Treadmill vs. Bike vs. Weightlifting

jjshabado · #1 08-15-2007, 12:01 AM

I'm looking at starting to do 30-45 minutes of exercise 4 or 5 days a week. I've done brief (2-4 month) periods of sustaining regular gym workouts but always end up stopping after a prolonged period of bad weather, winter, vacation, personal injury, etc. that ends up ruining my routine.

I have a really hard time getting up the energy to start the workout even though once I start I don't mind doing it, and I feel good afterwards. I've decided to try getting something for my apartment so that I can exercise while watching tv. Hopefully this will make it easier for me to actually do the exercising, especially since I have a small apartment and the equipment will always be right there.

So... here are the three things I'm thinking of:

1. Bike
2. Treadmill
3. Weightlifting thing-ama-jig

My preference is 1, especially since I don't really enjoy running and I've always found it hurts my knees. I like in New York City so I'll frequently go on long walks when its nice so walking inside isn't that appealing tom e. I have no ideas for 3, but if people feel strongly and give me things to consider I'll keep them in mind.

Is one of the above three options significantly better than the others for getting in shape?

thirddan · #2 08-15-2007, 12:24 AM

what are you hoping to get out of your training?
although most likely investing in a set of power blocks will def be the best...

jjshabado · #3 08-15-2007, 12:33 AM

Just general fitness. I'm about 20-25 pounds overweight.

thirddan · #4 08-15-2007, 12:35 AM

bleh, get powerblocks, small/compact and will let you do full body workouts...im sure some searching of this forum and of t-nation/bb.com/turbulenceTraining.com/google can get you some good circuits to lose weight...

Blarg · #5 08-15-2007, 12:30 PM

Powerblocks don't go up very heavy though lasts I looked. Hard to do a full-body work-out with just small weight. Unless you're doing something like pistols or pull-ups, bodyweight exercises where you can hold or hang weight to add resistance.

Personally, I like biking a lot, but people are so retarded on the road these days that I don't trust them enough to bike anymore. New York sounds like a recipe for disaster on a bike to me, but YMMV.

jjshabado · #6 08-15-2007, 09:02 PM

thirddan: Why do you recommend powerblocks?

Blarg: I don't see myself maintaining a weightlifting regiment at this point so unless lots of people told me it was significantly better I doubt I'll do it. I'm looking at the bike because I enjoy biking, and there's no way I'd bike in the city. Even if I felt it was safe (which I don't really) stopping for pedestrians/traffic lights/etc. would frustrate me a lot.