Whether you’re training for a marathon, or just trying to get fitter, the best treadmills will let you run, jog, or power walk from your living room! It might be an expensive investment, but a good treadmill can help you fit your training around your life, and also save you money in the long run, if your main reason for heading to the gym is to clock miles on the tread.
When finding the best treadmill for you, it’s a good idea to think about the space you plan on using the treadmill, as some will be bigger than others and those that have a greater incline will require a good amount of space above the treadmill. It’s also worth thinking about the kind of running you plan on doing. If you’re a speedy runner, or you’re hoping to get fitter and faster, you’ll want to look at the top speed the treadmill will go, as not all of them will go as fast as the tread in the gym. Finally, safety is a big thing to think about when putting a treadmill in your home, especially if you have kids or pets to worry about.
While running on a treadmill doesn’t have quite the same sensation as pounding the pavement or trail, they’re a good training tool when the weather is bad. Here are closer looks at whether running on a treadmill is better than running outside an elliptical vs. treadmill comparison, and how to get a great workout on the stairmaster.
Below, we’ve tested some of the most popular treadmills on the market to help you decide which is best for you and your home.
What are the best treadmills?
If you’re looking for classes to keep your treadmill workouts interesting, the Peloton Tread is a fantastic choice. The large touchscreen makes watching the live and on-demand classes a joy, and the treadmill itself is compact enough to fit into most homes and has two wheels on the arms of the treadmill to easily control the speed and incline.
Second place on our list of the best treadmills is led by one of the best-known brands in home gym equipment. Like other machines made by NordicTrack, the Commercial 2950 is sturdy, durable and reliable. It comes with a ton of great features, including a large touchscreen to stream iFit workouts (a one-year membership is included with purchase; monthly subscription is required after).
The Bowflex Treadmill 22 also ranks high on our list of best treadmills. The high-end machine is expensive but is a workhorse that will last you for years. And you can use the large HD touchscreen to stream Netflix and Disney Plus.
If you’re looking to work and exercise at the same time, be sure to check out the best under-desk treadmills.
The Peloton Tread is back on sale after the mass recall of the Tread and Tread+ earlier this year, and Peloton says it’s safer than ever thanks to the new Tread Lock feature. It’s a super-popular treadmill for a reason – the side knobs allow you to easily increase speed and incline, without trying to reach and touch a screen as you move. The screen itself is a massive 23.8 inches, allowing you to follow on-demand or live classes and track your progress, although you can’t fully rotate the screen for your mat workouts like others on this list.
Where the Peloton really shines is in its workouts, with thousands of different running workouts to choose from. Whether you’re hardcore marathon training, or just want to sing your lungs out to The Greatest Showman soundtrack as you clock up the miles, you’ll find workouts to make treadmill running genuinely enjoyable on the app. The Peloton all-access membership will set you back an extra $39 a month, however, which on top of the cost of the treadmill itself, does make this one of the most expensive on the list. It’s also worth noting — the cost of the Peloton Tread recently went up, as shoppers will now have to pay $350 for the delivery and installation of the machine, bringing the total price to $2,845.
Read our full Peloton Tread review here.
The Echelon Stride sits between treadmill categories — it’s not cheap, nor high-end. In most categories, it’s just fine in terms of build, power and features. The Stride has fewer bells and whistles than more expensive treadmills; for instance, it doesn’t have an HD video screen. Yet, it also boasts an easy-to-use folding mechanism which makes storage a snap.
The Stride can be paired with a tablet running the Echelon app, which provides access to live and in-demand studio classes for a monthly fee. If you’re looking for a cheaper Peloton alternative, then the Stride plus the Echelon Fit app mostly fits the bill.
Read our full Echelon Stride review
If you’ve got the space for it in your home gym, this NordicTrack treadmill is an impressive piece of kit. It has an incline range of -3 to 15% to hit all your workout needs, and a top speed of 22km/h, which is around a four-minute mile pace, which should be speedy enough for most runners. It also folds away, so you can keep it out of reach of kids and pets when you’re not using it.
During testing, we loved the option to join classes and keep fit on the iFit compatible treadmill, although this does require you to have an iFit membership. The Commercial 2950 comes with a 30-day trial of iFit (normally $39), but you’ll need to renew that subscription every single month to take advantage of live classes, on-demand workouts, and other iFit extras. You can technically use the machine as a manual treadmill once this membership runs out, but that kind of defeats the purpose of the original investment.
On the run, taller testers still found the treadmill comfortable and were able to fully stride out, without feeling like they’d fall off. We were also able to easily adjust the angle of the screen to suit runners of different heights, but unlike the screens on the more expensive NordicTrack treadmills, it can’t be rotated for other classes.
All in all, this is a fantastic machine if you’ve got the space for it and want to use it for virtual classes. If classes aren’t your bag, there are probably cheaper options out there.
Read our full NordicTrack Commercial 2950 review here.
This is a beast of a treadmill — and the price tag reflects that. The Bowflex Treadmill 22 boasts a top-notch design and build, robust performance and many accompanying features. This high-end machine is as big and sturdy (or even more so) than what you’d see at your gym. The running surface is roomy and comfortable, while the huge 22-inch touchscreen makes viewing workouts a pleasure. Not only that, connect your streaming services through the JRNY app, and you can watch Netflix or Disney Plus while running.
Speaking of the JRNY app, it’s required, though the treadmill comes with a two-month free trial. JRNY doesn’t offer live studio sessions or community features like Peloton, but it does have plenty of on-demand and adaptive workouts.
Read more in our Bowflex Treadmill 22 review.
If you’re looking for a treadmill to do hill sprints on, we’ve found it. The NordicTrack Commercial x22i is a beast of a machine — in fact, we recommend getting the tape measure out before you even think about installing it into your home. It’s got a 40% incline, a -5% decline, and a top speed of 12 miles per hour, which is around a 4:59 minute mile pace, so should be speedy enough for most runners.
During testing, we were impressed by how high-spec this machine is — the 22 inch touchscreen is huge, the fans and cupholders are handy, and there’s a set of sled grips to help you climb up those huge hills. The brand also have an x32i, which has a larger 32-inch screen, should you be blessed with the space.
While this treadmill is a joy to run on — the compact running deck is cushioned for a comfortable bounce underfoot as you run, the main drawback here is the size. Unlike other NordicTrack treadmills, the deck doesn’t fold away, so you have to find a space to have it out permanently. The deck also sits 12-inches off the ground to accommodate for the incline — something to consider if you have low ceilings. We also found the touchscreen wasn’t the most responsive, and the fact that the screen couldn’t rotate was a little irritating.
It’s a great treadmill, but definitely won’t be suitable for everyone.
During testing, we were impressed with how quiet the Sunny Health and Fitness Asuna Treadpad was to walk on during working hours. At $499, this is also one of the least expensive under-desk treadmills on this list as well.
The Treadpad arrived fully assembled, so was ready to go in minutes, and has a top speed of four miles per hour, which is a walking pace of about a 15-minute mile. This should be fast enough for most people, but like all walking treadmills, it won’t be fast enough for most to jog on.
The digital display console shows speed, time, distance, calories burned, and steps taken. It’s straightforward to read, and easy to simply look down and see where you’re at. It also has a safety cord that you can easily kick to stop the treadmill if you have any issues.
The Sunny Health and Fitness Asuna Treadpad is operated using a remote control, which is easy to use — although you’ll need to press fairly hard to change the speed of the treadmill. Unlike other treadmills on this list, you can’t use the treadmill without the remote, so be sure to stow it away from anyone who might find it a fun toy! All in all, it’s a brilliant, comfortable walking treadmill that should suit most users.
Read our full Sunny Health and Fitness Asuna Treadpad review, and take a look at our best under-desk treadmills here.
How to choose the best treadmill for you
When deciding on the best treadmill for you, you’ll want to weight a number of factors to consider. First, determine what kind of workout will you need — hard running, light jogging, walking, etc. If you are training for a marathon, you may want better shock absorption and a longer surface length. Meanwhile, walkers may find longer arms useful.
Also think about which treadmill features are most important to you, such as: horsepower; speed; and incline and decline; footprint and portability; and touchscreens. If you want a demanding run as if you’re on hilly terrain, then higher horsepower and higher incline settings are necessary. Also, if you’re a speedier runner, be sure to check the treadmills top speed to make sure it can keep up with you.
There’s also the subject of space – if you’re a city dweller with a small apartment, a folding treadmill could save a lot of space. Folding treadmills are also considered to be the slightly safer option if you’re living in a house with small children or animals.
Another important feature is the content that the treadmill offers, like pre-programmed exercises or live and on-demand studio classes.
The more features you want, the more expensive the treadmill. Everyone has a different price point, so you may have to trade off some bells and whistles if you’re on a budget.
What are the best treadmill workouts?
So you’re thinking of investing in a treadmill to up your training from home, but what are the best workouts to do to see results in your running? We’ve rounded up some of the best treadmill workouts for every type of runner here, including the best HIIT treadmill workouts, and treadmill workouts for beginners.
Of course, if you’re not a runner, or you’re looking for a lower-impact workout, treadmills can still be great. Walking at an incline of 2% or more has been found to burn more calories than walking on the flat, plus it engages different muscles in your legs. Looking for inspiration? We tried the viral TikTok 12-3-30 treadmill workout.
Get healthy and in shape with our other fitness gear guides:
Wearables
Best smartwatches | Best running watches | Best Garmin watches | Best sports watches | Best fitness trackers | Best cheap fitness trackers | Best Fitbit | Best cheap running headphones | Best running headphones
Workout equipment
Best exercise bikes | Best Peloton alternatives | Best adjustable dumbbells | Best home gym equipment | Best resistance bands | Best foam rollers | Best yoga mats | Best weighted jump ropes | Best smart scales | Best shoes for Peloton and indoor cycling | Best water bottles |Best protein shakers | Tonal vs Mirror
Apps and exercises
Best workout apps | Best running apps | Best 10-minute ab workout | How to lose belly fat | Best tabata workouts | Best 30-minute workouts | Best beginner HIIT workouts
[ad_2]
