by John Cane

Created on: December 27, 2008

Before you select your treadmill you must first decide what it is that you are going to use your treadmill for. Most people use their treadmill for one of the following three things:

1. Running

2. Walking

3. Hanging Laundry on

You must first decide which of these will be your primary use because the requirements for your treadmill depend greatly on type of usage.

If your primary use is the third option you will quite simply want to purchase the most inexpensive treadmill that you can find. Even the cheapest treadmills will put up with a small amount of use for a short period of time without breaking. And even if the motor or belt does give way, the primary function of the treadmill is in tact without them.

If you intend to use your treadmill for a significant amount of running or walking you will need to consider the following: Horse Power, Belt length and with, Incline, functions and special features, Warrantees (manufacturer or additional purchase), Delivery and Assembly.

Horse Power: There are two schools of thought on the horsepower requirements of a treadmill. The first says that if you are walking you don't need a lot of horse power because you will not be operation at high speeds. This school of thought basically says, if you are walking you can just get whatever, but if you are running you need at least 1.75HP.

The second school of thought prefers higher horse power for walking because a walking stride involves the planting of the foot with each step which puts more strain on the belt and motor. To maintain constant motion on the belt, you need to have a higher horse power than when you are running.

Both schools of thought have their points, so with this in mind I rarely recommend a treadmill less that 1,75HP for either running or walking.

Simply put, horsepower is probably the most important thing to look at when shopping for a treadmill. Higher horsepower will allow for higher maximum speeds, and a smother belt motion at all speeds. In my opinion anything over 2.2 horsepower is plenty powerful enough for anything that you might want to do.

Belt Length and Width: Here again, wider and longer is better. If you are buying a nice machine the belt will typically be plenty wide and long, but if you are pinching your pennies, I would recommend running and walking on a floor model for a while to make sure you are comfortable with the length of the belt. You should be able to walk and run without worry of coming off the back and without kicking the belt guard.

Incline:

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>