Em asked:
When you make the incline on the treadmill higher, does it tone your thighs better because you're going more upwards?
When you make the incline on the treadmill higher, does it tone your thighs better because you're going more upwards?
yes, it’s like walking up a steep hill.
Yes, plus it burns more calories!
I think it does. Kind of similar like going up a hill.
It burns more calories and works different muscles (such as the gluts).
Yep! It works your quads and glutes more when it’s uphill, plus gives you a cardio workout if you walk fast enough.
First, the work our bodies do is not entirely transmitted to the outside environment. Energy is expended doing work on our bodies in order to generate a force! For example, pushing on a wall is a lot harder than leaning against it.
Secondly, our bodies are not stationary as we walk on a treadmill; at the very least, we are moving one leg forward at all times. If we’re on an incline, then we have to do (more) work against gravity to move our leg up the incline.
Also, I imagine our bodies are optimized for travel over level surfaces, so we probably waste extra energy when walking an incline.