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Child Item

Treadmill Purchase

BeepBeep67

Thinking of investing in a treadmill (ideally 2nd hand) and I know a few on here use regularly (SJ, Woddle, Tunguska - to name a few).
What are the key things to look out for, spec, functionality, brand, etc?

Thanks in advance

Dom

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Gringo78

Would be interested in the replies to this as looking for one myself. Are the ones in the price range 300-600euro any good quality wise? I reckon I could live with a max speed of 13km/hr (7:25 ml pace) as I would only be using it for easy/recovery runs.

pebbles21

I got one on adverts.ie if your interested

thirstywork

pm me if you are intersted in a treadmill.;)

Woddle

A treadmill is a great investment, I paid around 1100 maybe more at the time, only needed to be serviced once and I've had it about 7 years now. The main thing you want is that it looks strong, that it folds up (to avoid OH giving out) and that it can go to at least 10 mph and 10% grade. Mine is part of the Horizon series and is model Ti21 and would highly recommend it, I think I bought it in Elverys, can't remember. It also has a 3 level fan as it can get quite warm in your house.
I know it says its discontinued but at least you can use this info to compare to others, I must add the reason mine needed to be serviced was cause I lent it to my 6ft5 mate who wanted to get in shape for his wedding, he was about 17-18 stone.

Slogger Jogger

Budget was a key factor when I purchased as was speed. I went for a proform TM that could reach 16kph, not that I often go that fast myself, but I wanted a machine with a limit higher than I normally go to. I purchased from the health shop link on vhi.ie. The same model was available through Elvery's shops. Can't remember what I paid. I am on my 3rd model though. Motor packed up on 1 and the running board broke on the 2nd one, so it doesn't say much for the quality of the build. However, numero 3 is going well (for more than a year) and the customer service I got when I had issues with the earlier editions was pretty good.

It goes without saying that you need room for it. We've moved our TM a few times and its 'hidden' in the corner of the living room surrounded by a screen. My OH hates it but no other room can take it - ideally you'd have a garage or another downstairs room with space. These things are heavy so you can't really have them upstairs. They are noisy too. You've been warned.

RacoonQueen

That's exactly what I was going to ask about SJ, the noise. We have a massive back garden here so I considered buying a nice new shed to put a gym in but I figured the shed wouldn't hide the noise of the treadmill. The noise of them is probably silenced out in gyms by people, music and other equipment so I presume I'd need more than just a wooden shed.

Slogger Jogger

Its hard to gauge the decibel level to be honest. I usually turn up the stereo when I'm running on it to drown it out / compensate

. Having a detached house helps. If you're running hard you're creating a decent pounding noise, which if you were in a shed could fairly bounce the shed around if it wasn't on solid foundations. Most sheds are put on a few bricks. Treadmills are heavy - requiring 2 people to shift them, so pick your site carefully.

The slight advantage with the TM I have is that it tilts upright when its not being used. Even then though it takes up a 3ft x 3ft footprint I reckon.

That said, its a great fallback for training and I'm never stuck.. I can't have an easy off day if the weather is cat.

Sub430

Got mine from NI, free delivery. The motor was damaged after a couple of months so they sent somebody to repair it, since then it has been hassle free for the past year.

11mph top speed with incline from 0 to 12. Very happy with it, not that noisy either - on wheels so easy to move, comes flat packed but if I can put it together than anyone can. It also folds for storage.

http://www.scorpionfitness.co.uk/new/product_info.php?cPath=36_52&products_id=152

I dealt with Richard, very helpful over phone and email.

No connection just a satisfied customer.

Awful Scut Mk2

What about repetitive strain? Long thought about a treadmill but never actually went and got one for that very reason.

--amadeus--

Am I right that 11mph is 5:30 min / mile pace (more or less)?

Sub430

Awful Scut Mk2 wrote: »

What about repetitive strain? Long thought about a treadmill but never actually went and got one for that very reason.

You do seem to use the same muscles all the time on a treadmill if just going on the same gradient unlike outdoors where the surface is ever changing and hence different muscles are utilised. On longer runs on the treadmill my hips give me jip but then I tend to do my long runs outside anymore. I stick to the treadmill for hills and intervals.

I didn't use the treadmill from March this year until last week so it is really just used in the really bad weather - stops me making excuses not to go for a run. Wuss.

Sub430

--amadeus-- wrote: »

Am I right that 11mph is 5:30 min / mile pace (more or less)?

Yep, I make it 5:27 min/mile - I'll let you know when I get to that speed.;)

Raging_Hull

My brother just took delivery of this one today from Argos which is half price at the moment:

http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/3357444/Trail/searchtext%3ETREADMILLS.htm

We put it together in about 10 minutes and it does seem like a good sturdy contraption. Great value for the price.

neilc

Sub430 wrote: »

Got mine from NI, free delivery. The motor was damaged after a couple of months so they sent somebody to repair it, since then it has been hassle free for the past year.

11mph top speed with incline from 0 to 12. Very happy with it, not that noisy either - on wheels so easy to move, comes flat packed but if I can put it together than anyone can. It also folds for storage.

http://www.scorpionfitness.co.uk/new/product_info.php?cPath=36_52&products_id=152

I dealt with Richard, very helpful over phone and email.

No connection just a satisfied customer.

I'm actually waiting for delivery of this exact model at the moment. I plan to use it upstairs but am now a bit concerned based on one of the comments here. Is it really not possible.
Neil

Krusty_Clown

Not being show-off'ish, but 13kph isn't great. If you plan on doing intervals or tempo runs etc. you'll need something that goes a little quicker.

bourne99

Your own treadmill!?! That's cheating!!! You guys are cheaters..

hunnymonster

woddle, is the treadmill loud enough to wake children (shift workers?) We put a spinning bike in the living room and I've found i'm using it a lot. It got me thinking that I might use a treadmill too. especially as we've been told the gym might be closed up to 6 months after the floods.

asimonov

hunnymonster wrote: »

woddle, is the treadmill loud enough to wake children (shift workers?) We put a spinning bike in the living room and I've found i'm using it a lot. It got me thinking that I might use a treadmill too. especially as we've been told the gym might be closed up to 6 months after the floods.

i know you can buy them cheap second hand, but there are few places on line where you can rent them as well. It might be worth considering before committing to a lifetime of ownership.

Sub430

neilc wrote: »

I'm actually waiting for delivery of this exact model at the moment. I plan to use it upstairs but am now a bit concerned based on one of the comments here. Is it really not possible.
Neil

We're in a new build and had thought about putting it upstairs so had a word with the architect as we were worried about the weight. He said there would be no problem apart from the noise downstairs during use. Just to let you know this treadmill is very heavy and quite bulky so it could be difficult to actually get upstairs.

El Director

Bought a Reebok Fusion 4 weeks ago in VJ's Fitness Coolmine for €800 even though Argos were selling the same treadmill for €1400, i kid you not! They had new stock just coming in so i guess i was lucky. It is a fantastic machine, well built, top speed 16km/hr and 10 levels of incline. Delighted with it, here is a link to it http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/3355707/gotoTab/reviews.htm, i see argos have it down to €1,000 now. By the way when i went to buy i said i had a budget of €500 but i could not find a decent one for that price. Also make sure the running base is long enough and try it out before hand if possible.

Woddle

hunnymonster wrote: »

woddle, is the treadmill loud enough to wake children (shift workers?) We put a spinning bike in the living room and I've found i'm using it a lot. It got me thinking that I might use a treadmill too. especially as we've been told the gym might be closed up to 6 months after the floods.

Where I have mine it wouldn't wake the kids, it's downstairs in the opposite side of the house and causes no problems, I personally don't think its that noisey, My wife can still watch the telly comfortably in the room beside me without having to turn it up. Oh and my kids would sleep through anything anyway

gerard65

Are treadmills a bit like gym memberships - used enthusiasticlly for about four weeks and then forgotten about. I'm sure you could pick one up second hand - nearly new:)

Woddle

gerard65 wrote: »

Are treadmills a bit like gym memberships - used enthusiasticlly for about four weeks and then forgotten about. I'm sure you could pick one up second hand - nearly new:)

I don't think so, a super training aid, nearlly as good as the garmin although asiminov made a good point about renting first.

RacoonQueen

I think I'd rather have a cross trainer or a rower in the house for non-running days. At this time of year I make excuses TO run which is why I don't go to the gym as much. I really like the idea of a spin bike though especially for winter.

asdfgh86

I bought a really cheap one years ago, thinking it was a bargain. Turns out it wasn't even electric. You just mead the tread go round by running on it. It was rubbish.

Salty Dog

hunnymonster wrote: »

woddle, is the treadmill loud enough to wake children (shift workers?) We put a spinning bike in the living room and I've found i'm using it a lot. It got me thinking that I might use a treadmill too. especially as we've been told the gym might be closed up to 6 months after the floods.

HM,
I'm on my second treadie now and neither have woken the kids. I've done sessions at 5:30am and they've not heard a thing.

Peckham

Tempo runs on treadmills - what do others think of this?

Have a 4 mile tempo run scheduled this evening, but wind is howling out there and would rather not be trying to hold tempo pace while facing into the wind (it's quite exposed around where I run).

Was going to go to the gym to do it instead. Would involve 25 mins at 6:15/mile pace. So, if I stick the treadmill on 15km/h on a 1% incline, is this on a par with what I'd be getting on the road?

Wouldn't be a longterm solution for me. Am generally reluctant to do anything other than recovery runs on the treadmill.

RacoonQueen

I usually do treadmill runs at 2%, then I find treadmills ridiclously boring so I usually wouldn't last very long. Only time I ever use treadmills is for interval training or doing pyramids.

BeepBeep67

Not seeing great bargains in the used sections, considering warranty, etc.
At the mo have narrowed to these 2:
Powertrack - €578 (free delivery)
Horizon - €599 (€30 delivery)

Sub430

Peckham wrote: »

Was going to go to the gym to do it instead. Would involve 25 mins at 6:15/mile pace. So, if I stick the treadmill on 15km/h on a 1% incline, is this on a par with what I'd be getting on the road?

Treadmill pace convertor and some opinions on treadmill running here

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055726692&highlight=treadmill