Treadmill Question

[Diskidatheart]

My wife and I are in the market for a treadmill. I will be running the Dopey this year and my wife will be running/walking the half. I will be doing most of my training, if not all of it, outdoors. My wife is not a cold weather person, so she will be doing many of her runs on the treadmill (although I keep suggesting that she should be outdoors as much as possible). I probably will end up doing some of my mid-week runs indoors due to weather conditions in Pittsburgh, but hopefully I will get all of my long runs in on the streets of Pgh. I can't imagine running 18-20 miles on a treadmill, but I would like one that could handle it if as a last resort.

Although we'd love to spend $4-$5k on a treadmill and get a high end Precor, that is just not feasable. I do think we could manage up to $3k, but would prefer lower if possible.

A couple that I have in mind are a Smooth 9.65LC and a Precor 9.27. Any thoughts between these two machines? Any suggestions of other treadmills that you would highly recommend. We have a high end Fitness store near us that sells most of the top of line treadmill manufacturers, such as Precor, Life Fitness, Vision Fitness, and Landice.

Any help from fellow DISers would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[cewait]

What you are looking for in a treadmill is a large DC motor and a heavy wide deck. The next thing I would do is dress for a run and then head to the store and run. Take the mill up to 5-8% elevation and run there. Many home mills may feel good at 0, but once you elevate any they start to feel a little wobbly. Finally, try to get as basic control panel with the upper end motor and deck as possible. Many have a lot of gimmicks on the panel... trust me that the electronics on a well used machine will be the trouble spot in a few years. In the long run it is cheaper to hang a cheap tv on the wall and put a box fan on the floor.

Both models from what I recall when I was in the market were really good. I ended up with the LifeFitness 7.0. I would look at the 6.0 in that brand but not much lower on the food chain due to a lower grade deck.

 

[Raenstoirm]

Something else to look for would be a model with easy speed change ability since you said your wife is going to train with a run/walk. My gym has a few different treadmill models on the floor and some are harder than others to go from a 6.2 to a 3.8 for example. On one model you have to go to a whole number and then hit up or down to get the decimal. That is a pain in the butt when going from running to walking repetitively so I try and avoid those machines.

 

[Figment1990]

I have a NordicTrak something or other. When I was shopping for it, I looked for stability and ease of controlling the speed and incline. But honestly, with a $3000 budget you should be fine. Just make sure you get something with a big enough motor and like Coach said, even if it has a built in fan (like mine), a floor fan can also be used. Mine has an audio jack so that I can plug my ipod into it and the sound comes out the speakers. I really do love that feature. I could have it talk wirelessly to some fitness account online too, but I have never taken the time to figure it out and I just log my runs on my running log app. I have a "one-touch" speeed/incline option on mine, which means I can actually touch numbers like, 6.3 or 3.5 instead of having to hit and up or down arrow to chance speeds or incline (although that's there too). I'm pretty sure I could also program it to do intervals, but since I'm not a run/walker I've never figured that out.

I think we've put at least 400 miles on ours in the last couple of years and it's still working great!

 

[Diskidatheart]

Thanks everyone for the great advice.

Coach, I'll certianly look into the Life Fitness machines. The only issue we have with them is the handle bars in the center. It's an odd look and we might have to get used to it if we decide on that machine.

 

[cewait]

As stated above, make sure you like the controls, how they operate and where they are located.

Also, as I think of it, make sure you look at the emergency stop cord. I ended up not liking the location of the LF and subbed a different magnet in its place.

 

[goofeygirl]

I bought a Norditrack too. I really like it...I don't love it because I don't love treadmills overall...but I bought it for the same reasons you did. As the days get shorter I don't go out and if all I have is a treadmill then that's what I have. I also bought an elliptical.

I bought mine at Sears and at that time they offered a deal of 0% interest on a machine as long as you paid the bill on time..the min due each month and the whole balance was paid off in a year.

It was the first time I went to a store and actually tried them out. I wanted one that was longer than average because I find my feet always hitting that roller at the end. The one I bought had a 15% incline...although that's pretty steep and I rarely use that level. This one came with bells and whistles that I don't use like some card you stick in it and you can do a workout with it...workout routines that I don't use but I think they all do that.

Overall I am happy with it. I have had it for two years now.

Prior to that I bought a Proform off tv. Well I think I paid $400 and it included shipping and handling...it had a short base..it was VERY loud, so loud I had to buy earphones to plug into the tv so I could hear the tv...that is not the case with my Noridtrack. After 3 years the tread began sliding from left to right which made VERY dangerous and it was not under warranty anylonger. I called Proform to see about fixing it and they said the base price was $125 for someone to come out and hopefully fix it but it could go up in price from there...so I had no intentions of paying $125 for starters to fix a 3 year old treadmill that cost $400. I thought, after he fixes that then what will go wrong? That's why I said the next one will be a different brand and I will go to a store!!!!

 

[thndrmatt]

Just another data point:
http://www.freemotionfitness.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_-1_10001_17851_59501_170655

I own the above Freemotion 770, and got it on sale for something like $1300/1400 in mid 2011, and after 2+ years of me beating the hell out of it (intervals, tempo runs, several 18 or 20 milers on it, and I also sweat a ridiculous amount) it's still going strong.

What I'm trying to say is you can get a quality product for waaaay under the $3k price point, and even toss in an extended warranty if you like while still saving a bundle.

 

[Sarah_Rose]

I have the same treadmill, Matt. I went to several different stores and tried many different treadmills, and was fully expecting to prefer the high end Precor. I ended up vastly preferring this treadmill - both the feel of the deck and the controls. We've had it for 2.5 years now, and have even moved it across the continent and it's definitely holding up to regular abuse. The store where I bought it recommended getting it serviced after one year (and this was included in the extended warranty that we bought) because apparently most treadmills benefit from being "tuned" after being "broken in".

 

[dragitoff]

I hate running on the dreadmill, but because of travels and my work schedule, it sometimes is all I can manage. One additional recomendation I might make is trying to look for clearance deals on higher end models at places like Sears. With their struggles and the poor economy, places like Sears often run steeply discounted prices on floor models and such. I purchased my NordicTrac model a few years back for pennies on the dollar. It was a model purchased by someone that was assembled and returned a few days later because they changed their mind and wanted one with WiFi and a screen on it. It was originally $1500 new and I paid only $300 for it! It had been marked down a few different times before getting to that price, but they had 2 or 3 models they had marked down like that. Years later, between DW and I, we have put a few thousand miles on it and the only problem we've had was the belt had to be adjusted a few months back. Other than that, it works like a champ. I was almost 260lbs. when I first started running so it took a pounding too!

 

[Diskidatheart]

Well, I ended up exceeding my budget but got the treadmill that I really wanted. We ended up with the Precor 9.33. I looked at several treadmills and tried many different ones, but when it came down to it, the technology that is behind the Precor brand and the feel of running on it made the decision easier. When we were testing it, you could feel how the belt didn't pull you through the run and made it feel more like running on pavement. I still plan on doing the majority of my Dopey training outdoors, but it's nice to know I have a backup plan that can take the abuse and give me the feel I want.

Thanks to all who provided feedback. I value the opinions on this boards and your feedback was very helpful!