After paying for YMCA membership for years and rarely using it, I’m thinking of cancelling and buying a treadmill. What I save on membership will pay for treadmill. (Yes, I know there is a risk it will become a clothes rack but I think we are more Iikely to use it than go to the Y). It needs to be a heavy duty one as my husband is a large guy. I’m hoping to find one with 12 month interest free credit and the monthly savings from my cancelled YMCA/Netflix/audible memberships will cover most. Any experiences good of bad? Have been looking at Amazon and Sears but so many choices!
Run outside? No treadmill needed.
For indoor cardio, consider a rower like a Concept 2. Gives a full body workout, takes less space, can be moved around easily, and costs less than a good treadmill.
Or, if you have a bicycle, get a trainer stand and a supply of cheap slick tires.
Look on Craigslist. Bet you will find at least a few hits!
It gets way too hot for me to walk (not run - knee problems) outside during the summer and there is not really a nice place to walk. There is about a mile circle I can walk in my neighborhood (out in the country) then roads and dirtroads with no sidewalks. (The dirtroads can be rather unpleasant to walk on when cars go by!) And once the temps hid 90s and up, unbearable.
I do find walking to be the best exercise for me. And it is about all my husband, who has a lot of health issues, can do.
I hadn’t thought about craigslist. Not sure if our town has one (& we are 100 miles from the nearest large city. I’ll check into it though.
We just bought a LifeSpan TR4000–had it delivered yesterday. So far, so good. It is incredibly quiet compared to the one we replaced, which was 10+ years old. Consumer Reports has recommendations, and this is one of their recommended folding treadmills. (We like having a folding treadmill because we have ours in a guest room. We leave it down most of the time, but when we have guests, we can fold it up and have a much more functional guest room.) We bought from a small local chain, and the cost of the treadmill was about $1800. We paid for delivery and assembly and they included removal of the old one. As you check into pricing, make sure you check on delivery/assembly costs. Treadmills are big, heavy, difficult to move up/down stairs, and take some time and patience to assemble.
I’m not sure if we have anywhere local unfortunately. The assembly is a concern I must admit. No stairs at least! I like the idea of a folding one as it will also be in a guest room.
Check out the CR info, it seems in treadmills, you really don’t get what you pay for and maybe paying less for a reasonable one with a shelf life is smarter than paying a lot for an expensive one. I am looking to replace our dead one and really I think I will get whatever costco stocks and I can get it home in my car.
I agree that Craigslist is where I’d start. You may even have someone who will deliver of the lower price could pay for delivery of the vehicle. I’d be very reluctant to buy a new one, especially if not POSITIVE that spouse and I would use it. I bought yoga balls & H decided he didn’t like them and he popped them & disposed of them. 
I went to a class that had yoga balls once. I kept falling off. Can’t even begin to imagine my husband on one. I checked for Craigist. The nearest one I could find was a larger town about 50 miles away, lots of cattle and sows but not much in the way of exercise equipment.
I should check out CR. My son has one he likes but we need one with a heavier weight limit. That puts the price up.
I don’t know what the popular brands are now, but we have a Precor that is 17+ years old and still working well. It’s been worth it many times over.
I have an opinion about rowers. They are guaranteed to beome dust collectors. I have had my Precor treadmill for close to 5 years now and I still use it more often than I use the oven! Unless you know treadmills well and know the models that would work for you, I would not start with Craigslist. Go to a store that specializes in sports equipment and test-drive a few. They all feel different!
That said, I noticed that you have knee issues. I would be looking at an exercise bike or an elliptical instead of treadmills.
I agree that trying out the equipment is key. I do NOT have knee issues but notice that some exercise equipment DOES bother my knee. I’d be sure that both you & your spouse can comfortably use whatever equipment you plan to purchase–no sense buying something that will cause pain and injury.
Don’t waste your time with CR on treadmills! Treadmills are not appliances. CR knows zip about them. Check reputable running sites and DC Rainmaker.
^^Oops, I meant to say Treadmill Doctor, not DC Rainmaker! The latter reviews electronic gadgets, like Garmin watches.
This article explains why most treadmills end up as clothes hangers - in a nutshell, people do not spend enough $ to get a decent quality model.
http://m.runnersworld.com/treadmills/the-trouble-with-cheap-treadmills
Do you have a store like Play It Again Sports? They deal in used equipment and usually do not carry junk.
A regular bicycle on a trainer is lighter and easier to move around, and you can detach the bicycle from the trainer to go ride outside. There are even bicycle trainers that can generate electricity to charge cell phones, laptop computers, flashlights, etc. if you have a power outage.
An elliptical is easier on the body than a treadmill.
I bought a Nordic Track incline trainer last year. I did some damage to my body from years of high impact cardio workouts. That combined with scoliosis has left my right hip and left knee very vulnerable to injury and chronic pain.
The incline trainer is a treadmill that increases the calorie burn because you walk on a steeper incline that a regular treadmill, so you can walk slow and high or use it like an ordinary treadmill. It also declines too.
Let’s face it, treadmills can be boring.
I did a lot of research before I bought it. I love it, it does what it is supposed to do. They are made in different qualities ( home vs. commercial )
I would highly recommend it.
I still have my original Nordic track treadmill that must be 15 years old.
I had an elliptical, but never liked it ( and it took up a lot of space )
From the occasional periods where I did go to the Y, I know a treadmill is the equipment we both will use.
I tried the elliptical machines and never could manage more than a minute or so.