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1. Treadmill, Steppers Ellipticals…oh my!

The first thing most people do when looking to lose a couple pounds is…??? Cardio, right!? And that means get a gym membership and plan on hopping on a “cardio machine” for 45 minutes a day.

STOP! NO! DON’T!

Simply put, treadmills, ellipticals, and Stairmasters are just no good for you and are contradictory to what you are trying to accomplish. Here are a few reasons why treadmills, ellipticals and steppers make you weaker, slower, and fatter!

Let’s take treadmills for instance:

1. “Flat butt syndrome” as we like to call it. Your body uses the muscles in the butt and the back of your legs to propel you forward when walking or running. Now envision yourself on a treadmill. Though the movements you are making seem to be identical to walking or running in a park, something is very different. The ground is essentially pulling you forward. In this situation the muscles in your butt and hamstrings don’t have to propel you forward. Over time if you are an avid treadmill runner or a Stairmaster enthusiast those muscles you thought you were toning back there are actually withering away because they’re not being used, allowing for some really saggy butt cheeks, hence flat butt syndrome.”

2. It messes with your senses! Everyone experiences “sea legs” when getting off of a treadmill. That near-dizzy, slightly uncoordinated feeling which seems to wear off after a minute or so is exactly what we’re talking about. No matter how much you run on a treadmill there’s no escaping it. This is caused by certain sensory systems becoming confused by the activity. You’re running, and even though we are intelligent human beings with sophisticated brains able to comprehend the fact that we are on a machine, your eyes cannot. Mixed signals are sent to the brain from the visual system because your body is running and nothing is passing you by. Another sensory system, the vestibular, works closely with the visual system and is responsible for balance. It senses the ground you stand on and sends messages to the brain telling you how to adjust your balance so you don’t fall over (and it’s having a really tough time doing so on this strange machine). When you get off of the treadmill your body is suddenly hit with reality and it takes a minute to readjust. This whole process totally freaks out the nervous system making you weaker, slower, and more susceptible to pain and injury.

3. They’re BORING!!! Go outside! Take in some scenery! It’s overall better for your body and more fun. Let us worry about teaching you how to prevent those joint problems people assume they suffer from running outdoors.

So look, if you don’t ever exercise consistently and you decide to start by running on a treadmill six times a weak, of course you’ll see some change in your body… for maybe the first month. But you’ll suffer the consequences! So if you’re serious about shaping up come in or click here for a FREE EVALUATION at The Fit Labs. Everyone needs a trainer so get in the Lab!