Curious about which cardio machine is your best option for burning calories? Here are the best cardio machines for burning calories, including pros, cons, and how to maximize each machine for maximum calorie burn.
In this guide to the best cardio machines for burning calories:- Assault Bike
- Treadmill
- Stationary Bike
- Elliptical Machine
- Jacob’s Ladder
- Rowing Machine
- Stair Climber
How do you spend all your cardio time at the gym?
Do you use the machines you enjoy most (which, for a lot of us, are the rowing and elliptical machines), or do you go for the machines that really maximize calorie burn—and thus results?
Hopefully, you’re one of those smart trainees who focuses on the machines that burn more calories, even if they’re not the most “fun”.
“But which machines are those?” you might be wondering. “Which cardio machines burn the most calories?”
That’s what we’ll find out in below!
In this article, we’ll look at hardcore scientific evidence (taken from Harvard Medical School) on how many calories each of the top cardio machines burn, and look at the pros and cons of each machine so you can know which are your best choice.
We’ll even offer some useful tips to help you maximize calorie-burning using each machine and list our favorite of each machine for supercharged calorie-burning so you can take the calorie-burning home, too.
Let’s jump in.
Best Cardio Machines for Burning TONS of Calories
Machine #1: Assault Bike
You might be surprised to find the assault bike at the top of this list—but I promise you it’s for a good reason!
Based on Harvard Medical School’s research, a “vigorous” workout on the stationary bike burns a pretty insane number of calories:
- 315 calories in 30 minutes (for a 125-pound person)
- 378 calories in 30 minutes (for a 155-pound person)
- 441 calories in 30 minutes (for a 185-pound person)
But assault bike workouts take things to a whole new level by adding in upper body training.
You’re not just pedaling; you’re pumping those handles, too, using your chest, shoulders, upper back, biceps, triceps, and forearms.
That’s an epic-level workout, one that burns significantly more calories than just a regular stationary bike workout.
In other words, winner-winner, chicken dinner!
Excellent upper and lower body workoutVery difficult to sustain for more than 20-30 minutes
Variable resistance makes the workout more challenging the faster you cycle
Cycle from a seated position; gentle on your lumbar spine
Pro Tips to Maximize Calorie-Burning:
- Try pedaling backward for half of the workout to not only engage your muscles in a different way, but to reduce strain on your joints.
- Keep your elbows tucked in close to your sides and your knees aligned with your hips. This will increase muscle engagement and prevent joint strain.
The Rogue Echo Bike is hands-down the best air bike on the market. It’s built like a tank, is used by countless athletes across the planet, has a steel fan that is relatively quiet, and the newest version of the Echo bike has Bluetooth compatibility.
Machine #2: Treadmill
I’ve written lots of articles on the many benefits of treadmills, how they can be used for all manner of training—from steady state, low intensity to high intensity interval training workouts.
No surprise, then, that this cardio machine is very near the top of my list of the best machines for calorie-burning.
The treadmill is one of the best cardio machines for beginners (come on, everyone knows how to run on a treadmill!), and as you’ll see below, you can burn a pretty insane number of calories if used correctly.
If you’re just walking, your calorie burning is a bit on the lower side:
- 105 calories in 30 minutes (for a 125-pound person) at a 3.5 MPH pace
- 133 calories in 30 minutes (for a 155-pound person) at a 3.5 MPH pace
- 159 calories in 30 minutes (for a 185-pound person) at a 3.5 MPH pace
Not exactly the high-calorie output you want, is it?
But when you do a treadmill workout for weight loss and step up the pace, that’s when you really start to see results!
Let’s say you switch from walking to jogging, running at around a 4.5 MPH pace. Your calorie output increases noticeably:
- 180 calories in 30 minutes (for a 125-pound person)
- 216 calories in 30 minutes (for a 155-pound person)
- 252 calories in 30 minutes (for a 185-pound person)
Not bad, right?
But what if you start running, at a slightly faster pace—say, 6 MPH, or 10 minutes per mile? You can burn A LOT of calories at that pace!
- 295 calories in 30 minutes (for a 125-pound person)
- 360 calories in 30 minutes (for a 155-pound person)
- 420 calories in 30 minutes (for a 185-pound person)
And if you really take things to the next level and incorporate sprint training into your workout, running at a whopping 10 MPH, the results are pretty nuts:
- 453 calories in 30 minutes (for a 125-pound person)
- 562 calories in 30 minutes (for a 155-pound person)
- 671 calories in 30 minutes (for a 185-pound person)
Note: Yes, I know it’s pretty darned difficult to sustain a 10 MPH pace, so there’s no way you can run a full 30 minutes at sprint speed. But this is just useful to illustrate how many calories you have the potential to burn!
All in all, the treadmill has the potential to burn more calories than nearly any other cardio machine in the gym if used correctly.
Ultra-functional training—you’ll walk, run, and jog better because of the time you spent on the treadmillRunning can be very high-impact and stressful on your joints
Walking is excellent rehab for joint and muscle injuries
Easy to adapt your workout/raise the intensity as desired
Treadmills are the most common cardio machines, found in literally every gym
Pro Tips to Maximize Calorie-Burning:
- Incorporate sprint training (30-60 seconds of sprinting followed by 60-90 seconds of walking or jogging) to burn an insane amount of calories and boost your metabolism.
- Raise the incline at least 1% to mimic the wind resistance you experience when running outdoors. The more you raise the incline, the more challenging the workout!
The treadmills for sprinting—and thereby nuking massive amounts of calories—is the Rogue Woodway Curved Treadmill. It looks a little weird, but it’s actually a more comfortable running experience compared to regular treadmills.
The curved design actually generates less strain and impact on your joints, which means you can do more calorie-busting sprint sessions on the treadmill, more often.
Machine #3: Stationary Bike
The stationary bike is one of my all-time go-to cardio machines when it comes to burning calories or even when you want to crush a sweaty workout.
It’s a great machine to focus on my lower body—my quads, hamstrings, and glutes when I’m pedaling standing up, my quads when I’m sitting down, and my hamstrings and glutes when I’m hovering over my bike seat.
One great thing about the stationary bike: it can burn A LOT of calories.
As you saw in the Assault Bike section, you can see pretty impressive calorie-burning from a “vigorous” stationary bike workout:
- 315 calories in 30 minutes (for a 125-pound person)
- 378 calories in 30 minutes (for a 155-pound person)
- 441 calories in 30 minutes (for a 185-pound person)
That’s the kind of results you can expect as a baseline from a higher-effort stationary bike workout—i.e., a spinning class or speed-cycling session.
But even if you’re not really in the mood to go all out, you can still get pretty good results from a “moderate” workout:
- 210 calories in 30 minutes (for a 125-pound person)
- 252 calories in 30 minutes (for a 155-pound person)
- 294 calories in 30 minutes (for a 185-pound person)
Not bad, is it?
Excellent lower body workoutIt may increase your risk of knee injury
Easy to shift focus and target specific leg musclesCan increase your risk of lumbar strain
Beginner-friendly machine; low learning curve
Can be used for longer steady-state workouts
Pro Tips to Maximize Calorie-Burning:
- Stand up while you cycle, as that increases the weight on your legs and thus demands greater effort from your muscles and cardiovascular system.
- Don’t cycle at a steady pace; keep changing up the speed, cycling faster to burn more calories and slower to recover.
There are a few different types of stationary bikes, including spin bikes (Peloton, ahem), recumbent bikes, and upright bikes.
Our top pick is the NordicTrack VU 29. It’s a heavy-duty upright stationary bike that has a heavy, 19lb flywheel and a huge 14” touchscreen for doing classes via iFit.
Machine #4: Elliptical Machine
There’s no doubt that the elliptical machine is one of the best cardio machines in the gym.
To start off, it’s basically zero impact. Because your feet never lift off the pedals, there’s virtually no strain on your ankle, knee, hip, and spinal joints.
It’s also a machine that promotes a smooth, gliding stride, engages both your upper and lower body together, and, most important of all, hammers your core in a way that few other machines can.
And one of the primary benefits of the elliptical, and why it’s so effective at burning calories, is that it is one of the only full-body cardio machines at the gym (or in the home gym).
If you look at the number of calories burned on the elliptical, you’ll find the machine’s no slouch, either!
A “general” elliptical training workout can burn:
- 270 calories in 30 minutes (for a 125-pound person)
- 324 calories in 30 minutes (for a 155-pound person)
- 378 calories in 30 minutes (for a 185-pound person)
But if you speed up the workout, pedaling faster and striding harder, your calorie-burning will only increase!
Amazingly gentle on your joints, particularly your knees and lower backNot the most “natural-feeling” movement initially
Great for training your upper and lower body
Excellent core focus
Easy to adapt to more challenging/better calorie-burning
Pro Tips to Maximize Calorie-Burning:
- Try either speed-pedaling or squat-walking to burn a lot of calories. The former will push your cardiovascular system the same way sprint training does, and the latter will hammer your leg muscles as well as any resistance training workout.
- Focus on engaging your core and squeezing your abs with every movement. Not only will this make you stronger, but will help you to burn more calories.
Our long-running favorite elliptical is the Sole E95 Elliptical Machine. It’s a studio-grade elliptical that is priced for home use, has adjustable foot pedals for a comfortable stride, and its 27lb flywheel is one of the smoothest on the market.
Machine #5: Jacob’s Ladder
The Jacob’s Ladder is not a machine for the faint of heart!
The machine is used to simulate the action of climbing a ladder, but the movement is also very similar to rock climbing, using the muscles in both the upper and lower body.
And because you’re using both your upper and lower body, you burn a lot more calories than machines like the stairmaster or the treadmill.
This particular machine wasn’t included in the Harvard Medical School study listed above, but according to the Jacob’s Ladder website:
“Using a ladder climber burns calories at a higher rate than walking or running, about 0.17 calories while climbing up and 0.05 calories while climbing down a single step.”
The average speed range is 25 steps (very slow) to 160 steps (very fast) per minute.
Based on that, we can do some napking math to figure a calorie-burning range of 127.5 (25 steps x 0.17 calories per step x 30 minutes) calories on the slow end to 816 calories (160 steps x 0.17 calories per step x 30 minutes) on the fast end.
Even if you fall somewhere in the middle, you can expect to get one heck of a full-body workout.
Amazing cardio workoutChallenging on your wrists and lower back
Full body muscular engagementMany beginners can’t even complete 10 minutes without frequent breaks
Challenges your fitness like no other cardio machine
Pro Tips to Maximize Calorie-Burning:
- Start off at a slow pace, and work your way up to a faster pace (and more calories burned) as your body adapts to the strenuous exercise.
- Mix the Jacob’s Ladder in with other resistance training or cardio workouts—use it as a “finisher” to burn the last of your calories at the end of your training session.
Machine #6: Rowing Machine
The rowing machine is one of the most popular cardio machines in the gym, and with good reason: it’s a whole lot of fun!
With most of the other machines, you’re simulating a fairly “boring” movement—i.e. walking, climbing stairs, running, etc. But one of the benefits of the rowing machine is that it feels like you’re rowing a boat or paddling a kayak out on open water (especially if you use a water rower).
It’s easy to picture yourself enjoying a bright summer’s day on your favorite lake, river, or beach, and you just feel so much more alive on the rowing machine!
You’ll be glad to know it’s also pretty great for burning calories.
The calories burned on rowing machine doing a “moderate” pace workout are:
- 210 calories in 30 minutes (for a 125-pound person)
- 252 calories in 30 minutes (for a 155-pound person)
- 294 calories in 30 minutes (for a 185-pound person)
Pretty good, all things considered.
But if you push the pace to “vigorous”, you can see some amazing results:
- 255 calories in 30 minutes (for a 125-pound person)
- 369 calories in 30 minutes (for a 155-pound person)
- 440 calories in 30 minutes (for a 185-pound person)
Wow! That’s almost as good as a 6 MPH run on the treadmill. Talk about epic results for the time you invest.
Nearly full body workout (just missing the “Push” muscles)May increase your risk of lower back strain/injury
One of the most enjoyable cardio workouts
Easy to push your pace and row harder/faster without needing to adjust any settings or buttons
Great for HIIT workouts
Pro Tips to Maximize Calorie-Burning:
- Try speeding up your rowing speed (as marked by your Strokes Per Minute). Even just raising your SPM by 1-2 can push your calorie-burning up a notch.
- Work a “pyramid workout”—every minute on the minute, raise your SPM by 1, until you’re rowing at your max SPM. Then every minute on the minute, lower your SPM by 1, until you return to your starting point.
Online classes have come on the scene in a big way in recent years, and iFit has been one of the pioneers in this, with a platform with nearly 20,000 workouts, challenges, and all sorts of programming to keep you challenged and motivated.
The NordicTrack RW900 takes advantage of iFit’s programming with a crisp 22” HD touchscreen, 26 levels of resistance, and a quiet magnetic flywheel.
Machine #7: Stair Climber
The stair climber is a great machine for people who want to strengthen their legs—particularly the muscles around their knees—and train for one of the most “functional” of the everyday activities (climbing stairs).
The calorie-burning on the stair climber is a bit on the lighter side—for a “general” workout, you can burn:
- 180 calories in 30 minutes (for a 125-pound person)
- 216 calories in 30 minutes (for a 155-pound person)
- 252 calories in 30 minutes (for a 185-pound person)
However, you can easily burn more calories by picking up the pace, pushing from a “moderate” to a “vigorous” stair-climbing workout.
Great for working your lower bodyMay be strenuous on your knees
Targets your hamstrings and glutes
Easy on your lower back and upper body
Very functional training
Pro Tips to Maximize Calorie-Burning:
- Let go of the hand rails, and use your core muscles to maintain your balance as you climb. Not only is this excellent for building a stronger core, but you’ll burn a lot more calories.
- Skip a stair. You’ll find that climbing two stairs at a time isn’t just a better workout for your legs, but it also pushes your cardiovascular system harder.
While it’s not the same size as a commercial-grade Stairclimber, the Bowflex Max Total 16 is even better—it’s a hybrid stepper and elliptical machine that combines the low impact of an elliptical with the vertical difficulty of a stepper.
It is also compatible with iFit, giving you tons of options for online classes and workouts, combined with a 16” HD touchscreen and a compact footprint and you’ve got a guaranteed calorie-buster for your home gym.
The Bottom Line
Isn’t it awesome to know exactly what sort of results you can expect from each of the cardio machines in your gym? Or what results can you expect to gain from investing in one of these cardio machines for your home gym?
It makes it a whole lot easier to plan which machine to use on which day, and which options to focus on in order to reap the best results not only for your specific training program, but also your fat-burning and weight loss efforts.
I strongly recommend that you vary up your use of the machines listed above; don’t just stick with the one or two you like best, but use most or even all the machines.
You’ll find that the more varied your workouts, the fitter you become overall, the more enjoyment you will get from the cardio workouts, and the more calories you will burn in the long run.
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