What Is A Treadmill?
According to Wikipedia, a treadmill is a device generally for walking or running while staying in the same place.
More recently, treadmills are not used to harness power, but as exercise machines for running or walking in one place. Rather than the user powering the mill, the machine provides a moving platform with a wide conveyor belt driven by an electric motor or a flywheel. The belt moves to the rear, requiring the user to walk or run at a speed matching that of the belt. The rate at which the belt moves is the rate of walking or running. Thus, the speed of running may be controlled and measured.
The Benefits Of Using A Treadmill
- Feel better
- Look better in your clothes
- Impress your friends
- Avoid the “fat” jokes
- Have more energy
- The future bride who was able to lose weight before the wedding
- The new mom that has lost all the baby weight
- The middle-aged person who is successfully keeping off extra weight
- Just plain feel sexy overall
- And it doesn’t stop! LOL
Things To Consider Before Purchasing A Treadmill
- Narrow it down to the top 3 treadmills that interest you the most.
- Make sure there are at least 50 plus positive reviews with a rating of at least 4.0.
- Check the warranty length of the treadmill.
- Make sure that the warranty is for the whole treadmill including the motor, which is the main part in the treadmill (This is not a complete deal breaker, but at minimum the motor should be under warranty).
- The walking surface should be wide enough for you to walk and run and you should not feel uncomfortable.
- Check the weight limit of the treadmill.
- If possible, the treadmill will have built-in shock absorbers.
- Should be safe and have an emergency stop mechanism.
What’s Your Budget?
Buying a treadmill is just like purchasing any other item; you will always have your choice of multiple price points to choose from.
My suggestion is to purchase the best quality treadmill within your budget and if you are able to sacrifice by not purchasing non-essential items (i.e. dining out, clothing, shoes, hobbies) even if for a short period of time, then go for it…
Why?
Because your health is worth more than any physical item.
I highly recommend that you view your treadmill purchase as an investment in your long-term health.
As long as the treadmill within your budget meets several of my suggested requirements listed under Things To Consider Before Purchasing A Treadmill, you’ve already made your decision!
How Is The Quality?
I know that it’s difficult to determine the quality of a Treadmill if you haven’t seen it in-person, which is why it’s extremely important to read the reviews posted by consumers that purchased it.
While reading the reviews, pay special attention to comments relating to the construction of the unit…
Comments such as it being sturdy, comfortable, and so on.
You can visually see if the treadmill appears to be solidly built.
Is It A Trusted Brand?
While even trusted brands manufacture the occasion lemon, I’d still be willing to spend my money on purchasing their treadmills as opposed to a no-name brand.
Why?
More often times than not, the trusted brand have perfected the manufacturing of the equipment due to the many years they’ve had to improve the design and correct flaws.
Here’s a partial list of trusted treadmill manufacturers:
- Proform
- Exerpeutic
- Weslo
- Love+Grace
- Confidence
- Sunny Health & Fitness
- Merax
- Nordiac Track
- LifeSpan Fitness
How Is It Rated By Other Consumers?
This is one of the most important sections in this guide, because while I can provide you with some solid guidelines which can be a bit biased.
There’s no arguing with several consumers that have spent their hard-earned money on the very same treadmills that you may be interested in purchasing.
It’s pretty simple to research what’s considered the best treadmills based upon the reviews left by the consumers whom have purchased them.
Remember, to make sure there are at least 50 plus positive reviews with a rating of at least 4.0.
You have to remember that most consumers do not leave reviews even if they’re satisfied with their purchase.
However, unsatisfied people will go out of their way to leave negative reviews.
So, if you come across a treadmill that have a lot of positive reviews, more often times than not it means it’s a good product.
With that being said, if there are tons of positive reviews, just imagine the 90% plus of those consumers whom like the treadmill but didn’t bother to leave a review.
This is why you can feel safe purchasing a treadmill that has some negative reviews, because the majority of consumers loved it.
Keep in mind that not everyone will be satisfied no matter how good the treadmill is, and that’s okay.
You can’t please everyone.
Sites like Amazon make it extremely easy to find the treadmills with the highest ratings.
All you have to do is search for “treadmills” and then select “sort by Avg. Customer Review” as this displays the machines that have 5-star ratings first.
Then view the treadmills that interest you based upon some of the criteria that I’ve provided in this guide.
You can also check out some of the highest rating treadmills by clicking here or at the end of the next section.
Where Do You Go To Purchase?
Regardless of your available budget, it doesn’t matter if you can’t afford a more higher-end treadmill at this point in time…
What matters is that you purchase one and put it to use.
If you have to go with a less expensive treadmill, it’s best to choose one with a minimum rating of 4.
Of course we all want the best, but sometimes our finance doesn’t permit the purchase.
I don’t recommend that you go into extreme debt, but get the best machine that you can based upon your budget or what you feel comfortable purchasing, because you can always upgrade later.
The bottom line is that the sooner you purchase a treadmill, the sooner you can begin burning extra calories, so that you can get fit!