Treadmills are excellent for general cardiovascular fitness: building a strong heart and lungs. Even people who have had open-heart surgery, when appropriate, are given heart monitors and instructed to walk on a treadmill to regain cardiovascular health. If you have become bored with treadmill workouts or just need to change it up, there are many alternatives that will give you the heart-pumping action.
Elliptical, Stairclimbing and Stepping Exercise Machines
Use the elliptical machines found in gyms. They have two separate foot pedals that move forward and back, and often have two hand grips on extended bars at your sides to work the arms and upper body, giving you an efficient workout that will raise your heart level. Stepping or exercise machines that look like a moving staircase are also excellent fill-ins for treadmills, but beware: They are more taxing than they appear. Imagine if you were to climb stairs in a very tall building for 30 minutes without rest--your heart rate would increase in less than 10 minutes. Any of these options will match a treadmill workout.
Walking, Hiking Outdoors
Take your workout outdoors and walk hills or hike to get an effective cardiovascular session in an urban setting or one by the beach or in a park with pine trees. You may surprise yourself that your stamina and endurance will improve quickly, and exercising outdoors is a great stress-buster.
Biking
Biking is an excellent, low-impact replacement for treadmill exercise. An indoor exercise bike is convenient, and you can turn an outdoor bike into one with easy-to-install equipment. Or bike when you can for short errands, using a helmet, lights and reflective lights for safety. Use bike lanes and treat the bike as the vehicle it is. People rehabilitating knee surgery are often advised to ride a bike for 30 minutes three times a week.
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