Treadmills

[Bird]

Well, we've been talking in that other thread about obesity, fat, etc., so now I've got another question. I used to think that folks who exercised just for the sake of exercise just didn't have enough work to do, but I'm afraid I now find myself in that position. I'd like to have a treadmill; don't want to go walking up and down the street in the Texas heat. But it seems to me that most of the people I've known who had a treadmill didn't use it long before they got tired of it, so I don't want to spend a lot of money on one, not knowing how long or how much I'd use it.

I think I'd want at least a 50" tread length, powered, not manual, with variable speed, and a display to show the speed and distance traveled. I really don't need any of the other fancy features. I've looked on the Interet at used ones and notice several that say they're in good shape, but need a new drive belt. I'd be glad to save money and buy a used one, but not one that isn't working to start with, and I'd want one that parts and/or repair service is available locally. So I can't decide whether to buy new or used, nor which brand and/or model.

What do you recommend?

 

[DocHeb]

An exercise bike that has arm actuators to include your arms.

 

[JESSE1]

Find a good health club in your area. You will find that between working out with other people and using a variety of equipment that you will get a much more effective workout. You will find all age groups working out at the clubs. Home exercise equipment usually ends up being good for hanging clothes on.

 

[ragkar]

I'd suggest that you don't buy a cheap one like you'll find in wallyworld or k-mart. Those are the ones that you see on the curbside from time to time.

If you want to keep using it, the best thing is to keep it where it's handy. If it's in the basement - well 'Out of sight, out of mind'. I keep mine in a spare bedroom.

Another thing that might help is to keep a log of your progress. You might be tempted to use it every day, but some people think that your body will adjust to the increased demands. Sure your endurance will increase, but weight loss will taper off. These people suggest using it three times a week will result in more weight loss than every day. It's an interesting idea and may be right.

 

[anojones]

Well- we don't use the one we bought a decade ago, out in the barn waiting for the perfect place to put it to start using it again. However, if you do purchase one, look at the warehouse places- Sam's or Costco often will have a pretty good one for a reasonable amount of money.

 

[Bird]

JESSE1, I know you're right, but that just isn't for me. Like ragkar said, if I buy one, it'll be handy and convenient to use anytime; won't have to get ready, get out in whatever kind of weather, drive to the health club, etc. Of course, I'm not saying I won't ever do that because things change, but I don't think I'll ever want to do that.

And Doc, can you tell me why you think the exercise bike would be better than a treadmill?

 

[Timber]

I have all of them Treadmill, Bike, Recumbent Bike, I have full gym in my home. What matters is what you like to do. If you like to run or walk the the treadmill is for you. The bottom line is if you do not like to do it you will not. The treadmill is the most expensive piece though. mine has programs and does landscapes with inclines. I would recommend a treadmill that rates for a 300 pound bed with a wide deck.

 

[bigtiller]

Wide deck! Mine is 18 inches and occasionally I take a "wild" step and miss the moving bed and I get out of rhythm and have to step off and start again. This happens often enough that I quit using it and just walk in circles in the garage. The garage is 30 x 46 with lots of windows so it is almost like walking outside.

 

[Bird]

You know, as I've heard, "This gettin' old ain't for sissies." And maybe I expect too much of myself, as I've been known to do with others. I was 46 years old when I went to the FBI National Academy and the maximum age allowed is 50. Everyone is required to participate in their physical training course, which is primarily a lot of running. Well, I was a bit concerned, and figured being one of the "old men" in the class, it was going to be embarrassing. So I was quite surprised to find about a third of the group behind me all the time. I sure wasn't out in front, but was far enough up in the pack to not be embarrassed. Then after I retired and was 52, I let my wife talk me into going to the Scott & White Clinic for a "complete" physical; 5 days of tests, including the stress test on the treadmill. So while I was jogging along on the treadmill, the phone rang, and I heard one of the 3 people in the room monitoring everything answer the phone, then said, "Yeah, I know we're running behind schedule, but he's just lasted longer than we thought he could."

Then in 1993-94, I was doing gas leakage surveys so I walked 5 to 15 miles a day, 5 days a week, usually about 6 to 10 miles.

And now I'm 68, living back in town, have very little actual "work" to do, and have some doubts that I could walk 5 miles if I tried. So I'd like to get back to walking, but I'm also lazy and don't like hot weather so I don't want to walk the streets around here.

 

[Timber]

Physical fitness is a way of life not a destination. We are all responsible for our own health, that is completely up to the individual. I have been doing this for a long time. You can call it what ever you want Fitness, Bodybuilding it doesn't really matter. We are all getting older & there is no way to stop that. What you do have control over though is how healthy you can be in your older years.I have known men in there 50s that are ready for the grave and I have known men deep in there 90s cutting and splitting 11 cord of wood a year with hammers & wedges to heat there homes all winter. The real question is who do you want to be? There is only 1 fountain of youth & it is neither free or easy. Muscle tone can only be maintained by work or wt lifting and your internals can only be maintained by cardiovascular exercise. You can either take control of your own health or sit back and let it go to lack of physical movement. These are the choices we all have, the things you do today will determine how you will be tomorrow

 

[Mickey_Fx]

Bird, you've not said what your budget is. As has been mentioned, you don't want to spend your money on low end models.

15 or so yrs ago I was in the market for treadmills for clinical use. Did a lot of looking and research. Qlty belts and bed surface the belt runs on aren't cheap. I'm also partial to A.C. motors. Was always afraid of D.C. motors with possibility of controler failure which could apply full power and send the user shooting out the back. What I ended up selecting was a semi-custom model from TrackMaster. Wholesale price was $3k and remember that was yrs ago. Trackmaster is in Richardson, just N of Dallas. Good Co and nice people to work with. You will find TM's in health clubs receiving many hrs of use a day. They've been around for a long time.

A.C. motor design are more spendy than D.C. due to the additional complexity of a transmission for variable speed. IMO in the long run they will outlast a D.C. motor design numerous times over.

Not suggesting you spend this kind of money but something to consider is, visit a number of health clubs in your area and see what makes/models they use and ask some questions about the +/- of their experience with what they have. You also might ask where one might find a use model out of a health club.

 

[Bird]

Thanks, Mickey. I didn't even know they came with both AC and DC motors. And even Sears has a model that's over $7,800. And since there's such a wide variation in prices, I'm trying to learn. Walmart has a $300 treadmill that appears to have everything I'd need or want, but of course, I'd have some doubts about how long it would last. I may not buy one, but if I do, I sure don't intend to spend more than a thousand on one, and preferably a lot less.

 

[jdbower]

can you tell me why you think the exercise bike would be better than a treadmill?

I think the best advice above is to buy what you'll use. If you're a walker (or jogger or runner) a treadmill is great, but if you're a walker and you want something more strenuous jogging can be hard on the knees so a bike may be better. Some people also like that you sit on a bike, which makes it easier to read or watch TV while exercising. While the weather's mostly nice out you can also try exercising in the great outdoors to see if you prefer walking or riding a bike or some other form of exercise.

I've been considering a Treadclimber for myself since it seems to be a good combination of a stepper and a treadmill, but my goals may be different than yours (I'm not quite so, uh, chronologically enhanced as you are ). I've got plenty of other things to get done before I look more seriously into such a purchase but I thought I'd throw it out there.

 

[Bird]

I have no intentions of jogging anymore. I've told folks if you ever see me running again, call for help 'cause you can figure whatever's chasing me must be bad. But I do walk fast. My wife and I almost never walk anywhere together, because I walk fast and she doesn't. I've told her she ought to be in the Guiness Book of Records as the slowest walker in the world. I can't walk as slow as she does without staggering. Many years ago (about 30 years ago maybe), I spent a little time with an old cheap exercise bike; didn't care for it back then at least.

As for "While the weather's mostly nice out", I don't consider our 95-100 degrees to be "nice" at all. We should have something I consider "nice" weather about the middle of October.

 

[Wayne County Hose]

Bird,

Good to hear you want to take better care of yourself. I used to have a Pro-Form treadmill. We got it at Sears. Not sure of the model, it burned up in my house fire. At the time, it cost about $500. We had it maybe 10 years. Originally got it for the wife, she wanted it, but like all exercise equipment around here, she abandoned it and it became mine. I did all my winter/foul weather running on it and it never gave me a problem. Thing I really liked is that the bed folded up when not in use to save space, great feature. Don't worry about incline/decline, waste of time as far as I'm concerned, just walk or run at a comfortable pace. I would stay away from any exercise equipment at Walmart. That stuff is nothing but an expensive clothes rack. If you don't get at least a decent one, you won't be happy with it and you'll abandon it.
Mine was also in a 6' basement so I had to hold my head between the floor joists as I ran. Sometimes I got tired, you guessed it, WACK! I always wanted to make a tape of a gorgeous model in a swimsuit running and looking back every once in a while and waving. Put that on a tv screen in front of me while on the treadmill. Kind of like a carrot in front of a donkey, all puns intended.

 

[Bird]

Andy, all the houses in this area are built on concrete slab foundations, so there's no basement. But I have a 21' x 25' (interior) "shop" under the same roof as the house. And since I don't do much work in the shop, it's actually my play house. In the first picture you can see the back door to the house. That breezeway is 12' x 22', so it's 12' from the back door into the "shop" door on the left just on the other side of that grill. The second picture is inside the "shop" and that ping pong table and card table beside the refrigerator are no longer there. And of course, there's an electrical outlet on the wall behind that ping pong table, so right beside that refrigerator is a good place for a treadmill and it won't interfere with the billiard games even without folding it up. If I decide to exercise out there, I have no desire for a TV, but I do have a radio/cassette/CD player out there.

 

[jwstewar]

I used to have a Pro-Form treadmill. We got it at Sears. Not sure of the model, it burned up in my house fire. At the time, it cost about $500. We had it maybe 10 years. Originally got it for the wife, she wanted it, but like all exercise equipment around here, she abandoned it and it became mine. I did all my winter/foul weather running on it and it never gave me a problem. Thing I really liked is that the bed folded up when not in use to save space, great feature. ...

Andy, we have had this conversation before, but wlihile I still can't believe all of the similarities in our lives. We also had a Pro-Form treadmill that we had gotten at Sears. Ours was probably about 6 years old. I used it once in awhile, but Monica used it a lot. Ours was also destroyed in our house fire. The one thing I didn't like about it was the belt length. I'm short and don't have real long legs, but if I tried to speed it up to much I could feel why feet hitting the back of the belt. I was always afraid I was going to go off the back.

We went a few weeks ago we went back to Sears. We actually bought a bunch of gift cards on Mother's day. For every $50 in gift card you bought they gave you $10. I think we bought $1200 worth. We bought a Nordic Track Treadmill and also a Nordic Trac Eliptical. I've put them together, I've been so busy I haven't had a chance to use them. With Monica pregnant and being due in Sept., she hasn't used them yet either. We also went back and bought a Bowflex Extreme. It originally sold for $1300, but this one that someone had bought and brought back because they didn't want to finish putting it together because it was too hard - like they were ever going to use it. We got it for $399. Thought it was a good deal. So now we have a little home gym in the basement. It'll be nice this winter when we are stuck in the house - maybe I can lose this Pepsi belly.

 

[Bird]

Hmmm, I've seen treadmills advertised with tread lenght of 45" to 60", so since I've always been kidded about my long strides and fast walking, I guess I need a long one.

 

[Hakim]

Bird,

We have a Schwinn Airdyne Exercise Bike, and a Landice treadmill. I bought the Airdyne new for about $500 about six years ago. It is the best unit for riding exercise you will find. Very sturdy. Weighs a lot too, so it does not "scoot" around.

The treadmill I got off of Craigslist, along with a 4-person infrared sauna, a set of free weights, and several other pieces of gym equipment. We paid $1,500 for the sauna, treadmill and the gym gear. The value was a little over $12,000.

A guy had gotten caught in the economic downturn, and just needed cash, real quick. The treadmill is a Landice 8700 Programmable -- a professional spa unit that new cost about $3,000. So we got quite a "deal."

I just checked for "treadmill" on the Dallas/FW Craigslist.com and there must be 100 of them listed, many for $100-300. I am sure you can get a great unit slightly used, for probably under $300, maybe 80% off retail. I find many such bargains on Craigslist. classifieds - craigslist

I would avoid anything that is "refurb" or formerly used in a commercial gym. Many people buy these things, use them a few times, and right out to the garage.

The elliptical may not be so good for people my age, since that type of exercise requires long strides and can pull out your hamstring if you do not calibrate the unit correctly for your stride.

I use both of the exercise units. I like getting on the Airdyne since it right next to my bed, and I can do it anytime of day, and watch TV while I am pedalling.

I use the treadmill less, maybe 3-4 times a month, mainly because we live only 2 minutes from the ocean, and there is a great 3 mile seawall that I walk, and that is pretty much my regular exercise 3-4 times a week.

I use my walk for "thinking time." I carry a little digital voice recorder, and try to come up with 5-10 "ideas" each walk. I enjoy this private thinking time. Mainly I try to dream up ideas for new "TBN features." (well, not always, but sometimes I do!!!)

Good luck.

Hakim

 

[LMTC]

Bird,
Wish I could claim to be in shape, but it would be a lie. However, we do have, and I do use, a recumbent stationary bike. The recumbent part makes it much easier on the back and knees and allows the leg/hip muscles to get worked and it can provide an aerobic workout. Not much for the upper body, but it is about all I can handle. Used to have a good quality ski machine, but my knees and back just couldn't take that anymore. The bike came from Sears, made by Nordic Track I think, and was around $300 on sale 5-6 years ago. It is very stout (trust me, anything that handles me repeatedly is either stout or broken ;>) and the wife likes it too.