Which Cardio is Best?

In this article, I'm not going to crown a specific cardio method as king, but rather will simply list the pros and cons for each. The decision of which one you choose ultimately depends on your specific goals, schedule, abilities, and other personal factors.

Walking

Pros:

• Low impact to your joints. Because this is such a natural movement for the human body, there is none to minimal stress on the joints.

• Burns fat directly. Instead of burning energy using carbohydrate stores, walking taps energy directly from your body's fat reserves.

• Can be sustained for long periods of time. This makes walking a perfect entry point for someone with a limited threshold for physical activity. Starting point for building endurance.

Cons:

• Minimal calories are burned. From a strictly numerical perspective, it's the least efficient way to burn calories.

Running

Pros:

• Quickly elevates heart rate for an increased calorie burn.

• Promotes muscular growth and builds higher levels of endurance in the legs.

• Calories continue to burn after activity has ceased.

Cons:

• High impact on knees and joints. If you have any existing knee pain or issues, running can make these issues worse.

Jogging

Pros:

• Elevates heart rate while still being able to be sustained for longer amounts of time than walking.

• A method of increasing intensity gradually in order to progress to higher level activities and exercise.

Cons:

• Results in a similar level of impact to the knees as running but burns substantially less calories.

Elliptical

Pros:

• Little to no impact on the knees.

• Most machines can be adjusted to higher resistance levels which can provide a wide range of workout customization. This means you can direct focus towards increasing muscle mass or endurance.

• Incorporates low impact movement in the upper body, promoting all around movement and more calories burned.

Cons:

• Still very low calorie burning ability and not a viable method for increasing overall muscle or strength gains.

Stair Stepper

Pros:

• Because of its specific movement pattern, it provides benefit to the posterior chain (glutes/hamstrings), which is an often neglected part of the body.

• Of all "steady state" cardio options, the stair stepper is usually the superior choice when it comes to building muscle.

• Because of its endless ascending stairs without the negative affects on the knees of going down stairs, you get the cardiovascular perks without the joint damage.

Cons:

• In terms of endurance, the stepper can definitely be a useful tool, but generally will need to be worked up to due to it's higher physical demand.

• This is more of a gym-specific issue, but generally speaking there are fewer of these available at gyms due to their size and cost. Just be ready to adapt your workout routine in case unavailability becomes a factor.