Reduces wear and tear on joints 

Using an elliptical instead of a treadmill, or running outside will put significantly less impact on your joints, while completing a similar motion to running. While an elliptical session can burn fewer calories than a treadmill workout of equal intensity, the difference is typically minimal. 

Full body workout 

With attached arms, ellipticals keep your upper body moving as well as your lower body. Make sure you distribute your weight evenly by mindfully pumping your arms with just as much intensity as your legs. When done right, getting the arms involved can burn just as many if not more calories than a treadmill workout. Another tip is to try taking your arms off the handles from time to time. This forces you to use your balance more and engages your core.

Helps improve balance 

The elliptical allows you to improve balance, something that’s often overlooked but needed for all ages and fitness levels. While exercise bikes are another good option for low-impact cardio, they do not force you to use your balance as much.

Burns calories 

Elliptical training has the potential to burn a lot of calories. Similar to any cardio workout, the amount of calories you burn depends of the level of intensity. Ellipticals have great options in terms of increasing resistance levels and sometimes incline to promote higher calories burned.

Targets specific areas of the body

Ellipticals allow for a focus on specific areas of the body. For example, changing up the resistance and/or incline of your foot pedals works all your leg muscles from the glutes and quads to your calves and hamstrings. Some more advanced ellipticals may also have the option to change the range of motion, or rest your lower body and only workout your upper body.

Promotes muscle growth and improves stamina

With an elliptical you have the opportunity to build muscle and improve your cardio-vascular endurance. It just depends on what your goals are. If training for stamina, try using a pre-set program to push you to work harder for longer. If your trying to tone muscles, try some Hiit style training and utilizing the tools to target specific areas.