Treadmill and Runners. Industry expert tells all.

All About ICON Treadmills
You may know them as:
Nordic Track, Pro Form, Reebok, Image, Healthrider, Weider, Body Fit, Weslo, Epic, Cadence, or Freemotion, Golds Gym
Exercise Equipment

What you should know about ICON Health & Fitness treadmills. ICON is a well know manufacturer of budget treadmills. They have been around for many years. They are a private company with unreported sales in excess of 3 billon dollars per year. One of their largest distributors is Sears. The ICON brand treadmills are sold under the brand names Epic, Nordic Track, Pro Form, Weslo, Cadence, Healthrider, Reebok, Image, Body Fit, Free motion, just to name a few. ICON treadmills are competitive in the lower priced treadmills that can be purchased from the various retail stores. ICON provides average quality treadmills in their price range, but ICON does not compare to the higher priced treadmills as far as durability and available features. There are several different models that are produced by ICON and are typically sold at discount retailers and on-line. For an infrequent user who mainly walks and requires only minimal stability and number of features, ICON can be a good value. My findings suggest that you get what you pay for, especially if you work out frequently. If you are more serious about the training you do on your treadmill, or if you are a runner than ICON will most likely not be of sufficient quality to meet your needs.

Most ICON treadmills do fold, and will latch in the up position. While the latch is designed so that the walking deck will not fall while unattended it is not recommended that you pull on the walking deck while in the up position. This could make the latch break loose. It is also very important that the incline be completely down before folding. Should you try and raise the walking deck when the incline is in the up position it is possible to break the piston that is used to help reduce the load when lowering the walking deck. ICON treadmills offer an internet capable iFit.com connection. IFit.com was designed by ICON as a personal trainer interactive program which offers workout programs for CD and MP3 players, VCR’s and online. You do have to purchase or subscribe to the service, but many users find it a convenient way to have a personal trainer while using their treadmills in the privacy of there home. On most models a tethered safety key is needed to start the treadmill. This key may have to be inserted or on newer models it may be a magnet. It will also stop the treadmill when pulled out. This is an excellent feature for safety reasons. By attaching the safety key to you during used should you fall the safety will automatically shut down the treadmill. Anyone that you do not want to use the treadmill cannot start the walking belt without this safety key. This can be a very attractive feature to users who have small children. Most ICON treadmills have built in programs and some higher end models let you design a custom user program. You may also be able to custom design a heart rate program. Higher end models usually offer one or two fans in the console. This is a great feature that you can only appreciate while using the treadmill. Most all ICON treadmills offer an incline. This simulates walking up a hill. The incline is measured in percentages. You will find this could range from 10% to 15%. Although ICON has manufactured treadmills with up to a 50% incline. This was a popular model for mountain climbers, but it also only had a maximum speed of 6 mph. Some models offer to monitor your pulse. These models will have hand grip that you most hold both hands onto, to get a pulse reading. Some higher end model let you purchase as an accessory a pulse monitor that you would strap on your chest. Most ICON treadmill consoles offer a book holder, a nice feature if you like to read and walk at the same time. The down side of the feature is of course you block out the readout on the display. Some newer models offer TV screens and CD players. You may find that the DC motor that operates the walking belt may cause a bit of interference. It may be a smarter choice to purchase a treadmill without a TV screen and point your treadmill towards a TV. The consoles also will sometimes have several pockets to store a remote control or bottled water. ICON treadmills are easily assembled for the do-it-yourselfer. One huge benefit that ICON offers there customers is a national service network. This network of service centers cannot be overlooked or undervalued. This is one area that ICON is above and beyond many others manufactures. Your treadmill purchase is only as good as the service beyond the sale. Should you not be able to assembly your treadmill, for a cost ICON will arrange for a local service center to professionally assembly your treadmill for you. Something else to consider is that repair costs are considered high on all exercise equipment. Even in the most populated areas of the country it can be hard to find a qualified exercise equipment repair company. It has been my experience that the specialty retailers of high end exercise equipment will not even consider repairing these lower priced models. This being the case, when you do find a qualified service center they will expect top dollar to perform repairs or maintenance. I do suggest as many consumer organizations do to purchase an extended warranty on all exercise equipment purchases, especially treadmills.

One ICON model is the Epic T60 it is one of the more popular models sold by this manufacturer. The Epic T60 provides users with reasonable quality in the
$ 500.00 to $ 1000.00 price range. There have been some reported problems associated with the rollers and the key pads on the console. But for the price the Epic T60 is a good buy. Epic treadmills generally offer and outstanding 12 year warranty on the motor, but only 90 days on parts and labor. You may want to consider purchasing an extended warranty on all ICON models. Epic does offer features such as the ability to design personal workouts and may include a stereo or a TV screen depending on the model you choose.

For the price, ICON treadmills are reasonably dependable and will last for a fair period of time. Before purchasing an ICON treadmill, investigate other brands and research the various models that are available to you. You may be able to find a superior treadmill for a similar price if you look for sales and online specials. ICON is not a poor choice in treadmills for many people, but if you are intent on a top quality, long lasting product, you may want to look further.