Which model treadmill to buy

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raamakoti
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Which model treadmill to buy

Post by raamakoti »

we are looking for a treadmill and found that all of them are pushing iFit which has a $215 per year. Are there any good ones which does not have the crazy google maps compatibility. Plain old good treadmill with heart rate monitor, 3hp motor. and possible compatibility to play songs on it while doing the workout.
I don't like to keep headphones while running.
Budget is $800 to $1000

Thanks a lot for your help
Mudpuppy
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by Mudpuppy »

I have a ProForm 995i which was around $800 on sale. It is 3HP, syncs to heartbeat monitors, and supports iFit but does not require iFit to work. My primary complaint is that track is not as well cushioned as more expensive models. I have to vary my speed by a little bit every minute or two to counteract that.
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Sandtrap
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by Sandtrap »

I ended up with a Sole Fitness E95 Elliptical to save my knees. Runs very smooth.
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yatesd
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by yatesd »

Not sure how you established your budget, but if you will actually use it, you may want to spend more. Maybe consider visiting a local specialty store and buy a floor model or a closeout version of last year's model.

http://shop.truefitness.com/treadmills

Example of specialty store's in my area:

https://www.gymsource.com/store-locator ... a-maryland
https://www.leisurefitness.com/Columbia ... ment-Store
bloom2708
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by bloom2708 »

Are you serious runners?

If so, find a used commercial treadmill. Try Craigslist. Pre-owned equipment shops.

I found a Precor 964i for $150 on Craigslist. Another $100 to have movers put it in our basement.

Unless you have a high budget, most "home" treadmills won't stand up to high mileage/long runs.
lazydavid
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by lazydavid »

Bring some clothes with you to the store. Drape them over each model you're considering. Buy the one that looks the best. :mrgreen:
ddurrett896
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by ddurrett896 »

bloom2708 wrote: Thu Nov 23, 2017 8:38 pm Are you serious runners?

If so, find a used commercial treadmill. Try Craigslist. Pre-owned equipment shops.
This x 1000. Workout equipment has to be the worst for purchases that go unused that end up online.
MPLSTCH
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by MPLSTCH »

If you consider the used option....... Pacemaster would be hard to beat. These units are very strongly built and smooth. If mine broke, I would look for another used one. My daughter ended up buying one as well. They can be hard to find though. New they sold for 2000.00+..... used, about 400-500.00
Cash
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by Cash »

I got the ProForm Pro 2000 about six months ago and like it. Currently $1199. I put 15-20 miles per week on it, and it has held up well. It looks like you might be able to connect your phone to it (not through Bluetooth), but I've never tried. I just looked, and there's a round port labeled "MP3 in." So you probably need a cable to go from your phone to the port.
TRC
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by TRC »

We bought the Sole Fitness S77 years ago and it's been a workhorse. Ordered it factory direct from Sole Fitness as it was a little higher quality than what was sold by Sole in retailers at the time. We only had 1 electrical issue with in the 8 years of ownership and they shipped us free replacement parts, no questions asked.
Mudpuppy
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by Mudpuppy »

Cash wrote: Fri Nov 24, 2017 6:35 am I got the ProForm Pro 2000 about six months ago and like it. Currently $1199. I put 15-20 miles per week on it, and it has held up well. It looks like you might be able to connect your phone to it (not through Bluetooth), but I've never tried. I just looked, and there's a round port labeled "MP3 in." So you probably need a cable to go from your phone to the port.
As long as your phone still has a headphone jack, any AUX-IN port like the "MP3 in" port would work. You'd have to jump through more hoops (adapters) if your phone doesn't have a headphone jack anymore. But in either case, you'd probably get better sound quality from a portable Bluetooth speaker.
lightheir
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by lightheir »

ddurrett896 wrote: Fri Nov 24, 2017 6:20 am
bloom2708 wrote: Thu Nov 23, 2017 8:38 pm Are you serious runners?

If so, find a used commercial treadmill. Try Craigslist. Pre-owned equipment shops.
This x 1000. Workout equipment has to be the worst for purchases that go unused that end up online.
If the OP is a regular runner though, it's a very worthwhile purchase, and I'd say go for it. Odds are they'll use it, even intermittently. Sole F80 is a standard go-to for 'serious' runners/racers that has excellent customer support and hardware.

Most of these 'use my treadmill as a clothing rack' are from folks who aren't regular runners to begin with, and get the TM in hopes they'll start a regimen. That I wouldn't recommend.
euroswiss
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by euroswiss »

bloom2708 wrote: Thu Nov 23, 2017 8:38 pm Are you serious runners?

If so, find a used commercial treadmill. Try Craigslist. Pre-owned equipment shops.

I found a Precor 964i for $150 on Craigslist. Another $100 to have movers put it in our basement.

Unless you have a high budget, most "home" treadmills won't stand up to high mileage/long runs.
I totally agree! Go to progymsupply.com or similar and check out refurb gym equipment. These machines are designed to take a huge amount of use/abuse, and will very likely last for a long time in a home gym. My current one is a StarTrack 3900 Series - I bought it used about 6 or 7 years ago and it is still running great at 2-3h of use per day. You will pay between $1000-2000, but it is well worth it. Those cheaper "home treadmills" are not designed to hold up (most are used as expensive clothes racks after a few months anyway, so there is no need to make them robust). I had 3 or 4 of those and they never lasted more than 6 months. Even the ones that came highly rated

BTW: the PRO class machines tend to be heavier and larger than the "home treadmills", so take that into account. I had to hire a moving crew to get it upstairs in my home.... (well worth it anyway)
letsgobobby
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

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MoonOrb
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by MoonOrb »

We also have a Sole. I can't recall the model number off hand because we've had it 6+ years. It's been a workhorse. I just did 10 miles on it today as a matter of fact.

I can't disagree with the advice to buy a commercial grade treadmill on Craigslist if you have the time and patience and flexibility to do this. Even if it doesn't go well, you're down maybe $500, most of which are moving costs. That seems like a worthwhile gamble under the right circumstances.

But if you want to buy a home treadmill that does the important things well, I'd recommend a Sole. We got ours at Sears for a steep discount and used some of the cost savings to purchase the warranty program: it came with one free annual maintenance visit a year, which we always made sure to schedule.
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jhfenton
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by jhfenton »

yatesd wrote: Thu Nov 23, 2017 7:57 pm Not sure how you established your budget, but if you will actually use it, you may want to spend more. Maybe consider visiting a local specialty store and buy a floor model or a closeout version of last year's model.
That's what happened to me. :beer I started out planning to spend under $1,000. Then I decided $1,500 bought a lot more treadmill. Then I ran on a few...and I ended up with a Landice L7 somewhere north of $2,500, 4HP motor, lifetime warranty on everything, including wearables. I've had it 10 years and run thousands of miles on it, and it has never required service. (I just put fresh silicone lube under the belt twice per year.)
daveydoo
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by daveydoo »

My earlier thoughts from this thread:

viewtopic.php?f=11&t=194451&p=2962590&h ... l#p2962590

"...I've used a treadmill for 20 years -- a True and then a Precor. They're worth every penny. You don't need to run -- I like low-impact "hiking" at 4 mi/h with 8-10% grade. Can get an amazing workout fairly quickly. Spend the money (forgive me, BH) and get a decent one. There's not much worse than a terrible treadmill. A decade ago you needed to spend $3K (seriously) to get a decent one, but now you can get a really nice one for $1000. Check Consumer Reports for ratings. I get a lot of "medium-ticket" items at Costco but these I've only bought from actual fitness stores and had them delivered and assembled. Can also get refurbished commercial-grade (used) one from a club (sold online) -- I looked and looked but never quite had the courage to pull the trigger on one of those; if I had to send it back, it's like 500 lbs.

I strongly suggest getting a manually programmable one (not just one with 5 pre-loaded programs). I omitted this feature the first time around to save a few hundred bucks -- and had to wait 15 years for it to die so I could get this feature. (The reason: if you're exercising on an incline, you need to mix it up to avoid an insidious repetitive-stress-type injury and it can be hard to remember to drop the ramp every 5 min., etc.). Btw, I can't believe that you can spend $5K and still can not get one that you can just program with a phone app (?!). I could run my whole house from my phone, and remote-control my DSLR, but I can't program a treadmill without adjusting in real-time while it "saves" my work-out. If anybody out there wants to get rich...

The most important thing: put a flat-screen right in front of it with Netflix and/or Amazon and you're set. This has been amazing for the past few years. Regular TV is terrible, I'm not 16-24 so music alone won't cut it for me, I tried some DVD courses (eh), but binge-watching Netflix -- I almost can't wait to get home and work out..."
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lightheir
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by lightheir »

daveydoo wrote: Sat Nov 25, 2017 1:14 pm My earlier thoughts from this thread:

viewtopic.php?f=11&t=194451&p=2962590&h ... l#p2962590

"...I've used a treadmill for 20 years -- a True and then a Precor. They're worth every penny. You don't need to run -- I like low-impact "hiking" at 4 mi/h with 8-10% grade. Can get an amazing workout fairly quickly. Spend the money (forgive me, BH) and get a decent one. There's not much worse than a terrible treadmill. A decade ago you needed to spend $3K (seriously) to get a decent one, but now you can get a really nice one for $1000. Check Consumer Reports for ratings. I get a lot of "medium-ticket" items at Costco but these I've only bought from actual fitness stores and had them delivered and assembled. Can also get refurbished commercial-grade (used) one from a club (sold online) -- I looked and looked but never quite had the courage to pull the trigger on one of those; if I had to send it back, it's like 500 lbs.

I strongly suggest getting a manually programmable one (not just one with 5 pre-loaded programs). I omitted this feature the first time around to save a few hundred bucks -- and had to wait 15 years for it to die so I could get this feature. (The reason: if you're exercising on an incline, you need to mix it up to avoid an insidious repetitive-stress-type injury and it can be hard to remember to drop the ramp every 5 min., etc.). Btw, I can't believe that you can spend $5K and still can not get one that you can just program with a phone app (?!). I could run my whole house from my phone, and remote-control my DSLR, but I can't program a treadmill without adjusting in real-time while it "saves" my work-out. If anybody out there wants to get rich...

The most important thing: put a flat-screen right in front of it with Netflix and/or Amazon and you're set. This has been amazing for the past few years. Regular TV is terrible, I'm not 16-24 so music alone won't cut it for me, I tried some DVD courses (eh), but binge-watching Netflix -- I almost can't wait to get home and work out..."
Yes, I actually really enjoy my treadmill setup as well! Sure, it's not going to be a perfect temp outdoor trail run, but it's actually as enjoyable as its gets with a 32 inch TV, wireless BT earbuds or sound bar, and a powerful fan.

I actualy suspect the big reason the treadmill does not allow you to preprogram workouts from your phone, is that the manufacturers are terrified of the very real prospect that some noob will misprogram their workout, and instead of going from a walk of 24:00/mile to 16:00/mile, it goes down to 06:00/mile (!!) and they get ejected off the back with serious injury. And ensuing lawsuit.

This is probably the main reason why the indoor bike preprogrammed training has taken off like wildfire (no rear ejection) whereas the TMs despite having been around decades longer than powered bike trainers (Wahoo Kickr), still are in stone-age in terms of programming the console manually.
Topic Author
raamakoti
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Re: Which model treadmill to buy

Post by raamakoti »

Thank you for all your feedback. Ended up buying NordicTrack C990 on craigslist for $475
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