Looking for current opinions on what is the best treadmill for Zwift run training. I’ve done lots of research but still have yet to pin it down to just one. Also, just confirming that there is no treadmill currently on the market where you can play Zwift on the actual treadmill rather then a laptop, tablet or tv? Thanks in advance for everyone’s recommendations…
There are treadmills on the market that can run Zwift in a built in screen, however these are somewhat expensive.
In reality any treadmill can run Zwift with the appropriate bolt ons.
You can use apps to send the signal, foot pods or an NPE RUNN. You can also use selected Garmin Watches.
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Thanks Stuart. Can you tell me which treadmills can run Zwift built into the screen?
I currently run on an old Nordictrack treadmill with a Garmin foot pod which I have to setup prior to every run workout along with a dongle for connectivity reasons. So, I’m ready to upgrade to something that not only is easier to startup but requires less equipment along with a better experience. I don’t care for other programs when I get everything, I need off of the Zwift running app.
I’ve also read all of your posts in regard to the QZ DOMYOS app and appreciate all your information which I hope to put to use once I get a new treadmill.
Thanks again.
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The Technogym Myrun fits your needs, I accept Zwift isn’t built in but is designed to carry a tablet on the frame that effectively acts as it’s built in.
You could do this with any other treadmill in reality but the Myrun seems to be designed for this.
I will warm you though that trying to run whilst looking at Zwift on a small screen is quite difficult. Because of the constant motion of your head trying to read the text on screen is hard.
For this reason most people elect to cast from a tablet/phone to a TV.
You can save a whole heap of cash by purchasing a non smart treadmill which you can then use to purchase a dedicated PC or a tablet and a TV.
My setup is a non smart treadmill that cost £1000
PC - £80
TV - £50 (2ND hand)
QZ app.
It works seamlessly. Well it did until the treadmill died on Friday. Warranty replacement arriving soon.
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I looked at the Technogym MyRun Treadmill, but concern is that it only has a 3.0 HP motor and the running surface isn’t as big as some of the others (56.3"x19.7"). As a bigger guy who runs a lot I’m afraid that I would wear out the motor and would prefer a bigger running surface…some of the other treadmills now adays offer (60"x22"). Otherwise, the reviews are great and I like that it’s a minimalistic design which I think is great for those of us running with a tablet, phone or tv.
I’m starting to lean towards building a dedicated desktop computer to run my treadmill and wahoo along with a dedicated tv screen as the display.
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3hp will be fine. You are right to target something at the bigger end of motor power.
I’m 85kg and subjecting mine to 3 half marathons a week. Mine is 3hp.
It’s the pcb that’s gone on mine.
Like you I target bigger decks as I always feared I ran like a gazelle with legs everywhere.
I then videoed myself and realised that actually when you run you have quite a narrow striking distance. Same for length in that natural instinct pushes us forward on the deck and I’m a million miles away from the back end.
I’d definitely recommend a decent tv. Not only will it help you with actually seeing the screen but for me I get more motivation from having a lot to look at.
Mine is on a wheeled display stand so I can slide it left and right in front of the treadmill or bike. Again this cost around £30.
Happy to advise more if you require.
Mine’s 2.5hp and plenty for me at 82kg (and 15-17kph on occasion). There are weedy ones that are worth avoiding of course. I just got what I could find locally on eBay that looked solid and fast enough for me. The deck appears to be wearing a bit, a few years on, but looks user-replaceable.
It was well under a tenth the price of a new MyRun so seems a reasonable risk to take even if it does wear out after a few years.
2.5 Ok dependant on your running pace. If you’re running at close to the top speed of the treadmill then eventually the strain will be too much. That said it takes a bit to burn them out.
The weaker the motor the more likely you are to feel a little bit of slippage upon a foot strike. Unless you get into 5hp and above you’ll always feel it if you do an artificially heavy stride.
Decks wear out much easier. They are in essence a piece of mdf with a laminate coating. Over time they’ll start to split, you can normally tell as the deck gets spongy.
They are easily replaceable but you often pay through the nose for one from the manufacturer. There are companies out there than make them for half the price if you give them the dimensions.
My life fitness t3 is spot on, very pleased with it!!
As long as the treadmill is good for running thats all that matters. I’m surprised I don’t hear more here about using the apple tv for swift. The apple tv has a zwift app available on it and connects to any tv. I use a stryd foot pod and connect it to the apple tv via the zwift companion app. I could connect it directly to the apple tv but the companion app seems more reliable. I’ve experimented for several years and have over 1,000 miles on zwift running and this is by far the best setup Ive found.
That’s a decent setup Mike.
The issue is that as good as the Stryd is its price is a little prohibitive.
I started out trying to use an apple watch for pace and then got a wahoo run pod before it was rebranded as the zwift run pod. I had connectivity problems with both. They’d work fine for months and then all of a sudden they wouldn’t connect no matter what I did. The Stryd always connects with no fuss. I like that I can use it on outdoor runs and that it has a rechargeable battery and the app shows when it needs to be recharged. And I like the way the app reports running stress. I figure I saved enough by not getting an overly smart connected treadmill to make up for it. I have a 3hp ProForm treadmill that I got on sale at Walmart for around $700 dollars. I only use the speed and elevation controls and it works just fine for me. My advice would be to just get a solid treadmill, 3hp, 22inch wide or bigger deck and not worry about any of the connectivity or electronic gadgets on it. You don’t need them with Zwift.
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I’d recommend getting a refurbished commercial treadmill from a gym supplier. I was a bit wary about doing it but it’s been the right decision. You’re effectively getting a 15k machine for a fraction of the cost (as low as £1500), parts should be plentiful so it can be repaired. People are paying near that for a new treadmill anyway but are getting a vastly inferior machine. I initially bought a £1000 one off Amazon and thankfully got it returned with a full refund as the pace wasn’t even close to being accurate (measured it with my wheel) and it slowed down a little bit on every stride. Fine if you’re just jogging all the time but useless for actual training. If you want accuracy and a better running experience a commercial treadmill is a must.
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To be fair I’ve checked the accuracy of my own and was surprised how close it was to being accurate.
Mines a 3hp setup. Most proper commercial will be 5hp.
If there’s access to used commercial ones then they could be a bargain but could be heavily used also albeit I’d say your average gym user does 20mins max.
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The issue is that you can only connect one Bluetooth device to AppleTV at a time out of the box, whereas most setups require 2-3 connections. AppleTV BT also tends to get signal interference fairly often and experience drops more often because of that.
That’s true if you’re connecting to the apple tv by bluetooth, but I make all the bluetooth connections through the companion app on my iphone and never have a problem. For running that’s my stryd footpod and a wahoo chest strap heart rate monitor. For biking thats a kicker core, a wahoo cadence monitor and the wahoo heart rate monitor.
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awesome if that works! I’ve never been able to keep the companion app connections stable, though I haven’t tried that in over a year. I can run Zwift (main app) on my phone just fine but the companion app dropped constantly.
Haven’t seen it posted here, but I’ll add we use a Xebex Smart Runner for Zwift. It’s a manual curved treadmill, which means I have to work slightly harder at the same pace as a motorized treadmill. But, it’s built like a tank and I can adjust my speed almost instantaneously compared to a motorized treadmill. Constant speed changes during workout intervals are easy to accommodate and I can focus on my running vs trying to push buttons or adjust a dial. It transmits over both Bluetooth and ANT+, connecting to almost anything, and when paired with a Wahoo TICKR X, it covers everything I need. I actually dual record by transmitting to my Garmin 935 so I log my Garmin metrics as well.
Hi All, I know this is an old topic now but I am still lost when it comes to treadmills and Zwift. I am not looking at spending a fortune on a treadmill but I was looking at the NORDICTRACK S 25I TREADMILL. I think this treadmill ticks most if not all the boxes? If you were using a customised training plan from say training peaks, would this treadmill speed up or slow down by its self when going in and out of ‘efforts’? Is a footpod need for this treadmill? Thanks
There are no treadmills that offer auto speed adjustments within Zwift.
Incline is possible with a 3rd party app.
You will need something to report the speed to Zwift such as a foot pod, certain heart rate monitors or NPE Runn.
That treadmill can interact with a 3rd party app via BT to report the speed to Zwift.