I work Mon-Fri and I’m finding it very difficult to motivate myself to get to the gym with any regularity. I have reached the conclusion that a home treadmill would be a sensible alternative for me. I am very near to pulling the trigger on this model.
So tell me some stories. How long have you had yours? How much did you spend? What motivated you to make the purchase? How is your routine now compared with what you envisioned pre-purchase? Anyone totally abandon the thing?
IMO, exercise equipment is a good thing to consider buying used. People often don’t use it very much. If you don’t, hopefully you can sell it on for what you paid.
I don’t have a treadmill. I did use my parent’s treadmill when I visited. The nice thing was that it was easy to have a brisk walk while reading a book. Took up a lot of floor space.
I have a home unit, but prefer the more heavy duty treadmill at the gym. Maybe it’s just me, or I have a crappy machine, but trying to do a 4 mile workout at 4mph seems to keep blowing breakers, and there is nothing worse than having the damn thing stop under you.
We had one that my wife used a couple of times. After that it sat in the Spare Room. The Spare Room is where we keep all the stuff we might use again some day, but probably won’t. Like a larger version of a Junk Drawer that you throw all kinds of odds and ends into. Then the day comes where you need that fuse, screw, ruler, tape measure or other useful thing that might be found in the Junk Drawer, and you say to yourself, “fuck it, I’m just going to the hardware store” instead of rummaging through all that stuff.
The treadmill was finally given away some time ago. It was a great coat hanger for several years. Once the treadmill was gone we had to pare down our coat supply too, as there no longer was a place to hang them all.
Just today my wife finished assembly on a recumbent bike exercise machine that is currently occupying a spot in the corner of the living room. This machine at least has a place to plug in your iPod and headphones and listen to music. I envision myself reclining upon it, listening to tunes and watching TV, or posting on the Dope.
The useful life of this machine, where it will be used for the intended purpose, can be estimated in weeks. After this period has passed it will make an excellent coat hanger for the Spare Room.
If it were not Spring I would go out and buy a few new coats in anticipation of the new coat rack.
I have a recumbent bike in one of the guest rooms upstairs. I use it three or four days a week. There’s a TV on the wall, and I catch up on shows while on the bike.
I have one and we use it like crazy. One of the best things I’ve ever purchased; it has enabled me to get in much, much better shape. I still prefer running outside, but here’s when I use the treadmill:
-Home with kid & no wife
-Icy outside
-Dark outside
…which accounts for probably 2/3 of my running opportunities. I literally exercise 3 times more than I used to because of it.
One tip, don’t skimp on durability. We got an above-average-quality unit and it’s been a trooper.
I have a treadmill we bought through Costco maybe 8 years ago, pretty high horsepower, no real bells and whistles beyond the normal stuff. I use it all the time, especially when the weather is bad. I train for marathons and halfs, and much prefer running outside, but I’ve done 18 milers on the treadmill (that sucks). Have to have one, couldn’t tell you how many miles I’ve run on it. If I’m doing a long run on the treadmill on Sunday morning, I put on Andre Gardner’s “Breakfast with the Beatles” and time flies!
I have a home treadmill I bought in late 2013. I needed more activity (I am severely overweight) but my neighborhood is not exactly safe to stroll around in. Getting a health club membership was not an option due to my social anxiety issues.
I’d say I use my treadmill 1-2 times a week. My enthusiasm for it increased greatly when I discovered I could put my 3DS on the shelf where you would normally slot in an iPod. So I walk, about 2mph (hey, I have a bad back) and play Pokemon. I probably wouldn’t advise playing a game much more complex than that.
I would like to do more, but like I said, I have back problems, and I’m getting a lot of fatigue after I recently started Strattera for ADD. The Strattera is helping so much I don’t want to quit it, but that means working around the tiredness. Sigh. Well, whatever.
Sometime I am going to get my mom on the treadmill - It can be adjusted to less than 1mph. Her doctor has been wanting her to get some exercise, and this would be a safe way for her to do so.
We bought an elliptical machine a few years ago (I know you asked about treadmills, but I figure our experience is close enough). We decided it was worth considering it as a major investment and went ahead and bought a club-level machine for mumble-mumble. Anything cheaper that we tried just didn’t feel right, ergonomically, for one or both of us. The cheaper ones all felt less solid, as well, and I worried that they wouldn’t last very long. We also did a lot of research, including talking to a few different trainers, and tried out a number of machines. We were pretty confident by the time we made our purchase.
The wife uses it nearly every day, and loves it as much as when we first got it. We both love the results she’s gotten from it. She’s probably in the best shape of her life.
I have been a bit on-again off-again about it, myself, due to lazy habits and occasional health issues that have gotten in the way of regular use. Even so, I have used it to good effect, and am currently getting back into a routine where I am using it once or twice a day. I know that, without a convenient, quality machine, I would be very unlikely to be getting back into a good exercise routine at all right now. I’m amazed that we’ve gotten so much used out of it, as our previous home exercise machines tended to get a bit dusty.
We bought one 10+ years ago, and it hardly got used until I decided I started exercising 2.5 years ago. Since then, I’ve been on it 3-4 times a week and dropped 50 lb. The thing that worked for me was being able to set it up in a static location, facing the TV, and with headphones from the home theater system, so I can actually hear what I’m watching. Otherwise I’d be bored out of my mind.
Mine was blowing the onboard breaker a bunch a few weeks ago until I replaced it. The belt would stop, my foot would hit the belt and push backwards, and I’d be thrown forward into the console.
Got ours around Christmas. Use it multiple times a week, as does my husband. In better shape than I normally would be this lousy time of year. Now I only go to the health club for swimming, spin, and other classes. And in the summer I’ll drop that expense.
I bought my friend’s treadmill when she moved away and I love it. It’s great for the 6 months of winter we get here when it’s too cold and icy to run outside (I run with my dog, so I don’t take the chance of running on the road.) My husband wired up a monitor and speakers in front of the treadmill for me so I can connect my laptop and watch videos or listen to music while on it. It has made training in the winter enjoyable and saves me $50 a month on a gym membership.
I also have an elliptical machine in the spare room facing a TV. I use it several times a week.
There is also gym equipment in the gym downstairs, a 30 second walk, but the threshold to go to my own machine is much lower. I usually lie to myself and say I only have to do 20 minutes, after that I am already in my stride and do about 45 - 55 minutes. I have been doing this for the past two years and still believe my own “lie”
I can recommend watching action shows, they usually make me “run” faster.
I went through periods when I used mine every day, and it also spent a lot of time as a coat rack.
The funny thing is, now is one of those periods when I want to use it, and it died. I thought about buying another one but at this point I prefer having the space in the garage.
