How to Choose a Folding Treadmill

If you've been trying to figure out how to fit some serious exercise equipment into your modest-sized living quarters, folding treadmills could be your answer. Quality foldable treadmills offer the same structural stability and deck width as standard models, but you won't need to sacrifice a quarter of your living room to keep one.

That said, not all models of folding treadmills on the market are top quality. If you're looking into buying a folding treadmill, there are a few things you need to consider to make sure you get a model that both gives you a good workout and is easy to store.

Stability

The problem with a lot of the older folding treadmills was that they had a flimsy, unstable feeling when you ran on them. That alone made many people steer clear of them because, let's face it, it's hard to get a good workout when you're worried about your machine falling over. Fortunately, today's treadmills have improved dramatically in this department. Most are solidly built and won't jiggle while you jog. Still, some of the cheap folding treadmills can be a little wobbly, so if you're looking for a discount model, try it out before you buy.

Fold-ability

The mere fact that you have a space-saving foldable treadmill doesn't mean much if you can't manage to get the dang thing to fold up and then get it open again easily. After all, if folding and opening your treadmill is a hassle, you're likely to just leave it open and it will hog as much space as a standard treadmill. Worse yet, you might leave it folded and, for all practical purposes, lose your investment in what was supposed to be a piece of exercise equipment.

When you're reviewing descriptions of folding treadmills that interest you, make sure they mention something about a mechanism that makes the machine easy to fold. Most folding treadmills are equipped with hydraulics (which usually go by some fancy name like "soft-drop"), so even the not-so-buff can get them open and closed easily.

Portability

Another advantage of a folding treadmill is that you can move it from one room to another room to room. Say you exercise in the guest room, but then one weekend you actually have guests. Just fold up your treadmill and take it to the bedroom or the garage. It sounds great, but unfortunately, not all of these machines are so easy to move. If you think you'll need to move your treadmill now and again, make sure it's fairly lightweight and equipped with four wheels so all you need to do is push it.

Don't forget the basics

A folding treadmill might offer certain advantage that standard treadmills don't, but when it comes to choosing one that's right for you and your home, you still have to consider the basics. These are things like size when fully open, weight capacity, noisiness, information displayed on the console such as speed, incline, and distance traveled, and of course, a good solid warranty.

If you're in the market for a foldable treadmill, you'll be glad to know you have a lot more quality models to choose from than you had just a few years ago. Popular treadmill manufacturers like Sole, Bowflex, and Spirit all make folding treadmills, so shop around a little before you make your final decision.