Stair stepper or inclined walking. Which is better for your cardio, strength and calorie burning goals

For years, running was thought to be the best way to stay fit, burn calories and get aerobic fitness. Other activities such as spinning have also looked like it may be a great way to do this and Peloton sold many spin bikes as well as many treadmills to fill the needs for those wishing to do this at home.

Treadmill walking has grown in popularity and many of our patients do this using the incline settings. Setting the incline to .5 or 1 will approximate resistance that occurs when you walk outside on pavement. People get into trouble when they set the incline at a 6 or 7 for a half hour to get the ultimate workout. What they do not realize is that doing this loads up the front of the legs like you are going straight up a mountain.

Using the computer controlled settings on the treadmill for the 20-30 minutes is a better approach for fitness and also to get a good interval workout.

Stair steppers can be a good workout as well however, set the resistance too high for too long and you have unnatural resistance and forces which can leave you extremely sore and tight the following day. Going up and down bleachers or the stairs in your home or at work instead of using an elevator is a good way to work the legs naturally with your weight vs. increasing the weight which is likely to make you slower and less flexible.

Training as you live is a good approach to working out. You are better off with more time and less resistance for a better workout that burns calories, builds strength and endurance.

Be careful with too much cardio, as it will also drive your appetite as well. Too much weight or resistance is going to make you less flexible so less is more on either machine. Also, be aware that treadmills do not understand how you feel although you can wear a heart monitor which is picked up universally on most machines as you step on them. What the machines will not tell you is if you get tired. Since a treadmill is more like a metronome set for the time you programmed into it, it will continue the program to the end at the set speed. If you tire as you walk, you are going to slow down. On a treadmill, it doesn’t know this but if your pulse is too high, it will register on the machine. Steppers have the speed set by you and you may have the same issue. Be cautious when using either or consider using real stairs and a real road.

Recently, Womens Health Magazine looked at stair stepping vs. inclined walking. Which is best for you according to their latest research? Check out the article below.