The Top 5 Treadmills For At-Home Workouts

Maintaining a consistent workout routine takes self-discipline and motivation, sure – but it also requires having the right equipment at your disposal. This is especially true if you’re working out at home, where the temptation might be to blow off your daily run if it’s raining, snowing or otherwise crummy outside. That’s why having a treadmill at home is so important. That said, it’s not easy to find the right at-home treadmill: size, durability, price and quality are all very important factors. So, with the intention of gathering together the five best treadmills on the market today, we put on our spandex jumpsuit, hiked up our leg warmers and laced up our Keds.

NordicTrack T Series

The Best Way To Stay On Track

From one of the most trusted names in fitness equipment comes a home treadmill with all the quality and features of the gym model.

Best Overall

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There are many noteworthy features on the NordicTrack T Series that make it deserving of our top honor. With a max 12 MPH track speed, 12-degree incline, easy One-Touch controls and AutoBreeze workout fan, the T-series looks and performs like the treadmills you find at the gym. Better still, NordicTrack takes it a step further with its innovative SpaceSaver design, allowing you to lift the running board vertically for easy storage. But best of all, all T Series treadmills now include a 1-year iFit membership, giving you unlimited on-demand workouts from live personal trainers, anytime, in the convenience of your own home.

Pros:

Available in four different screen sizes
Tracks your workout statistics
Can purchase pre-assembled

Cons:

Cannot personalize your weight to determine calories burned
Not suitable for weights over 250 pounds

GYMAX 2-In-1

Take Your Workouts To The Max

With two separate exercise modes and a design that can store under your bed, GYMAX provides the most convenient at-home treadmill.

Best Storage

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GYMAX offers an at-home treadmill solution that addresses the elephant in your room. Unlike most designs of at-home treadmills that fold vertically for storage, the GYMAX folds horizontally, so that it’s only 5 inches high. This makes it easy to store under beds or in tight spaces. It even operates in this mode, so it can function as an under-desk walking treadmill for speeds between 1-4 MPH. The GYMAX also features Bluetooth integration, a remote control, a safety key/emergency stop clip, an integrated holder for your iPhone, and a non-slip and shock-absorbing running belt. All things considered, it’s perfect for apartments and home offices.

Pros:

Powerful 2.25-horsepower motor
Transport wheels for easy mobility
LED screen displays exercise data

Cons:

Does not track time or distance
Displays distance in kilometers

Sunny Health & Fitness Folding Treadmill

Everyday’s A Sunny Day

With nine pre-programmed workouts, three incline positions and a ton of other features, Sunny Health & Fitness is a best buy.

Best On A Budget

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The Sunny Health & Fitness Folding Treadmill aptly demonstrates that toning your arms and legs doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. Use the soft drop system to easily unfold the treadmill into your living room or bedroom and enjoy all the features of a premium at-home treadmill: a large LCD display for distance, time, pulse, calories burned and speed, along with convenient handrail controls to start, stop, pause and adjust the belt speed. And with a top speed of 9 MPH, you’re sure to break a healthy sweat every time.

Pros:

Emergency stop button
Handlebar grip for iPhone or tablet
Available in grey or pink

Cons:

Built for smaller body types
Assembly required

XTERRA Fitness TR150

The X-Factor in Home Treadmills

Packing a ton of features into a durable, folding design, it’s no wonder that XTERRA is one of the best-selling at-home treadmills.

Best Feature Set

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There are some features that workout enthusiasts have simply come to expect in the treadmills: preset workout programs, incline settings to make our heart pump faster, a wide range of speeds for all fitness levels and a large LCD screen to display pulse, calories, distance, speed, time and incline. The XTERRA has all of this and more, including a long & wide 50-inch-by-16-inch walking surface, side and front safety rails, hand-pulse grips and a powerful motor. Combine all this with an easy-folding deck design, and you have a feature-rich at-home treadmill that checks all the boxes.

Pros:

XTRASoft cushioned deck
Available with powerful 3.25HP motor
1-year warranty on motor

Cons:

Maximum weight of 250 pounds
Prop. 65 warning for California

YFFSS Ultra High Capacity

Only Serious Fitness Buffs Need Apply

For people who’ve made a lifetime commitment to running and walking, YFFS is a serious piece of equipment.

Best Quality

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Yes, it’s an at-home treadmill, but this is certainly the type of equipment you’d find at a professional gym. Made of high-quality steel, yet still ultra-thin, foldable and lightweight, the YFFSS uses air-suspension dampening and rebound cushion energy to provide the smoothest impact available, reducing joint stress and the potential for injury. The treadmill uses two 3.25HP motors – one for the belt and one for the automatic incline feature – and also includes a high-definition 7-inch screen to display time, heart rate, calories burned, and speed. If you’re a hardcore runner or jogger, you’ll be more than pleased with the YFFSS.

Pros:

Nano-rubber wheels prevent floor scratches
Heart rate measured by contact
100% satisfaction guarantee

Cons:

Taller than average at-home treadmills
Twice as heavy as most treadmills

Frequently Asked Questions

Isn’t it more expensive to set up a home gym rather than buy a gym membership?

Actually, no. Though the initial investment may be more expensive than what you’d pay for a membership fee, in the long term, you’ll spend more for a gym membership. If you’re adding in the cost for childcare at your gym, that expense goes up even more. Then add in the cost of gas going there and back, parking and the premium placed on energy drinks purchased at the gym and you may find a home gym to be a perfectly economical decision.

Am I going to get the same workout on an at-home treadmill as I will from a gym treadmill?

In short, yes. The amount of calories you burn is based on your weight and the amount of exertion you put on your body. Every activity you do, from sitting on your butt to sprinting at top speed, has a “MET” value – metabolic equivalent. Running on an at-home treadmill will give you the same MET you get on your gym treadmill, as long as you’re running at the same speed for the same amount of time on either piece of equipment.

I know this is kind of gross, but I sweat all over my treadmill. What do I do about that?

You could work out less, but that would defeat the point, right? One of the advantages of going to a gym is that someone else has to clean the equipment – or at least, you hope they do. If you’re not careful, you could be attending a gym that’s an absolute cesspool of germs. Taking care of your at-home treadmill is actually pretty easy. We suggest getting your favorite store-brand disinfectant and wiping down the treadmill after each use. Just make sure you use a cleaner that’s safe on rubber parts, like the walking pad.