Treadmill owners - let me pick your brain

Triathlon Forum
1

I’m looking to buy my first treadmill and looking for some help. Mostly interested in hearing what features people think are useful. I run on treadmills at the gym a fair amount in the winter time but I’ve never spent time playing with many of the functions or figuring out which ones are helpful.

I do a fair amount of interval work so something programable would be nice.

So far it looks like the NordicTrack Commercial 1750 is pretty solid (https://www.nordictrack.ca/fitness/en/NordicTrack-Canada/Treadmills/commercial-1750-treadmill-15) - does anyone have experience with it. Any other brands/models I should be looking into?

Thanks

2

I found a used commercial quality treadmill. I LOVE IT! Weighs like 400 lbs. Getting it downstairs was fun. Getting out will be worse.

Having not run on many, but would want a long wide tread. And want it STABLE!! Must be able to adjust up in height. I only use my from like 0 to 2.5% even though it can go higher.

3

I have an afg 5.3. The features I love are that on each side on the screen is a row of numbers 1-12. One for incline, the other for speed. It’s great intervals or hill repeats as you just need to hit the number 10 to get to a 6 min mile, instead of hitting the up arrow numerous times as that takes you up in small increments. For instance. If you’re at 8 (8mph) and you wanna go to 10mph, you would need to hit the up arrow 20 times

4

I have the Nordictrack. It is awesome.

The only complaint that I have is that the mapped courses have such little undulation, but you can crank the incline to 15% grade.

It has become even more useful after putting Chrome into the port at the rear of the TV, so now we can watch Netflix and Hulu.

Great price, great product.

5

I have the C1750 model, bought new and is a little noisy but so far no problems with it. Has more than I need but for the price last year it was hard to beat. The sole F83 or 85 has similar features and price point I believe.

6

When I bought by treadmill I did some research and found that a lot of cheaper treadmills are made mainly for walking on and not really for running (especially to the extent that we all do on here)". So would imagine intervals would really be hard on them. While there is quite a bit of a price gap between commercial grade and not, the cheaper ones like NordicTrack and other companies are not made as robustly. An important thing to look at is the quality and size of the motor for sure. The other features may be nice, but keep in mind that they are also there for marketing purposes and may be gimmicky or not useful. I chose a bigger motor and robustness over other features. At the end of the day, I went a little pricier and got a True. I based it on the fact that buying one good treadmill versus 2 or more cheap ones is still cheaper and a lot less hassle. Who knows though, I don’t have much experience besides that.

7

When I bought by treadmill I did some research and found that a lot of cheaper treadmills are made mainly for walking on and not really for running (especially to the extent that we all do on here)". So would imagine intervals would really be hard on them. While there is quite a bit of a price gap between commercial grade and not, the cheaper ones like NordicTrack and other companies are not made as robustly. An important thing to look at is the quality and size of the motor for sure. The other features may be nice, but keep in mind that they are also there for marketing purposes and may be gimmicky or not useful. I chose a bigger motor and robustness over other features. At the end of the day, I went a little pricier and got a True. I based it on the fact that buying one good treadmill versus 2 or more cheap ones is still cheaper and a lot less hassle. Who knows though, I don’t have much experience besides that.

what do you think would be a good min HP to look for from your experience? is 4 hp enough?

8

I got a new treadmill a little over a year ago. Initially, the Nordictrack 1750 and Sole f80 were at the top of my list. After a few months of researching and testing many ‘mills’ out, I ended up with a True PS100. It’s a bit more than what you mentioned, but spins up really fast for intervals (only maxes out at 12 mph though), which I do on a weekly basis. I’ve been putting around 40-45 miles on it most weeks, and it’s awesome. I used to loathe the treadmill, but now it’s another tool that I’m on around 5am most mornings during the work week.

The gimmicks like built in fans and speakers are just something to break and should be avoided. I’d forget the ‘mills’ with larger displays and courses to run on - just another gimmick. Get a solid running platform with a good motor and belt, not the add-on crap that some companies try to push and market as important.

9

I have the C1750 model, bought new and is a little noisy but so far no problems with it. Has more than I need but for the price last year it was hard to beat.

Exact same experience here.

10

When I bought by treadmill I did some research and found that a lot of cheaper treadmills are made mainly for walking on and not really for running (especially to the extent that we all do on here)". So would imagine intervals would really be hard on them. While there is quite a bit of a price gap between commercial grade and not, the cheaper ones like NordicTrack and other companies are not made as robustly. An important thing to look at is the quality and size of the motor for sure. The other features may be nice, but keep in mind that they are also there for marketing purposes and may be gimmicky or not useful. I chose a bigger motor and robustness over other features. At the end of the day, I went a little pricier and got a True. I based it on the fact that buying one good treadmill versus 2 or more cheap ones is still cheaper and a lot less hassle. Who knows though, I don’t have much experience besides that.

what do you think would be a good min HP to look for from your experience? is 4 hp enough?

That is good advice above. You want to focus on these key features first:

  • powerful enough motor for consistent pull (no slippage as you run)
  • thick enough deck to be stable
  • reliability
  • max speed

then possibly these:

  • customer service?
  • bells and whistles?
  • length and width?
  • downhill mode?

I went with a Landice L7. Have had it for 10 year and never done a lick of maintenance on it, but always wipe it down well after use. It’s been perfect with no issues. It doesn’t have a particularly wide or long deck, or many fancy features, but it has a strong motor (4hp) and thick, stable deck and goes up to 12mph.

11

I just bought a treadmill. Initially I thought that Nordictrack might be a good one until I had a chance to run on it and then run on a True PS100 and Landice L7. The True and Landice are in a completely different league. I thought the Landice was the best, but decided to buy the True PS100 because of price. I felt like it was the best mix of quality and price and the Landice was more than I wanted to spend on a treadmill.

12

I own a True 500 HRC (http://www.treadmilltips.com/true-500-hrc-classic-treadmill.html#axzz3wOfZxSeT) purchased many years ago and could not be happier with it. My wife and I have beaten that thing into the ground and it still gives us a nice ride.

It has lots of programs, none of which I use.

I was glad I spent some extra cash upfront to buy a nicer treamill. This thing has certainly been reliable.

Only downside is that it only goes to 10mph (6 min/mi) which is fine for me for tempo runs, but not fast enough for interval training.

My best advice to is buy something that will last and stand up to your repeated pounding. Don’t worry so much about the cool functions. The bells and whistles are nice (programs, etc,) but in the end, I’d rather do my track stuff at the track and my hill stuff on hills.

13

https://www.johnsonfit.com/blog/treadmill_drive_motors_and_the_question_of_horsepower

This article kind of sums it up better than I can word it. Think of it like a car…you can red line the engine (you do it often), but you don’t want to keep it there for an extended period (part of the reason cars have gears and it shfits). A treadmill only has one gear though, so RPMs keep climbing the faster you go. All treadmills can support the higher RPMs, but the bigger the motor, the less hard it is working…there fore more durable. Does that make sense? Sorry that might have been a poor analogy.

As for the exact motor size, I’ll be honest and say I’m not really sure what size is a good minimum and I certainly don’t want to mislead you by making something up to give you and answer. Sorry. I’d compare some of the specs between nicer treadmills and budget ones to kind of get a feel for it.

14

Sole F80 is a good, tested, proven model with excellent customer service. Not many bells and whistles, but it does the job, and does it well, for a very reasonable price ($1500-$1800).

You do NOT need a commercial TM. If you are strong enough to wear out the motor on your SoleF80, they will replace it free. (I’ve never heard of anyone doing this, even on other TMs.)

Don’t fall in the the horsepower sales trap - horsepower measurements are notoriously inaccurate on TMs, and it doesn’t even matter if you’ve got awesome HP but other critical portions of the TM fail first. As long as your TM has a lifetime motor warrantee (most do at $1500+, as does the Sole F80), you don’t have to worry about killing your TM engine because you’re such an awesome runner.

Some people rightly swear by the better ride quality of their commercial or pricier TMs, and I’m sure they’re right for their purposes, but it’s not necessary, and you’ll def pay a huge premium for some of this ride quality. The SoleF80 runs perfectly fine and smooth, goes 12mph and 15% incline.

I would consider the customer service in purchasing a TM. If anything does go wrong later, you will rely on them for help. And given the moving parts and impact a TM takes in use, in the long run, you may need them. (I had to replace a mildly cracked deck on my Sole F80 - it probably wasn’t necessary, but I asked them about a ridge I was feeling on the deck, and they sent me a replacement for free, no questions asked.)

I wouldn’t spend money on i-fit right now. Maybe it’s improved, but I haven’t heard ANY positive feedback about it despite asking repeatedly about it for years on the forums and hearing from many users.

Also, you might want to consider not spending the money for that fancy color viewscreen, and instead, spending $350 total for a dedicated 32" TV for your TM and a nice metal sturdy tripod stand for it and bluetooth headphones (you can get all on Amazon easily.) I just updated my TM with this setup, and it’s awesome for media viewing even when suffering through a tough TM run. A 7" screen is just sad in comparison, and probably costs a lot more when built in to the TM.

15

I went with the Spirit xt385. It’s ok, I’ve replaced the belt, controller, and deck under warranty; customer service has been outstanding. My wife and I both use it. Reasonably priced. I would probably get a landice or true if we did it again knowing how much use it gets.

Features to seek: speed to >=12 mph, incline to 10%, and not much else. Programmability I find not useful, as I tend to adjust speed and incline as needed. Integrated touch screens and all that is a waste.

You may also need/want a way to ground yourself like a static guard wrist strap. And a fan.
-J

16

Sole F80 is a good, tested, proven model with excellent customer service. Not many bells and whistles, but it does the job, and does it well, for a very reasonable price ($1500-$1800).

You do NOT need a commercial TM. If you are strong enough to wear out the motor on your SoleF80, they will replace it free. (I’ve never heard of anyone doing this, even on other TMs.)

Don’t fall in the the horsepower sales trap - horsepower measurements are notoriously inaccurate on TMs, and it doesn’t even matter if you’ve got awesome HP but other critical portions of the TM fail first. As long as your TM has a lifetime motor warrantee (most do at $1500+, as does the Sole F80), you don’t have to worry about killing your TM engine because you’re such an awesome runner.

Some people rightly swear by the better ride quality of their commercial or pricier TMs, and I’m sure they’re right for their purposes, but it’s not necessary, and you’ll def pay a huge premium for some of this ride quality. The SoleF80 runs perfectly fine and smooth, goes 12mph and 15% incline.

I would consider the customer service in purchasing a TM. If anything does go wrong later, you will rely on them for help. And given the moving parts and impact a TM takes in use, in the long run, you may need them. (I had to replace a mildly cracked deck on my Sole F80 - it probably wasn’t necessary, but I asked them about a ridge I was feeling on the deck, and they sent me a replacement for free, no questions asked.)

I wouldn’t spend money on i-fit right now. Maybe it’s improved, but I haven’t heard ANY positive feedback about it despite asking repeatedly about it for years on the forums and hearing from many users.

Also, you might want to consider not spending the money for that fancy color viewscreen, and instead, spending $350 total for a dedicated 32" TV for your TM and a nice metal sturdy tripod stand for it and bluetooth headphones (you can get all on Amazon easily.) I just updated my TM with this setup, and it’s awesome for media viewing even when suffering through a tough TM run. A 7" screen is just sad in comparison, and probably costs a lot more when built in to the TM.

I agree completely with all the comments above. I own a Sole F80 and it is more than enough treadmill. I do about 3-4 hrs of running on the treadmill during the winter and thus far it has been great. My only complaint is that it is a bit loud. I also think that you should spend on other “pain cave” technology like TV’s and computers rather than looking for these on the tradmill. I have a 37" flat screen hooked up to Direct TV, Google Chrome, Blu-ray, Netflix, etc. I can find any and all means of entertainment while running and I stream the Sufferfest videos while on the bike trainer. These are much better entertainment/traning options than a 7" crappy monitor at a bad angle on your treadmill.

17

I’m looking to buy my first treadmill and looking for some help. Mostly interested in hearing what features people think are useful. I run on treadmills at the gym a fair amount in the winter time but I’ve never spent time playing with many of the functions or figuring out which ones are helpful.

I do a fair amount of interval work so something programable would be nice.

So far it looks like the NordicTrack Commercial 1750 is pretty solid (https://www.nordictrack.ca/...al-1750-treadmill-15) - does anyone have experience with it. Any other brands/models I should be looking into?

Thanks

I have a C1550 which is pretty much the same as what you linked there with slightly different electronics. I LOVE it. I don’t do anything that involves programming or electronics with it, I just run on it and change the paces as I need to manually. However the mechanics are excellent. The deck is springy a bit so it doesn’t beat you up, and the springiness can be adjusted. Deck is plenty wide and long enough to accommodate running. My only complaint really is that it shuts off without warning at 1:40 (100 minutes). Why this is I have no idea and as far as I can tell, this is not adjustable or disableable. I don’t do treadmill runs that long often, but when I do I have to remember to reset it at appropriate intervals to avoid it just shutting off on me.

18

I found a used commercial quality treadmill. I LOVE IT! Weighs like 400 lbs. Getting it downstairs was fun. Getting out will be worse.

Having not run on many, but would want a long wide tread. And want it STABLE!! Must be able to adjust up in height. I only use my from like 0 to 2.5% even though it can go higher.

I did the same, mine is an older precor that I got for $500, it was maybe 400 pounds so getting it in the house was a bear. Make sure you have the ceiling height and enough power, the big ones might need a dedicated circuit.

I wax mine from time to time and did a new belt last year and flipped the deck, they are pretty trouble free.

The difference between the build quality of a used commercial and a home model is clear once you take the cover off and start working on it. The motor and rollers on mine are massive and the deck system is very solid and comfy to run on.

I don’t use any features, not even elevation.

19

I found a used commercial quality treadmill. I LOVE IT! Weighs like 400 lbs. Getting it downstairs was fun. Getting out will be worse.

Having not run on many, but would want a long wide tread. And want it STABLE!! Must be able to adjust up in height. I only use my from like 0 to 2.5% even though it can go higher.

I did the same, mine is an older precor that I got for $500, it was maybe 400 pounds so getting it in the house was a bear. Make sure you have the ceiling height and enough power, the big ones might need a dedicated circuit.

I wax mine from time to time and did a new belt last year and flipped the deck, they are pretty trouble free.

The difference between the build quality of a used commercial and a home model is clear once you take the cover off and start working on it. The motor and rollers on mine are massive and the deck system is very solid and comfy to run on.

I don’t use any features, not even elevation.

I got mine for like $350 so we were both lucky.

I think mine was like 10K new from what I read.

The unit takes a 20 amp plug so rather than rewire a circuit, I put a 20 amp plug onto my 15 amp line. So far I have not blown the breaker.

I do all my running at 1.5% grade. At 0 it feels like I am running downhill.

20

I also have a Sole F80. My wife wanted one years ago before I was even into triathlon, but I’ve been the one that mostly uses it. The customer service is one thing attracted us to it (that and reviews) but we haven’t had to do anything with it. It’s been about five years and no issues, just tighten the belt a little with a hex key once or twice a year.

It is a little noisy if you’re in the same room but if I’m upstairs, I hear her footfalls not the motor. Like lightheir said, it’s basic but does everything we need it to. One thing, though is that since getting a footpod I’ve seen that the displayed speed isn’t really accurate. It’ll hold a speed steady but it is just off from a calibrated Garmin footpod’s readings. But that’s not really an issue for me.