Bike Vs. Elliptical Exercise Benefits

Regular exercise on a bike or an elliptical trainer can help you improve your health and fitness. Though these two forms of exercise each have their own advantages, both offer similar health benefits. Exercising on either a bike or an elliptical machine can help you achieve the 150 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise or 75 minutes of intense aerobic exercise that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends adults get each week.

Weight Control

Exercising on a bike or elliptical trainer can help you burn calories in order to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight. One hour of low-impact aerobic exercise such as working out on an elliptical trainer can burn 365 calories for a 160-lb. person, 455 calories for a 200-lb. person and 545 calories for a 240-lb. person, according to MayoClinic.com.

Biking for one hour at less than 10 mph burns about 292 calories for a 160-lb. person, 364 calories for a 200-lb. person and 436 calories for a 240-lb. person. The more you weigh, the more calories you will burn. The harder you work while exercising and the longer you exercise, the more calories you will burn.

Health Benefits

Regular aerobic exercise can lower your blood pressure and cholesterol and reduce your risk of heart disease, diabetes, metabolic disorders and some cancers, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Physical activity can also improve your mood, your energy level and the quality of your sleep, says the CDC. Both biking and exercising on an elliptical trainer can help you achieve these health benefits.

Strengthening Bones

The elliptical trainer provides a low-impact, weight-bearing exercise that can help you build stronger bones. Though high-impact exercise builds stronger bones faster than low-impact exercise, low-impact exercise provides a safe alternative for adults with osteoporosis or frail bones. The elliptical trainer puts less stress on the joints than higher-impact exercise such as running. Biking, a non-weight-bearing form of exercise, does not help you build stronger bones.

Muscles Worked

Both the elliptical trainer and the bike emphasize muscles in the legs, including the quadriceps and hamstrings in the upper legs and the calves in the lower legs. Some elliptical trainers allow you to work your arms as well by pushing or pulling on poles and most allow you to target different leg muscles by pedaling forward or backward on different incline levels.

Variety

You can get a bike workout on an outdoor road bike or an indoor stationary bike. Many gyms offer two kinds of stationary bikes, including upright bikes and recumbent bikes. Recumbent bikes allow you to sit back in a bucket seat, thereby putting less stress on your back.

No outdoor equivalent exists for the elliptical trainer. Indoor exercise equipment allows you to workout in any type of weather, but being outside on a road bike could provide a welcome change of scenery after too many days inside the gym. Always wear a helmet when biking outdoors.