Reccomendations for treadmill??
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SamairaAzim
Posts: 9 Member
Hey guys i want to buy a treadmill that is good value for money and displays my heart rate, calories burnt, ability to input age and weight etc. Basically a good one that wont cost me the earth?? Anything i need to look out for/avoid in particular? Imm unsure about what im looking for in terms of specs, just need something reliable n good quality. Thanks!
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I bought the cheapest one at Sears when I started. Proform 395 or 397. It was $400-I got an extended warranty for another $100-$200 I think.
It was...fine. It was small, and shaky, but functional. I ran a lot (a lot) or miles on it. Until I blew the motor (maybe 3 years?). Got that replaced (under extended warranty). Got another few years out of it (mixed with a lot of outdoor running). Then it started thumping, squealing and it smelled bad.
I replaced it with a Nordictrac 1750. So. Much. Better.
I have no idea what your budget is, and home workout equipment is currently obscenely overpriced because of the pandemic, but I would go for the best you can afford.3 -
Prices are dropping quickly on home gym equipment in most areas now.
I would go with something high quality used to get the features you want and get the most bang for your buck. I have a used life fitness 95t that I got for a couple hundred dollar, but I got a crazy good deal on mine pre pandemic. I had a professional treadmill tech come service it when I got it (had to be put back together and it was in SO MANY PIECES that my husband didn’t want to touch it).
That said, if you can’t find a good deal on a used gym quality one, I would do a google search and check out reviews to see what you can get that isn’t crazy expensive but is also well rated.2 -
Ok, I know this isn't what you asked for but have you considered other equipment like a rowing machine? You'd get more of a full body workout on that and walking can really be done anywhere. That being said, if you enjoy a treadmill, have at it! Just throwing an idea your way.3
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@IronIsMyTherapy to be honest no its not something i thought about, ive had someone suggest getting a bike instead as you can do lots of different exercises on it including spinning? Are rowing machines good for working on your abdomenal muscles? Ive had 3 pregnancies, one of them being twins, so im really hoping i can burn some belly fat n tighten that area back up!1
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SamairaAzim wrote: »@IronIsMyTherapy to be honest no its not something i thought about, ive had someone suggest getting a bike instead as you can do lots of different exercises on it including spinning? Are rowing machines good for working on your abdomenal muscles? Ive had 3 pregnancies, one of them being twins, so im really hoping i can burn some belly fat n tighten that area back up!
Rowing works your legs, core, back, biceps, shoulders... I personally don't enjoy cardio much but I find rowing is something I can hop on and do for a relatively short period of time at a high level of intensity and I enjoy it. I also find it fun to compete against myself, like how fast can I row 1,000 meters. To me, if I want to go for a walk, I'd rather go do that outside somewhere that I can enjoy the surroundings and time passes quickly. Spin bikes are another good option, there's lots of YouTube videos you can follow to get a great workout. Rowing just gives you more of a full body workout.
Bottom line, pick the one you feel you'd enjoy the most. You'll be more consistent if you look forward to it.1 -
SamairaAzim wrote: »@IronIsMyTherapy to be honest no its not something i thought about, ive had someone suggest getting a bike instead as you can do lots of different exercises on it including spinning? Are rowing machines good for working on your abdomenal muscles? Ive had 3 pregnancies, one of them being twins, so im really hoping i can burn some belly fat n tighten that area back up!
If you're thinking of the bike route consider a real bike & trainer rather than a dedicated stationary / spin bike. I don't know how old your kids are but, if they're old enough, getting out cycling together is a great way to spend active time with the munchkins (my daughter used to scare the bejeezus out of me, she was such a maniac). With smart trainers (dropping in price all the time) you can use programs like TrainerRoad or Zwift to make your time more interesting and productive.
I'm also a big fan of rowing machines. Like cycling it's zero impact so you could, if you wanted, row 7 days a week, 365 days a year and if you get a Concept2 (the gold standard among rowing machines) you can subscribe to their workout of the day emails and take part in the challenges they put on throughout the year. Alternating between steady state and interval workouts you can really build your fitness you just need to be really aware of your rowing form (lots of great videos on YouTube) and a C2 is a lot less than a really good treadmill. I've got close to 10,000,000 metres on mine and the only maintenance has been cleaning the rail, the fan and lubing the chain.
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You aren’t going to target fat from your stomach no matter what exercise you do though. Spot reduction isn’t a thing.
Calorie deficit for the weight loss and cardio for health.
I have the treadmill mentioned above, a concept 2 rower, a summit climber (similar to a step mill but lower ceiling clearance as i have a basement gym and don’t have enough head space for a step mill), a life fitness bike, and an arc trainer.
Personally, I use the bike the least. I burn the fewest calories on it and it usually just aggravates my knees. My favorites are my cybex arc trainer, concept 2, and treadmill.0 -
We have a WaterRower, a NordicTrack Treadmill, and NordicTrack and Sole exercise bikes. It's very true that rowing is more of a full body workout; the main issue is whether you'll like it. Remember, the best exercise machine is the one you'll use. The WaterRower is basically my wife's machine, I don't like rowing at all, even though I can easily tell from being on it for 15 minutes that it is far superior to most other exercises in being a true full body workout. I just really dislike rowing. My wife adores that machine and has been using it 6 days a week for 5-6 years, so it all depends on individual preferences.
As to getting a treadmill, having had several, I would say two things. (1) If you can spend a bit more to get a heavier, more stable t-mill with a larger motor, do it, (2) Try to put your $$ into solid build quality, not gadetry. Some brands put their money into things that matter, like a quality, heavy duty motor, and some put all the coin into stuff you may not need or use, like interconnected this and real-time Google map that. Almost any treadmill will display basic data such as pace, elapsed time, calories, etc., and almost any except at the bottom of the market will have heart rate grips somewhere on the machine. If you are keeping an eye on HR, one thing you will want is a machine that will let you use a HR strap (or even better, include one, but you can buy a 3rd party one - there are plenty of those out there). HR grips are unreliable and in general it is a real PITA to grip them while running/jogging/power walking on a treadmill, long enough to get a reading. So try to find one with ability to read from a chest strap.
I saw above that someone recommended a NordicTrack 1750. My NordicTrack treadmill is a more expensive version of that one. I'm not a huge fan of NordicTrack but the 1750 would have all the features you would want (and then some). If you want to buy a name brand unit (NordicTrack, Sole, etc.) you definitely should wait until Black Friday or Fuschia Monday or whatever it's called, just a few weeks from now. These companies traditionally "discount" 40-50 % off their list prices, but during Covid some of them have been selling at list. I strongly suspect on Black Monday/Friday/whatever later in November it will be possible to get the 40-50 % off.2 -
Be prepared to wait a while, whatever you order. I ordered a Sole Treadmill in early October and it'll be mid-November by the time I get it. Luckily our CA weather will still be decent for a good while.0
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sarahbetherck wrote: »Be prepared to wait a while, whatever you order. I ordered a Sole Treadmill in early October and it'll be mid-November by the time I get it. Luckily our CA weather will still be decent for a good while.
I am surprised to hear this. One reason I ordered a new Sole bike recently was because they said they would have it at my front door in no more than 30 days, and possibly as early as 14. Exactly 14 days later they showed up with the bike.
btw I think you will be happy with your purchase. I'm ecstatic about the build quality of this thing.0 -
SamairaAzim wrote: »Hey guys i want to buy a treadmill that is good value for money and displays my heart rate, calories burnt, ability to input age and weight etc. Basically a good one that wont cost me the earth?? Anything i need to look out for/avoid in particular? Imm unsure about what im looking for in terms of specs, just need something reliable n good quality. Thanks!
I'm not sure what your budget is, but I have a Life Fitness treadmill. I've had it for over 15 years. Yes, it was expensive, around 4k, maybe a little under, but has been an excellent investment. It does all the things you are requiring, plus. For instance, I can program in a ton of walks, runs. It has a 15% incline, at the time I purchased it most of them, even at the gym, only to 12%. These are the things that are coming immediately to mind. It is a beast!! Anyway, I'm fairly sure you can get something even cheaper if you look around, as technology improves. Good luck
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SamairaAzim wrote: »Hey guys i want to buy a treadmill that is good value for money and displays my heart rate, calories burnt, ability to input age and weight etc. Basically a good one that wont cost me the earth?? Anything i need to look out for/avoid in particular? Imm unsure about what im looking for in terms of specs, just need something reliable n good quality. Thanks!
I'm not sure what your budget is, but I have a Life Fitness treadmill. I've had it for over 15 years. Yes, it was expensive, around 4k, maybe a little under, but has been an excellent investment. It does all the things you are requiring, plus. For instance, I can program in a ton of walks, runs. It has a 15% incline, at the time I purchased it most of them, even at the gym, only to 12%. These are the things that are coming immediately to mind. It is a beast!! Anyway, I'm fairly sure you can get something even cheaper if you look around, as technology improves. Good luck
@Bluetail6 yeah, new their crazy priced. The life fitness 95t is $1600-$3k refurbished. Or you can get a steal on one from a gym going out of business. It might need some work though, so I would recommend thoroughly checking it out first. I was super lucky and paid a couple of hundred from one from a fitness studio, BUT it was in Manhattan and my husband had to get it down 5 flights of steps.0 -
Horizon has a new line of treadmills that is winning every major award for best value. They can immediately plug into things like Zwift Running, so they are built to be better integrated. While they don't have a screen (something that can go wrong), they have a nice holder for a tablet. They start at only $1000. Every review I've read on them is solid. Their top of the line one is $2000.
I have a rower and love it but I wouldn't get one unless you absolutely know you love rowing. My wife and kids love the Air Bike more than the rower. I have an AD Pro, which is great, but it's a Schwinn and that's a terrible company. Rogue Echos are better if you look at that as an option. Better durability, quality and customer service.1 -
MikePfirrman wrote: »Horizon has a new line of treadmills that is winning every major award for best value. They can immediately plug into things like Zwift Running, so they are built to be better integrated. While they don't have a screen (something that can go wrong), they have a nice holder for a tablet. They start at only $1000. Every review I've read on them is solid. Their top of the line one is $2000.
I have a rower and love it but I wouldn't get one unless you absolutely know you love rowing. My wife and kids love the Air Bike more than the rower. I have an AD Pro, which is great, but it's a Schwinn and that's a terrible company. Rogue Echos are better if you look at that as an option. Better durability, quality and customer service.
The older Schwinn airdyne are highly desired and still sell for a lot considering age (1980s still sell used for about $200). The rogue echo bike would certainly be a better choice if you are comparing it to a new Schwinn though. There isn’t a lot that can go wrong with them as it’s a fairly simple design, so used on either brand would be a safe bet.0 -
Dogmom1978 wrote: »MikePfirrman wrote: »Horizon has a new line of treadmills that is winning every major award for best value. They can immediately plug into things like Zwift Running, so they are built to be better integrated. While they don't have a screen (something that can go wrong), they have a nice holder for a tablet. They start at only $1000. Every review I've read on them is solid. Their top of the line one is $2000.
I have a rower and love it but I wouldn't get one unless you absolutely know you love rowing. My wife and kids love the Air Bike more than the rower. I have an AD Pro, which is great, but it's a Schwinn and that's a terrible company. Rogue Echos are better if you look at that as an option. Better durability, quality and customer service.
The older Schwinn airdyne are highly desired and still sell for a lot considering age (1980s still sell used for about $200). The rogue echo bike would certainly be a better choice if you are comparing it to a new Schwinn though. There isn’t a lot that can go wrong with them as it’s a fairly simple design, so used on either brand would be a safe bet.
I agree on the older Schwinn models. They are great. If you can snag one of those, they're fantastic. Don't get me wrong, I love the AD Pro. However (and this is a big however), the crankshaft broke in half during use (similar to the Peloton recall). I nearly killed myself. Spent two months trying to get the right part from them. It's owned by Bowflex now (I know how you feel about Bowflex
). I had to actually tell them their engineering schematic drawings had the left and right crankshafts reversed. They've since changed it, but the fact they didn't understand for nearly 3 months why they were sending out replacement parts that were all the wrong side is unreal and speaks volumes on how incompetent their customer service is.
The old Schwinn company was amazing. It's just not the same company now. I've had friends get the Rogue Echo and all love it. And Rogue's customer service is amazing.1 -
that is a great question, buy the most you can afford, buy a commercial quality one, look at Craigslist for used gym equipment of a gym going out of business, you are better off buying a commercial used machine that is very sturdy very well made, than a piece of junk flimzy brand new machine off of Amazon, if you can go and run or walk on it before you buy it, see how easy it is to configure, it should be intuitive, you should not need to read a book to figure out the basic operation, I also like the ones that show the oval track and how you run around it, I don't know maybe it is just me but it helps to see that dot go around the track if you know what I mean, hope this helps1
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MikePfirrman wrote: »Dogmom1978 wrote: »MikePfirrman wrote: »Horizon has a new line of treadmills that is winning every major award for best value. They can immediately plug into things like Zwift Running, so they are built to be better integrated. While they don't have a screen (something that can go wrong), they have a nice holder for a tablet. They start at only $1000. Every review I've read on them is solid. Their top of the line one is $2000.
I have a rower and love it but I wouldn't get one unless you absolutely know you love rowing. My wife and kids love the Air Bike more than the rower. I have an AD Pro, which is great, but it's a Schwinn and that's a terrible company. Rogue Echos are better if you look at that as an option. Better durability, quality and customer service.
The older Schwinn airdyne are highly desired and still sell for a lot considering age (1980s still sell used for about $200). The rogue echo bike would certainly be a better choice if you are comparing it to a new Schwinn though. There isn’t a lot that can go wrong with them as it’s a fairly simple design, so used on either brand would be a safe bet.
I agree on the older Schwinn models. They are great. If you can snag one of those, they're fantastic. Don't get me wrong, I love the AD Pro. However (and this is a big however), the crankshaft broke in half during use (similar to the Peloton recall). I nearly killed myself. Spent two months trying to get the right part from them. It's owned by Bowflex now (I know how you feel about Bowflex ). I had to actually tell them their engineering schematic drawings had the left and right crankshafts reversed. They've since changed it, but the fact they didn't understand for nearly 3 months why they were sending out replacement parts that were all the wrong side is unreal and speaks volumes on how incompetent their customer service is.
The old Schwinn company was amazing. It's just not the same company now. I've had friends get the Rogue Echo and all love it. And Rogue's customer service is amazing.
Yes rogue has fantastic customer service! My rogue rack came with some cosmetic damage and I was just trying to get a small discount and instead they replaced the piece for me at no charge. There was nothing functionally wrong with it; I just wanted it to look new since I bought it new or get a discount on it for it being marred...
I had to explain to Marcy that they kept sending me the wrong pulley for an all in one machine. Three times I got the wrong pulley for it. I got the machine for free and my husband fixed it and sold it, but it took over a month to get the right pulley! I had the model number... how do you NOT know which pulley goes to which model number when it’s your machine???
So many companies were good once upon a time and now are just well.... poop 😂1 -
that is a great question, buy the most you can afford, buy a commercial quality one, look at Craigslist for used gym equipment of a gym going out of business, you are better off buying a commercial used machine that is very sturdy very well made, than a piece of junk flimzy brand new machine off of Amazon, if you can go and run or walk on it before you buy it, see how easy it is to configure, it should be intuitive, you should not need to read a book to figure out the basic operation, I also like the ones that show the oval track and how you run around it, I don't know maybe it is just me but it helps to see that dot go around the track if you know what I mean, hope this helps
I get bored with the oval... my life fitness 95t lets you pick different trails and has videos so it looks like you’re hiking down the trail. There are people who move out of your way and different facts about the trails that pop up. If I’m not reading on the treadmill, then I amuse myself by pretending I’m hiking in New Zealand or the Grand Canyon or one of the other trail options it has available 😜1 -
SamairaAzim wrote: »Hey guys i want to buy a treadmill that is good value for money and displays my heart rate, calories burnt, ability to input age and weight etc. Basically a good one that wont cost me the earth?? Anything i need to look out for/avoid in particular? Imm unsure about what im looking for in terms of specs, just need something reliable n good quality. Thanks!
I'm not sure what your budget is, but I have a Life Fitness treadmill. I've had it for over 15 years. Yes, it was expensive, around 4k, maybe a little under, but has been an excellent investment. It does all the things you are requiring, plus. For instance, I can program in a ton of walks, runs. It has a 15% incline, at the time I purchased it most of them, even at the gym, only to 12%. These are the things that are coming immediately to mind. It is a beast!! Anyway, I'm fairly sure you can get something even cheaper if you look around, as technology improves. Good luck
This is so weird to be quoting myself.... Ok, so I got on my treadmill, per usual. After 20 mins it started smelling totally like the motor was burning. I hopped off, and sniffed it. It was not a good smell, and was really warm to the touch. I then started looking up reviews for the model I have (T7-0.) Not good. I will call Life Fitness later today and hope they can recommend a tech. They will have to come to my house, cause the *kitten* weighs 340 lbs!!! I pray they will get me limping along till I can afford a Landice (dream treadmill), which is completely out of my budget. I am truly grateful I got such good use out of it.
What a *kitten* nightmare.... OP, post if you find something affordable. Cause if I can't get mine fixed for a reasonable price
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Dogmom1978 wrote: »that is a great question, buy the most you can afford, buy a commercial quality one, look at Craigslist for used gym equipment of a gym going out of business, you are better off buying a commercial used machine that is very sturdy very well made, than a piece of junk flimzy brand new machine off of Amazon, if you can go and run or walk on it before you buy it, see how easy it is to configure, it should be intuitive, you should not need to read a book to figure out the basic operation, I also like the ones that show the oval track and how you run around it, I don't know maybe it is just me but it helps to see that dot go around the track if you know what I mean, hope this helps
I get bored with the oval... my life fitness 95t lets you pick different trails and has videos so it looks like you’re hiking down the trail. There are people who move out of your way and different facts about the trails that pop up. If I’m not reading on the treadmill, then I amuse myself by pretending I’m hiking in New Zealand or the Grand Canyon or one of the other trail options it has available 😜
That’s what I like about my Nordictrack (aside from it being stable, better motor, larger, etc than my first). I can map out any route and the TM will show me the google maps street view and adjust the incline/decline to match the map.
The oval is barely a step above watching the numbers tick off on the display for me.
I’ve run (virtually) race routes all over the world, hiked (virtually) all over the world, run the Iditarod, an African safari, an archeological site, beaches, theme parks, you name it. If I have to be inside, I much prefer the entertainment (and it’s a nice preview since I tend to do a lot of travel races).1
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