How Treadmills Compare to Other Types of Home Fitness Equipment
It seems the popularity of treadmills continues to grow each year as treadmill sales account for over 1/3 of all home exercise equipment sales. The question is why do a lot of people choose treadmills and how do they compare other home fitness equipment?
Ease and Convenience
The top reason people use a treadmill is convenience. A treadmill allows you to exercise even when the weather is bad or the fitness center is closed. You can exercise in the early morning or after dinner or anytime you feel like it. You can even use your treadmill naked if you don’t feel like washing your workout clothes. You can watch TV, talk with friends, or listen to music while you exercise on a treadmill. You can keep an eye on your kids, wait for files to download, meditate, or make grocery lists.
For those who need to stay in the office the whole day, a treadmill is also ideal. Also, in some areas and neighborhoods, walking or running exposes you to muggers, vicious dogs or traffic. These dangers can be avoided by using a treadmill.
Another reason why people like treadmills is because you can just hop on and walk without a great deal of preparation. Even if you don’t work terribly hard at it, you still accomplish something.
Less Expensive
A treadmill doesn’t just provide several advantages over walking or running outside, it is also often less expensive than other types of home exercise equipment.
A Better Burn
In a study done by the Medical College of Wisconsin and the VA Medical Center in Milwaukee, a person on a treadmill for 60 minutes burns an average of 865-705 calories. Compare that with other common exercise equipment:
· rowing machine: 739-606 calories
· stationary cycle: 604-5956 calories
· stair machine: 746-637 calories
cross-country ski machine: 678-595 calories
