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Buying Guide
Treadmills Buying Guide
Why Buy Treadmills?
Treadmills are the most popular piece of fitness equipment, and are proven to be the best thing for cardiovascular workouts and general calorie burning. Treadmills also provide a great workout for your heart and lungs, and will reduce the chance of obesity, heart disease and general coronary problems in later life. In short
buying a treadmill will prolong your life expectancy as part of a healthy lifestyle, ensuring you get more time to enjoy things. The cushioned running surface of a treadmill will also reduce the potential for injury and the impact on your joints compared to road running, making it safe and convenient.
When buying treadmills there are many key factors to consider ensuring you get the best treadmill for your money. Buying cheap treadmills or unbranded treadmills is often not the best option. Budget needs to be considered, but speaking to knowledgeable staff will ensure that they offer you the best advice and the treadmill that suits your every need, including suitability and durability. Do not get lulled in to offers like “cheap treadmills” or “Joe Bloggs cheap treadmills – limited stocks”, as often these are not what they appear and are more commonly not right for YOU! With so many different makes and models of treadmill to choose from, the decision can be a tricky one.
This treadmills buying guide has been put together to
try and make this decision easier for you. Split in to
two parts, the first (Treadmills Buying guide - The
Brands) runs through the treadmill brands and where they
are in the market as this is a key consideration when
buying a treadmill. The second part (Treadmills Buying
guide - The Key Factors) tries to identify for you what
to look out for in specification based on your needs, to
make sure you end up with a treadmill that meets and
hopefully exceeds your every expectation.
The other key piece of advice would be to always speak to your GP before beginning any treadmill or general exercise regime to make sure that you are in good health, and to avoid conflict with other treatments or medications.
Ensuring you are in a physical condition suitable to
begin exercise is vital and could also have a bearing on
which treadmill to buy.
Treadmills Buying Guide - The Brands
Beny Treadmills:
 Beny treadmills (also known as V-Fit Treadmills) are targeted at the entry level fitness enthusiasts, and generally have great value cheap treadmills covering all the key features highlighted. Beny treadmills are manufactured out of the Far East to a high quality, and allowing the benefit of Far Eastern technology and design to be passed on to you through unbelievable Beny Treadmill prices. This coupled with excellent service and a five year extended motor warranty makes Beny Treadmills a great piece of home fitness equipment. The Sweatband.com Team recommends the CPTv-02 Strider folding V-Fit treadmill at £215.00 including delivery and VAT.
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 Body Sculpture treadmills, much like the V-Fit treadmills, are targeted at the entry level market. Again manufactured out of the Far East, the Body Sculpture treadmill range generally offers you a slightly higher specification to the Beny treadmill range and at similar prices. Again by featuring a very good back-up service and a one year warranty, the Body Sculpture treadmills range offer excellent value for money. The Sweatband.com Team recommends the Body Sculpture BT3106A folding treadmill at £269.00 including delivery and VAT.
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Bowflex Treadmills:
 Bowflex treadmills are manufactured to the best of quality and value for money. Probably best known for their unique TreadClimber Bowflex treadmills range, their innovation in the production of new fitness concepts is second to none. The TreadClimber Bowflex treadmill offers a completely unique 3-in-1 workout to allow you to vary your workout, achieve your maximum heart rate quicker and get fitter faster. Bowflex treadmills as a whole are supported by quality service and are borne out of the companies prestigious commercial products under the Nautilus treadmill brand. Although the range is limited in terms of Bowflex treadmills, the 4 options are well spread and offer some fantastic features and specification for the money. The Sweatband.com Team recommends the TC5000 Bowflex treadmill at £995.00 including delivery and VAT.
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 Bremshey treadmills are manufactured by the Accell group, a Finnish fitness equipment company renowned for making top quality treadmills and fitness products. Other brands in the portfolio include the TrimMaster and Tunturi ranges, with Bremshey treadmills being the “mass market” product because of its price points. Far from this, the range is packed with quality products and good specifications, for reasonable prices. The Bremshey Treadmills range start from £649.00, but The Sweatband.com Team recommends the Treadline Control Bremshey Treadmill at £899.99 including delivery and VAT.
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 Carl Lewis is part of the Alba PLC Electronics group, who has a long and varied history in producing top quality electronic consumer goods to the market. The Carl Lewis Fitness treadmills range is no exception, and the Carl Lewis treadmills are at the forefront of the market. With great product features and all at unbelievable prices, the Carl Lewis treadmills collection has seen significant growth over the last few years. Designed to meet every need but at an affordable and attractive price, Carl Lewis treadmills are now recognised as one of the leading brands in the market place today. Great stylish design and a top quality product make Carl Lewis treadmills a great option. The Carl Lewis Treadmills range start from £279.00, but The Sweatband.com Team recommends the MOTP12 Carl Lewis treadmill at £309.00 including delivery and VAT.
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Horizon Treadmills:
 As part of Johnson Health Tech, one of the World leaders in home fitness equipment manufacturers, you can be sure that you are buying in to top quality horizon treadmills with the latest features from a brand that has been around over 25 years. Horizon treadmills are among the market leaders and with over 10 Horizon treadmills in the current range it is easy to understand why. The Horizon treadmills offer a solid build, with high specification and good warranties, and all backed up by one of the best service departments in the industry. These combinations of great product build and spec, affordable prices, quality back and warranty make the Horizon treadmills one of the most popular choices. The Horizon treadmills range start from £395.00, The Sweatband.com Team recommends the Treo T707 Horizon treadmill at £395.00 including delivery and VAT.
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Life Fitness Treadmills:
 Life Fitness treadmills are arguably the best known treadmill brand in the World and have been around in excess of 30 years, succeeding due to their phenomenal commercial presence and ultimate quality. Known for product innovation, sophisticated design, and long-lasting durability, Life Fitness treadmills are “built to lead”. Life Fitness treadmills offer a full range of premium running machines with a host of exceptional features, styling and build that makes Life Fitness treadmills really stand out from the norm. Packed with revolutionary features taken from the full range and put in to home use treadmills like the Flex Deck cushioning system reducing impact more than most other treadmills. Life Fitness invents, manufactures, and delivers the world's most advanced Life Fitness treadmills to both commercial and home markets. Life fitness treadmills are the global leader in providing industry-tailored solutions to world-class fitness facilities and training
centres. The Sweatband.com Team recommends the F3 Advanced Life Fitness treadmill at £1,895.00 including delivery and VAT.
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Nautilus Treadmills:
 Nautilus has a long heritage in manufacturing high end treadmills, many for the commercial fitness market. This same high end philosophy has been imported in to the domestic Nautilus treadmills range as well. As one of the largest equipment manufacturers in the World with such a heritage of producing quality commercial and domestic Nautilus treadmills, you can be sure that whatever Nautilus treadmill you buy it will be truly awesome. The range is designed and looks like the full commercial product, but with a more suitable price tag. Many of the Nautilus treadmills range even have a light commercial warranty making it suitable for office / hotel environments. The Nautilus treadmills range start at £930.00, but The Sweatband.com Team recommends the T518 Light Commercial Sport Series Nautilus Treadmill at £2,835.00 including delivery and VAT.
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Nordic Track Treadmills:
 The
Nordic Track treadmills range is the premium
brand of ICON Health and Fitness Ltd, the World
leader in home fitness. Nordic Track treadmills
are all built and tested to the very highest
standards and suitable for light commercial use.
Nordic Track treadmills are very high
specification near commercial grade quality
treadmills that meet a need for both budget and
specification. The innovative nature of the
Nordic Track has extended to the C3000 top of
the range Nordic Track treadmill, which features
an integrated 8” TV/DVD viewing screen for
ultimate motivation. Unlike any products with
“gadgets”, the product is realistically priced
and superb value for money. There are three new models in the Nordic Track treadmills range for 2008, the Nordic Track C2000 treadmill at £599.00,
the Nordic Track C2500 treadmill @ £819.00, and the
top spec C3000 Nordic Track treadmill at £999.00. The Sweatband.com Team recommends the C3000 Nordic Track treadmill at £999.00 including delivery and VAT.
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Proform Treadmills:
 Proform is owned by ICON Health & Fitness Ltd, the World leader in the production and manufacturing of home fitness equipment. Proform treadmills are synonymous with good quality, very high specification and very good prices, and have been in the marketplace in Europe for around 30 years now. This comes from the ability to mass produce Proform treadmills for the World market, taking advantage of big buying levels, as well as offering great service and product mix. With a full range of fitness equipment available across every price point, Proform are highly innovative and have introduced many great features to the World of home fitness such as the Space Saver folding design, on the Proform treadmills and now Proform Ellipticals range. Unique I-Fit.com interactive technology allows you to download thousands of programmes for your compatible machine and access virtual trainers online. The Proform treadmills range start under £400.00, but The Sweatband.com Team recommends the 500cx Proform treadmill at £599.00 including delivery and VAT.
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Reebok Treadmills:
 The name Reebok is known to most, but not necessarily the Reebok treadmills and fitness range. Distributed under license in the UK, the Reebok treadmills range has been designed and manufactured with the same street edge as the clothing and footwear range. Reebok treadmills are very nice looking and have many great and innovative features like the completely flat folding i-walk treadmills. Supported by a great service and after care team, when you buy a Reebok treadmill you buy from a brand of quality and premium expectation. As one of the top brand names in the World you can be sure that when you buy Reebok treadmills you get great quality, innovative design, and a good value-for-money purchase every time. Reebok treadmills start from as little as £469.00, but The Sweatband.com Team recommends the 7 Series Reebok treadmill at £1,175.00 including delivery and VAT.
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 Schwinn
treadmills are manufactured by Nautilus Inc, a
global fitness equipment producer. Schwinn treadmills
have been manufactured in Europe for a number
of years, and the company has been around over
a century. With its real heritage in quality exercise
bikes for the commercial market, the extended
Schwinn range including the new Schwinn treadmills
carry the same great quality, value for money
and design. The folding treadmill designs, competitive
warranty, and inclusive in-home installation makes
the Schwinn treadmills a great proposition for
every user, ensuring continuing development and
advances from a major fitness equipment manufacturer.
With competitive pricing and products, the Schwinn
treadmills will ensure a satisfactory purchase. Schwinn “sweatband.com recommended treadmill link is missing: The Sweatband.com Team recommends the 815 Schwinn Treadmill at £1,225.00 including delivery and VAT.
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 Schwinn treadmills are manufactured by Nautilus Inc, a global fitness equipment producer. Schwinn treadmills have been manufactured in Europe for a number of years, and the company has been around over a century. With its real heritage in quality exercise bikes for the commercial market, the extended Schwinn range including the new Schwinn treadmills carry the same great quality, value for money and design. The folding treadmill designs, competitive warranty, and inclusive in-home installation makes the Schwinn treadmills a great proposition for every user, ensuring continuing development and advances from a major fitness equipment manufacturer. With competitive pricing and products, the Schwinn treadmills will ensure a satisfactory purchase. The Sweatband.com Team recommends the 815 Schwinn Treadmill at £1,225.00 including delivery and VAT.
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 Tunturi treadmills are very stylish, top quality premium products that can be found in many light commercial environments including hospitals and physio departments. Simple to use and control, the key to the Tunturi treadmills range is borne out of the attention to detail and quality. Only using the best products for manufacturing, and having the best service department in the fitness industry ensures that should anything go wrong (which it rarely does), the issue will be resolved immediately on site. On top of the quality, it now features new interactive technology that allows the machine, and therefore your workout experience, to be enhanced further. The Tunturi treadmills range start from £675.00, and Sweatband.com Team recommends the T10 Tunturi treadmill at £699.00 including delivery and VAT.
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V-Fit Treadmills:
 V-Fit treadmills (also known as Beny Treadmills) are geared around the novice trainer, and generally have good quality cheap treadmills with many of the key features required. V-Fit treadmills are manufactured in the Far East to a very high quality, allowing the benefit of advanced technology and design to be passed on to you through unbelievable V-Fit treadmill prices. With excellent service and an extended motor warranty it makes V-Fit Treadmills a great piece of home fitness equipment for all
users. The Sweatband.com Team recommends the CPTv-02 Strider folding V-Fit treadmill at £215.00 including delivery and VAT.
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Vision Treadmills:
 Vision treadmills are top of the range and state of the art treadmills produced by Johnson Health Tech. This premium brand is only available through selected retail partners, and offers you the best in high quality, with three console options for each of the new Vision treadmills. This way you can guarantee getting the right product to suit your every need. Vision has won awards for their design, quality and functionality, and the Vision treadmills are among the most popular on the market. In the premium market the Vision treadmills are often considered to be the best all round, and do include both light commercial treadmills and full commercial treadmills as well. Vision treadmills start from £1,199.00, but The Sweatband.com Team recommends the T9450 Premier console Vision treadmill at £1,499.00 including delivery and VAT.
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Weslo Treadmills:
 The Weslo treadmills brand is the entry level product for ICON Health and Fitness Ltd. The products are designed around the key features required to make a good treadmill, but without all of the extras. Good speed ranges and incline options make the Weslo treadmills solid, reliable but most of all affordable. This popular brand of entry level treadmills are the pinnacle of simple, robust and easy to use treadmills and the Weslo treadmills brand continues to grow from strength to strength. The Sweatband.com Team recommends the Cadence M6 Weslo treadmill at £295.00 including delivery and VAT.
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York Treadmills:
 York, and York treadmills has been one of the biggest names in the global fitness equipment industry for almost 75 years. York treadmills are seen in every major retailer throughout the UK and have developed some of the best running machines available today. York Treadmills are stylish, contemporary and well equipped to represent some of the best treadmills available on the market today. The new premium Diamond range of York treadmills reflect a shift in emphasis in to the premium range of treadmills, and matches up exquisite design with excellent functionality and ease of use. York treadmills offer cushioned decks, a high specification console with programmes and feedback windows, and overall a good, solid and reliable range of treadmills that suit and deserve the York name and heritage. The Sweatband.com Team recommends the Diamond T301 York Treadmill at £985.00 including delivery and VAT.
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So now you know about the treadmill brands, the decision is which of the treadmills to buy. The following treadmills buying guide has been put together to try and make your decision a little easier based on our extensive knowledge of the treadmills, the treadmill market, and its various pitfalls. However if you have any questions after reading this please feel free to contact us directly at our Specialist London Fitness Advice Centre, and the knowledgeable staff will be able to assist you further.
So with this in mind, here are some pointers of what should you look out for when buying a treadmill:
Treadmills Buying Guide - The Key
Factors
The Treadmills Motor:
As this is the heart of all motorised treadmills, it is important to get a motor that will last, and will continue to work at slow and fast paces evenly and to build out from here. The key thing to look out for here is a minimum 1.5 horse power continuous duty motor which would be suitable for most user needs. For greater user weights and ease of operation when in use, look for a bigger motor. In this case bigger is better. When a description of a treadmill reads “peak motor rating”, ignore this. It is not relevant as this is the maximum output the motor will give, but not what the treadmills motor works at consistently. Continuous duty treadmill motors are designed to work at the given output for the duration of the workout and the life of the treadmills. A 1.5 horse power treadmill motor will be suitable for user weights up to 18 stone, and will run the treadmill belt smoothly across the full speed range. The bigger the motor, the easier the treadmills will have to work across the speed range, and therefore in theory the longer the life of the motor. The Sweatband.com Team recommends a minimum 1.5 horse power continuous duty treadmill motor.
The Speed Range of Treadmills:
This is also very important depending on who is using the treadmill, and at what fitness / ability levels they are. There are two options for treadmills: manual or electric. The manual treadmills are ones whereby the speed is powered by your own steps and weight driving the belt round, and does not offer the choice or variance of the electric treadmills. The electric or power treadmills have an in-built motor to drive the treadmill belt around, and are by far the most common treadmills purchased. When looking at the motorised option, as a guide the treadmill experts would say that a 0-6 mph treadmill model is for walking and hikers; a 0-8mph treadmill is up to light jog; a 0-10 mph treadmill is for the semi-serious runner; 0-12 mph and above treadmills are for elite athletes. For most people, 10 mph treadmills are more than adequate to suit all users and needs, from advanced to beginner levels. The Sweatband.com team recommends a 0-10 mph motorised treadmill speed range.
The Incline Range of Treadmills:
As with the speed, the incline option of the treadmill is important to again ensure you are buying the most suitable treadmill for YOU. The treadmills incline range can either be fixed, manual or power, and depending on your needs will depend on which is the right choice for you. The fixed incline option on a treadmill is as the name suggests. The incline is often set to around 1.5 degrees of elevation, as this closest replicates road running (when taking in to account wind resistance etc). Very few treadmills now have fixed incline as they do not offer the variance required for many. A manual incline treadmill means that the elevation level can be adjusted, but only when not using the treadmill (i.e. you have to get off to change). The adjustment is made on the feet of the deck, and is often a simple extendable leg operation. This style is popular due to its cost savings (no incline motor required), as it is feature on cheap treadmills. This offers variation, but does mean you have to stop the workout to make the change. The most popular and common treadmills feature power incline. This is where the incline of the treadmill is adjusted directly from the controls. The elevation can be from the front or rear of the treadmills, but means that you can vary the workout whilst still going. Most commonly inclining up to 10% (with some treadmills now going up to 15%!), this is a far more convenient way to vary training, and is now more cost effective, meaning it is feature of many cheap treadmills. The Sweatband.com Team recommends a 0-10% power incline treadmill.
Features & Programmes of Treadmills:
Once you have decided on the fundamentals of your treadmill, the next thing to consider is what you want your treadmill to do for you. It is often beneficial to choose a product with extra features and/or programmes to allow you to develop with a treadmill over time and add variety and therefore motivation to your sessions. Most treadmills now have a range of professionally designed pre-set programmes built-in which allow you to target specific goals like fat loss, cardio, endurance etc. The more advanced treadmills will also feature custom design programmes that you can set yourself if you are working to a specific regime, and heart rate controlled programmes. Heart rate Control (HRC) is the most efficient way to train. Treadmills with this capability will calculate the correct training zone for you to work within in order to gain maximum cardiovascular results, and will keep you in that range. Certain manufacturers have their own software that allows programmes, regimes, diets, etc to be accessed and purchased and/or downloaded from the internet for your compatible treadmill. The most advanced software is featured on the Proform and Nordic Track treadmills (as well as exercise bikes and elliptical cross trainers), and is called i-Fit.com. This is an online site where you can download thousands of extra programmes for your treadmill, so it’s worth keeping your eye out for this feature as well. The Sweatband.com Team recommends a treadmill with professionally designed programmes and heart rate control feature.
Warranties for Treadmills:
One very important factor to consider once you have outlined the key features of the treadmills is the warranty you receive. All products are covered by a minimum one year full manufacturer’s guarantee. Many treadmills now come with extended motor and/or frame warranties, some offering further extended parts and labour warranties as well. This is something to consider when looking at your treadmill purchase. Generally speaking, products should have a minimum one year on site warranty covering all parts and labour. Preferable is a two year treadmill warranty as most problems occur (if they are going to) in the first year to 18 months. The warranty should extend to parts and labour, and ideally be onsite. If you are unsure about warranties please feel free to contact us directly for further information, but all of the relevant detail should be on the product page. The Sweatband.com Team recommends a minimum 2 year full parts and labour on-site warranty.
The Treadmills Brand:
Always choose a product manufactured by a recognised brand name in the industry. At Sweatband.com, the only treadmills retailed are those that meet these key criteria. Treadmill brands such as Proform, Nordic Track, Horizon, Vision, Reebok, Tunturi, Nautilus, York, Carl Lewis, Beny, Body Sculpture and all the others available from Sweatband have been around for years, and have a strong history in selling, manufacturing and supporting their treadmills. By selecting a treadmill from an unknown brand you run the risk of future service issues, misrepresentation of true value, and sourcing a product that has no credibility or history. Many companies come and go (along with your investment), but by buying from recognised treadmill brand names you can be sure that your purchase will be the right one, even in a few years. The Sweatband.com Team recommends ALWAYS buying a top branded treadmill.
Still unsure??? If you have any
questions about treadmills why not contact or visit our
Specialist London Fitness Shop and Advice Centre to
get all the answers you need. Here you will be able to
talk to the friendly, and highly trained staff who can
give you expert advice on treadmills and their
suitability, and make sure your purchase meets your
every need.
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Treadmills
