The invention provides an electric treadmill with vertical armrests realizing the swinging movement and a body-building method adopted by the electric treadmill, belonging to the fields of body-building apparatuses and body-building methods. The electric treadmill comprises an electric treadmill body, left and right vertical armrest rods with adjustable height, left and right bearings, left and right rolling wheels, left and right sliding rails, and left and right resistance devices. The electric treadmill is characterized in that the vertical armrests can realize the artificial or electric swinging movement, two systems including the running system and the swinging system are available, and the running system and the swinging system can run simultaneously or separately; the electric treadmill has the advantages that people with different body heights are safely exercised, the upper half bodies are exercised, the lower half bodies are also exercised, the exercising events, the exercising difficulty and the exercising pleasure are increased, while the benefits of the running exercising are brought, benefits are also brought to the arms, the shoulder surrounding parts, the neck, theback and the waist of the human body, and the electric treadmill and the method belong to the novel aerobic exercise apparatus and body-building method being beneficial for the upper and lower half bodies and realizing the strength exercise and stretching exercise.