Elliptical or Treadmill

Question
Martial
Which of these would be most beneficial in regards to hockey training?
I am in my fifties and am wary of treadmills because of the wear on my knees. However I know they can give you a good workout. Not much experiance with ellipticals, but I suffered a hamstring pull recently, I was thinking maybe this machine would target those more than a treadmill and be less jarring? Thanks for your thoughts!

Answer
Hello bud...

From personal workouts on both - yes - the elliptical will be a bit of a safer exercise for your knees/joints...  that said the elliptical has also been known to work the core, groin, lower back and abdominals quite extensively...  so if you have any "injuries" with any of those - you will need to be careful.

That said (at 50+) (as I am) --  if you are just trying to get into shape -  WALKING on a treadmill is quite safe ... you can probably comfortably do a 3-3.5 MPH pace for 30-45 minutes with a low to mid incline and you will get a pretty good workout.  It may not help your cardio too much - but you will sweat and get everything moving... (Best especially in the morning!!)

Once "in shape" - you can then move up to elliptical or even a stationary bike...  the latter being still the apparatus of choice for most (pro) hockey players... as it really works the thigh area (and glutes to a certain extent) which is the "BIG MUSCLE GROUP" needed for explosive acceleration and on ice stability... (some of the most needed skills for getting the most hockey "results" - like puck possession, effective passing, shooting and scoring!!!)  

Make sense?

This is a bit generalized as there are exceptions and conditions to some of the above...  So feel free to follow up with other questions if you have any!

Good luck with the puck!

M