How Strict Are Treadmill Weight Limits?
Treadmill weight limits may seem like a bit of a vicious cycle. You want to lose weight by running on the treadmill, but in order to be light enough to run on the treadmill, you need to lose weight. So frustrating!
You thought you found your solution, your plan of attack for the next year, but instead, you’ve hit another dead end—the treadmill you fancy cozying up to has a weight limit.
How are you supposed to use a treadmill to lose weight if you are over the weight limit?
You may be considering giving up on treadmills and finding a different tool for exercise– maybe swimming or biking would suit you better?
If running is your chosen form of exercise, you may shy away from running out on the streets for a few reasons. With the uneven surfaces and inclines and declines, running outside is more difficult for a beginner, who would be better suited for a treadmill to get used to the motion before increasing the difficulty to the streets.
Or perhaps you’re self-conscious among the thin and fit daily runners who speed by in their cute exercise outfits. It may be enough to discourage you from trying altogether. Well, we don’t want that!
Treadmills offer a more stable option for beginning your new routine, and most likely, your gym has several available to use. But the issue of treadmill weight limits comes up.
The treadmills’ weight limits are under your weight, and you are mortified at the image you’ve conjured up of you breaking the treadmill at the gym! All those toned gym ladies watching you huff and puff on the machine? No thank you. It’s also almost enough to make you give up on the idea of running.
You’ve also researched treadmills to buy for your own home, but you’re finding the standard treadmills to also have weight limits below your weight, just like those at the gym. Will you ever find a solution?
But wait– there’s one that has a much higher weight limit. Salvation! Oh, no… it’s twice as expensive!
Could you potentially buy one of the cheaper ones with a smaller weight limit? But what would that do, would it be dangerous to use? How strict are treadmill weight limits?
Don’t fret– there are multiple options you can research and pursue in order to accomplish your running goals! Read on to learn more about treadmills, their weight limits, and hacks to get around this obstacle and fulfill your dreams of being a runner!
What Are the Weight Limits on Treadmills?
Treadmill weight limits are often between two hundred and fifty and three hundred pounds for standard models. More high-end treadmills can typically hold up to five hundred pounds. These, however, are naturally more expensive, so we understand why you may not be so enthusiastic about purchasing them.
Are they worth the money, though? Well, that depends. You know yourself best. If you know that having a treadmill will be the most effective, or only effective, method of getting yourself up and exercising, then it is a worthy investment.
What goes into a treadmill with a higher weight limit? What makes them worth the money?
In a word—durability.
Heavy-duty treadmills made for heavier people have properties to help support more weight, such as a wider belt, shock absorption technology, and other reinforcements.
Here are the qualities of the best treadmills for heavier people:
Weight Capacity
Naturally, as we talked about above, weight capacity is often the defining factor in buying a treadmill.
If you are three hundred and fifty pounds, you’ll need to find a treadmill that has a weight capacity of at least three hundred and fifty pounds. You want to make sure the treadmill you buy will be fully capable of supporting your weight, or else it’ll last you only a short amount of time and won’t be worth your money.
Size of the Treadmill Belt
The belt of a treadmill is the pad in the center of the treadmill that you tread on, which rotates around, giving the effect of walking or running when you’re really staying in place. The standard belt size is forty-eight inches long by sixteen inches wide, but you may need something wider depending on how far apart your feet are. Getting the right size treadmill belt is important in getting a treadmill that will support you and your running.
If the belt is too thin, it will be frustrating because you have to concentrate on keeping your feet within the smaller area of the belt, making running that much harder and more uncomfortable and probably being a highly discouraging factor.
Not to mention, getting your leg or foot stuck in a treadmill belt while it runs is painful and highly dangerous, leading to many types of injuries that could set back your exercise goals even more effectively.
So, make your exercise that much easier and more comfortable and avoid a dangerous situation by choosing a belt that easily fits your feet when standing shoulder-width apart.
Speed of Your Treadmill
How fast are you planning to go? Are you hoping to use the treadmill for leisurely walks or speed walking? Jogging or full-out sprints? Or are you planning to start speed walking and work your way up from there, to jogging and then to sprints?
These are all things to know before purchasing your treadmill. If you want to get up to running, you’ll want to get a treadmill that can get up to ten miles per hour. If you just want to walk, you won’t need to worry about speed so much.
Personally though, unless budget is a big factor in purchasing your treadmill, I’d recommend getting a treadmill that can go up to speed ten, because then you won’t be limiting yourself and the possibilities for your workout.
You may think now that you’ll only want to use it for speed walking, but what if you decide you’d like to run on it in a few months when you’re a speed walking pro, and you’re horribly disappointed when your treadmill only goes up to speed five? Things to think about…
The Treadmill’s Ability to Incline
If you want a better workout, you’ll want a treadmill that can incline.
Regardless of whether you’re walking, jogging, or sprinting, inclines help you burn more calories and lose weight more effectively. If you’re looking to add a challenge to your already established regimen, this is a great option for you!
If you want to add a little more rigor to your workouts, you’ll want a treadmill that can incline to at least ten percent.
Finally, the Cushioning on Your Treadmill
The best treadmills for bigger people will have properties that will allow them to reduce and absorb impact. This will help in making your runs more stable and simulate the ground more effectively than if the treadmill bounced with you.
If your treadmill does not have shock-absorption technology, it will wear out much faster and could be dangerous enough to break while you’re using it.
And besides, who wants a treadmill that bounces a lot? I know I stopped using treadmills for a long time because the bouncing gave me a headache until I started using ones sturdy enough that they didn’t bounce.
What Would Happen If Someone Heavier Than the Weight Limit Used the Treadmill? Is it Dangerous?
It can be, yes.
Perhaps you’ve inherited a treadmill that is too small for you or are looking to buy a cheaper one and hope to successfully ignore that weight limit. The limit is set for the good of the user but also the good of the treadmill.
For the most part, if you use a treadmill that has a weight limit lower than your size, it will simply wear out faster.
A treadmill that should have a ten-year guarantee on function may only be good for five years due to the constant intense conditions it was not built to endure.
In extreme cases, the treadmill may break, but only if it has been worn out to the breaking point or someone way above the weight limit is using the machine rigorously.
For the most part, however, it is simply to ensure that your treadmill lasts you as long as it should and you get your money’s worth.
