Treadmill

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Mar 25, 2002
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Hi guys, I'm trading in the Reebok RB2000 exercise bike in preference for a treadmill.

What should I be looking for to maximise value and what should I expected to pay for something half decent

Most of the ones advertised have waxed lyrical about 9in no order0

- Horsepower
- % Incline
- Maximum speed

Any suggestions?
 
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It all depends on your intended use...

If you're looking under four figures, you're better off exercising outside. Most treadmills at this price have low horsepower, a thin and short belt and mimimal inclines.

Unless you're a track and field runner, you don't need anything that goes to 20K's (or for most people, 16K's for that matter). Try to find something with a Heart Rate monitor, as this might give you a better concept of what you're expending - most calorie counters on treadmills are BS and overestimate what you're burning. Inclines are tricky, but get something that goes into double figure inclines and also has preset activities.

Get something with a decent warranty - we got burned with that recently as our treadmill just crapped itself barely beyond its way-too-short warranty, but we were a bit at fault there too with care, but just get the big warranty.

Our treadmill-in-waiting is 3HP - this is quite a bit of guts. If you can find something with this sort of power and a decent warranty and under 2K - buy!!

What are you willing to spend? What's the intended purpose? PM if you need to know more...sorry if the above is pretty vague.

If you cool on the idea of a treadmill, there's some pretty decent hybrid rowers/exercise bikes, so sniff around.
 
I have a treadmill at home it's a Healthstream one pretty good. Has the heart monitor on it, the incline is awesome has lots of different programs, drink holder, controls along the side bars as well as the top panel to control speed and incline.

It was around $1800 but i got it on special for $1500 pretty good I think and I love the convienence of being able to do it whenever I want too.
 

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Okay, with incline, it is worth spending a few hundred dollars more for automatic incline, the LAST thing you want to do is have to hop off the treadmill every time you want more/less incline.

Most places off GE credit, some people might want to steer clear of, BUT if you pay what you can and only leave a few hundred to pay off over 12 months you won't get caught paying stacks of interest.

Speed isn't all so important. More top of the range treadmills will go to 20km per hour. That is pretty damn fast.. I think anywhere between 14-18 is more than enough for your average joe.

Don't just look at the advertised price and go "oh can't afford that" - most places will take 100-200 off to make a sale, or might offer you the floor model at a bargain - warranty starts from sale date, not when it was first put in the store.

If there are going to be several people using it quite often look out for TUNTURI. They are tanks, the amount of testing they put into their treadmills is ridiculous - they have 20 yr and lifetime warranty - great for peace of mind. You can get one for around 1500+

Be careful of ones they sell in Kmart, you definately get what you pay for with exercise equipment.

So basically, decide how often you'll be using it, how many people, etc. Also, look for ones that have speed and incline programs. Makes exercising more interesting.

My suggestion is go to Amart Allsports.
 
Thanks for the tips.

So in summary, I should be lookng at;

- Horsepower - 3HP
- % Incline - Make sure it is automatic and goes into double figures
- Maximum speed - 14-16 is plenty
- Warranty - As much as possible
- Heartrate monitor - this is fairly standard inthe better models
- Looking around $1500 for something decent - shopping around

Does that about cover it?
 
Fletchers Girl said:
I have a treadmill at home it's a Healthstream one pretty good. Has the heart monitor on it, the incline is awesome has lots of different programs, drink holder, controls along the side bars as well as the top panel to control speed and incline.

It was around $1800 but i got it on special for $1500 pretty good I think and I love the convienence of being able to do it whenever I want too.
Click to expand...

Sounds like the same one as me except mine was about $1200
 
If anyone has problems with their knees then don't buy a tready.
The best exercise equipment is a cross trainer, they have NO impact on your knees, and you use your arms at the same time so technically your heart rate be higher.

They are fantastic for women cos they work the arms, butt, and legs... The kids seem to think it's fun so they can have a little exercise.

You'll just aggrivate a bad knee even more with a tready.

But if your knees are fine then nothing to worry about, just make sure you have good cushioned, shock absorbing shoes - that's probably where a lot of people go wrong.

Include a good 180+ pair of RUNNING shoes in your treadmill budget.
 

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