Mini Steppers & Stair Steppers | Are Manual Treadmills Any Good?

Compared to electric models, manual treadmills are cheap, easy to store and lightweight. Practically all these positive features come from the fact these models don’t have motors. You the user has to provide the traction to turn the belt. So are these cheap treadmills any good or are they a waste of cash?

Manual Treadmills Any Good For Walking?

These treadmills are really made for walking exercises. But before you consider buying one here are a few issues you should weigh up first.

The first issue to consider is that these treadmills require you the user to input the traction to turn the belt. The problem with this is that getting them moving is difficult. You end up putting a lot of effort into getting the belt moving. The consequence of this is that it is hard on your joints initially. You put extra stress through your ankles, knees and hips to get the belt moving and then once in use you continue to experience more stress on these joints than you might with a motorised treadmill or normal walking. If you are young and healthy this might not present a problem, but if you have a history of joint trouble you may suffer.

The second issue to consider is posture. Normal walking allows you to be upright with arms swinging for balance. This puts minimal stress on your back and exercises your core muscles used for balance as well as your leg muscles. Because of the belt drive system on these treadmills manufacturers have to include hand rails on the machine so the user can lean/get balance as they start and keep the belt rolling. The effect of this is that you the user is forever leaning over the machine bent double while exercising. You don’t get to work your core muscle and you can’t walk upright so you stress your lower back.

Manual Treadmills Any Good For Running?

Clearly, having already looked at posture and joint stresses, these exercise machines probably aren’t very good for running. But to emphasis the point just check out the length of the running deck on these treadmills.

Most of the models on the market have a running deck that is only 45 inches long. Whilst this is fine for walkers, for runners it just is not long enough. As you run your stride pattern opens up which means you need a longer running deck. Most people of average height will find they need a running deck that is 52 inches long or more. If you try running on a 45 inch deck you will either fall off the machine or have to run with baby steps!

The other concern with running on these machines is stability. Most modern home treadmills or gym treadmills are seriously heavy to provide stability and durability from the pounding they get. Lightweight manual treadmills just don’t offer much stability. They are fine for a gentle walk but any tougher workout and you run the risk of falling or damaging the machine.

So are manual treadmills any good? You should only consider these machines for walking exercises and even then if you are looking to use the treadmill every day you are probably better off getting a higher quality motorised model to both save your body from the extra stresses and to have a machine that will remain useful over time. If you are serious about your exercise routine you will be better advised to walk outdoors until you have saved the money for a motorised treadmill. Whatever you do don’t buy one of these machines thinking you can get a running workout done. The machine will be dangerous and you may injure yourself.