Running machine or rowing machine, stair stepper or ski simulator - which is the best for burning off the calories?
A DCU scientist's research has found some answers, which will cut through some of the often exaggerated claims of the machines' manufacturers.
Research involving 19 recruits, who worked out on six different exercise machines, found men burn off the most energy on the treadmill and the ski simulator. And woman use up most calories on the treadmill, ski simulator and the rowing machine.
Dr Niall Moyna, senior lecturer in exercise physiology, centre for sports science and health, DCU, led the research. He said the manufacturers of exercise machines often make "wonderful claims about the products without validating what they have done".
The research wanted to discover which machines were best for getting the maximum benefit from a workout. As exercise can be time-consuming, and exercise machines are often expensive, this is "very important information for people to know," said Dr Moyna.
The scientists needed a "pretty homogenous group" to carry out the tests. The recruits were nine men and 10 woman, who were physically active, in their early to mid-twenties, non-smokers, and were light to moderate recreational exercisers.
They worked-out on six exercise machines: a rowing machine, a cycling machine, a ski simulator, a stair machine, a treadmill, and a rider, a machine which its makers say offers a total body workout.
Research of this types often focuses on heart rate and other physiological parameters, but Dr Moyna's research simply wanted to see which was the best machine to use for maximum gains in a gym workout.
Say someone was "not feeling too well, with not a lot of energy", but they wanted to have a workout" - they would want to pick a machine which will expend the most energy, said Dr Moyna.
Adults are recommended to burn off 200 calories during daily physical activity, according to the Centres for Disease Control and the American College of Sports Medicine.
Dr Moyna said lack of time was the commonly cited reason by people for not exercising. So he and his research team wanted to calculate the length of time - at various levels of effort - it would take to burn off this recommended amount of calories on each of the six exercise machines.
For men exercising at a "fairly light" level, the research found it took 15 minutes on a treadmill, or 31 minutes on a cycle machine to burn off the recommended 200 calories.
Women, however, would have to exercise at the "fairly light" level for 21 minutes on the treadmill, or for 44 minutes on the cycle machine to achieve the same effect.
This indicates that, based on weight, woman have to exercise for longer than men to burn off the same amount of calories, said Dr Moyna. A full list of the time taken to burn off this daily recommended amount of calories on each of the machines is found in the accompanying table.
Scientists also measured the amount of calories burned per hour by the recruits on the six exercise machines. At a fairly light level of effort, the treadmill and the ski simulator were again found to be the best machines.
On the other hand, the least amount of calories were burned by men and women on the cycling machine and the healthrider, the research has found.
The findings show how people could correctly orchestrate an exercise routine from which they could obtain "substantial health benefits", the researchers concluded.
People would stick to a regular routine when they select a level of effort they find most comfortable - and a machine which most effectively burns off the calories.
The research findings will be published in next month's edition of Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, the official journal of the American College of Sports Medicine.
dfahy@irish-times.ie