Choosing the best exercise equipment can be confusing as you sift through all of the home treadmill options, new models, and brand name deals. People often get caught up in all the ‘goodies’ that exercise equipment manufacturers offer them and miss the fact that the fitness equipment doesn’t even have the basic essentials of a quality unit.

By knowing the 4 basic essentials of a quality exercise equipment including a home treadmill, you’ll be able to quickly sift through deals and choose the best model for you.

The 4 basic essentials to a quality home treadmill are:

#1 – High Powered, Well Built Motor

Since the motor is the most expensive part of the exercise equipment to fix, a good motor is essential. Try to find at least a motor power of 2.0 HP, preferably higher.  Remember that a 1.5 HP motor has to work twice as hard as a 3.0 HP motor – so it will burn out sooner than exercise equipment with more powerful motors.

Not all motors are built with the same quality parts. Look for a good brand name and a long motor warranty to give you clues as to the quality of the motor.

#2 – Excellent Cushioning

Cushioning is so important in exercise equipment like a home treadmill. A good cushioning system protects your joints, ligaments and back. A poor cushioning system can result in injury and pain.

I know of one woman who bought a cheaper exercise equipment and then worked out on it. Within 6 months, she had damaged her hips so badly that it hurt her to even walk on level ground. You definitely don’t want that!

Make sure your exercise equipment offers an excellent cushioning system – especially if you’ll be running!

#3 – Extensive Warranty

You want to protect your investment so a solid exercise equipment warranty is a must. A good treadmill warranty will cover the frame for at least 30 years, the motor for at least 5 years and other parts and labor for about 1 year. Anything above that and you’ve got an excellent warranty.

But a warranty isn’t just to protect your investment. A good exercise equipment warranty gives you an idea about component quality.

Good exercise equipment companies do not include warranties because they think they’ll have to fix your treadmill within that time frame. They know that they WON’T have to fix them within that time frame because the quality of parts used are high. So if you find a treadmill with a 10 year motor warranty, you KNOW it’s a quality built motor. If the motor warranty is only 90 days however…that tells you something.

#4 – Quality Brand Name

Certain exercise equipment brand names have a reputation for building a high quality home treadmill. Other brand names may be well-known but they don’t necessarily have a good reputation.

Choose a treadmill that has a solid, trusted brand name. Not sure which exercise equipment brands are good? Check out expert ratings and ‘Best Buys’ on various treadmill review sites and/or magazines. You’ll start to see a trend where certain brand names come up frequently. These brands are the quality treadmill manufacturers.

So those are 4 basic essentials of a good exercise equipment:

• – High Powered, Well Built Motor
• – Excellent Cushioning
• – Extensive Warranty
• – Quality Brand Name

Knowing these, you can sift through the exercise equipment available and easily locate the best treadmill for your home.

Good luck and have fun!