Back Pain? No Elliptical for You
Elliptical trainers have been a longtime presence in gyms and fitness facilities and a go-to piece of equipment for those looking to get their cardio fix.
But for individuals suffering from lower back problems, research suggests they may need to think twice before stamping their ticket to ride on the popular workout machines.
The elliptical trainer, sometimes called a cross-trainer, is a piece of stationary exercise equipment that simulates walking or running without causing pressure to the joints.
Researcher Janice Moreside is a physiotherapist who’s been a clinician for more than 30 years. She said she’s found that while the majority of people who come in who use the elliptical like it, there’s a subset who say the opposite, and point to the fact using the trainer hurts their back.
Moreside, a University of Waterloo PhD candidate, works with Waterloo professor Stuart McGill whose specialty is spine research, specifically the lumbar spine or low back.
The research was part of a larger study looking at the effect of hip mobility on the low back which Moreside presented Friday at the 2010 Congress of the Canadian Physiotherapy Association in St. John’s, N.L.
