitors and digital readouts that provide basic information like speed or pedal rotations per minute, time spent exercising, incline, distance traveled and an estimate of calories burned.
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