Treadmill Buying Guide

Every day, thousands of Americans discover that buying a treadmill is the best investment they could make for their personal and family health. Despite the vast diversity of the U.S. population, their reasons for buying a treadmill are all basically identical. A treadmill workout stands above all in providing a low impact exercise while delivering the highest benefit in terms of cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, pulmonary, and circulatory health, and weight loss.

Taking this into consideration, it is no wonder home treadmill usage in the U.S. has soared by over 1800% since 1983. Recent consumer studies indicate that treadmill exercise is the fastest growing activity in the countryÑincreasing by an astonishing 37% alone within one recent one-year period.

These percentages place the number of Americans owning or using a treadmill at about 8.6% of the U.S. population. That's over 20 million people! Studies indicate that nearly 40% of those 20 million Americans enjoy their workout on a home treadmill.

So what types of people are using treadmills as their main source of exercise? All types. Because treadmills provide a relatively safe (children must always be supervised and proper safety measures followed), low impact way to exercise, entire familiesÑfrom young to oldÑcan enjoy the significant benefits of treadmill exercise.

Plus, with the growing trend that views walking as a source of significant physical exercise in the last five to six years, it makes sense to consider a treadmill as the key to remaining active and in shape.

While it is clear what makes a treadmill such a perfect choice for home exercise equipment, the question remaining is which treadmill to buy. Making the perfect choice requires knowing which questions to ask, and of course, knowing the right answers.

Brand

The easiest way to make a decision is looking at the brand. That's why companies rely on brand names to help sell their products. But it may be better for you to determine the specifications of the model you want before you choose any brand. You can buy the right brand, but the wrong model. Still, you should know the names of a few brand names that consistently offer high quality and solid value. These include Horizon Systems, Tunturi, and Ironman, which, among others, are names that are reliable in terms of quality, features, customer service, and warranty. Back to top

Price

While price is just one of many variables to consider when deciding which model to purchase, for many, price is the single biggest determining factor in making a decision. Prices vary greatly - from $300 for a manual, lightweight construction model to around $10,000 for a professional model suitable for nearly around the clock use in a commercial setting such as a health club or office gym.

You can get a reasonably equipped treadmill, which is a system equipped with everything a moderate to frequent user is going to need, for somewhere in the neighborhood of $1000 and $2000. Better home models, offering a more sophisticated feature set and stronger construction, can cost between $1,200-$2,500.

If you're a really serious user, then you should probably be looking at models in the range of $2,500 to $3,500, which offer even more computerized workout programs, detailed feedback displays, and superb unit stability. For those who want to work out at home using a treadmill identical or comparable to the machines they've used at their health club, expect to pay anywhere from $6,000 to $10,000.

For the sake of reference, a serious, meaning it's a respectable system, entry-level model, the Horizon Fitness T51 offers an affordable, easy to store treadmill that comes with a number of value-adding accessories like a handgrip heart monitor and a built-in fan. Another very respected entry-level model is the J3.5F from Tunturi, a Finnish company that offers high quality, is well respected, and features very intelligent designs for all its products. The J3.5F is a very comfortable to use, shock absorbent treadmill that is styled with convenient handlebars that allow ample room for walking and running, without sacrificing safety.

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Motor

Typically, a higher price signals a higher-quality motor and more durable construction. When considering a motor, it is important to be an educated consumer. This is because the differences to look for in a treadmill motor aren't always clear in the product literature. Generally, manufacturers describe the power of a treadmill motor in terms of "continuous duty" or "peak performance."

When a manufacturer describes the motor operating up to 2 horsepower (hp) at "peak-performance" levels, this means it's capable of performing at 2 hp, but not continuously - in other words, 2 hp is its peak output. A 2hp "peak-performance" monitor doesn't have the some capabilities a 2 hp or even 1.5 hp "continuous duty" motor, which can produce that amount of power continuously.

For a lightweight person using the treadmill for moderate to slow speeds less than several times each week, a model with a 1.5 Ð 2.0 hp continuous duty motor will meet his or her needs. A good example of a system geared for this level of use is the Horizon Fitness T51, which comes with a 1.75 hp continuous duty motorÑvery suitable for light to moderate users.

Using a treadmill daily, or multiple weekly usages with multiple users of varying weights, and for varying speeds (i.e. walking, speed walking, jogging) may require a more powerful and durable engine. In this case, a bigger motor, meaning between 2.0 Ð 2.5 would be ideal. The J3.5F and J4F from Tunturi, both come with a 2.0 hp continuous duty motor and reach 10 mph.

At the next level of durability and performance are the Horizon Fitness T53 and Horizon Fitness T54hr, both with a 2.25 hp continuous duty motor and another treadmill worth considering, the Ironman 220t which features a 2.5 hp motor.

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