Thoughts on treadmills?

[vashappenin]

Hey all,
So this year I've been waaaaaay too unfit, and basically everything I do involves me just sitting at a chair/table, be it homework, studying, reading, internet, etc. Even after I eat.. I just go straight back to sitting.
Next year I'll be in year 12, and I know for a fact that my level of unfitness will be waaaaaaaaaay more extreme. I've seen so many year 12s at school, who used to look so fit/slim and as a result of year 12 they've gained quite a bit of weight, and I don't want to be that kind of person. I know that it's good to be maintaining a balance between study/hw and fitness, so I'm considering getting a treadmill.
Yes, I know I could just go out for a run, but I'm one of those lazy people who has no motivation to leave the house, and with a treadmill or something useful of that sort, I'll be more inclined to get fit
I also don't want to be spending too much money on one, so what's a good treadmill that's cheap/affordable and efficient in use as well? Also, I want one that has useful features.. and I don't know too much about what some of those useful feature are, so please help me out!
I've heard that treadmills aren't even that great though, so if there's any other exercise machines out there that you think are probably more useful in terms of maintaining/losing fat, feel free to let me know! I just need something that I can use everyday that will make me become fit and refreshed, and hopefully allow me to lose/maintain my weight.
Either way, just something on treadmills/something else will be useful

Thanks in advance

[Truck]

If you want to maintain a healthy weight the best thing to do is a combination of weight training / cardio. Cardio on its own burns calories, but gaining muscle increases the amount of calories you burn while resting - aka sitting down.

In terms of cardio, have you considered taking up a sport? Pretty much anything will do (except like, equestrian lol). I'm not a huge fan of treadmills because I get bored on them really quickly, so any sport is a great substitute. Also if you can be bothered, swimming is like the best thing you can do for your body.

[nacho]

I got a treadmill in year 12, and they are really great.
Mine's very noisy, but a part from that no complains. I don't know which brands are good but I have a York Fitness T300 and it's pretty fine (had it two years, use it frequently and have no complains). I don't think it was particularly expensive, but I have 0 recollection of how much it was.
I'm sure two years later, there'd be lighter and quieter treadmills which are somewhat more agile to move around too.

Because you're a girl, I'd suggest not getting heavy weight machines and also steer away from those machines that promise to get you buff/toned "with just two minutes of exercise a day, every day, for a month, whilst you watch t.v...''. Treadmills are honestly great, much better than biking machines too.

A treadmill + pushups + situps routine, and if you can - chinups is all you need IMO if you just want to get fit.
I've been to fitness first and used their treadmills, the only difference between mine and their's in terms of 'features' was that they had t.v on theirs, which is pretty useless anyway.
So i'm assuming every treadmill is practically the same :
has an incline feature, speakers if you like listening to music (or just get an i-pod arm band), preset programs, heart rate monitor and different speeds etc.
I would heavily recommend a treadmill, cause yesterday i went for a 30 minute run at  2:30am. It's so awesome to just be able to run whenever you want.

[AllAboutTheLGs]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyTVlbMHkF4&feature=player_embedded

about 1:20-2:00

[Surgeon]

I got a treadmill in year 12, and they are really great.
Mine's very noisy, but a part from that no complains. I don't know which brands are good but I have a York Fitness T300 and it's pretty fine (had it two years, use it frequently and have no complains). I don't think it was particularly expensive, but I have 0 recollection of how much it was.
I'm sure two years later, there'd be lighter and quieter treadmills which are somewhat more agile to move around too.

Because you're a girl, I'd suggest not getting heavy weight machines and also steer away from those machines that promise to get you buff/toned "with just two minutes of exercise a day, every day, for a month, whilst you watch t.v...''. Treadmills are honestly great, much better than biking machines too.

A treadmill + pushups + situps routine, and if you can - chinups is all you need IMO if you just want to get fit.
I've been to fitness first and used their treadmills, the only difference between mine and their's in terms of 'features' was that they had t.v on theirs, which is pretty useless anyway.
So i'm assuming every treadmill is practically the same :
has an incline feature, speakers if you like listening to music (or just get an i-pod arm band), preset programs, heart rate monitor and different speeds etc.
I would heavily recommend a treadmill, cause yesterday i went for a 30 minute run at  2:30am. It's so awesome to just be able to run whenever you want.

What do you mean by this? Are you suggesting to her that she shouldn't do resistance training/weight training because she's a girl?

It's a mass cultural delusion, saying that a girl will suddenly get buff after starting to lift.

Swimming is also a great alternative as running can be harsh on your joints. Swimming is a low/no impact sport and is a full body workout. Great for cardiovascular and general help.

If you're going to spend a few grand on a treadmill (most decent ones cost that much) - you may as well buy a swimming treadmill.

[Genericname2365]

A treadmill + pushups + situps routine, and if you can - chinups is all you need IMO if you just want to get fit.

What's your view on the timing of these routines if they're on the same day? I.e. pushups/situps (or weights etc.) before treadmill/running, or afterwards?

[Fyrefly]

Hmm... the cheapest way to get a treadmill is to go to garage sales, I would think.
You get a lot of old people (who don't know how to use eBay) selling off that sort of stuff.

[Fyrefly]

Also: Gumtree

[nacho]

What do you mean by this? Are you suggesting to her that she shouldn't do resistance training/weight training because she's a girl?

Because on average males tend to have a more muscular build than females, a better/easier place to start off for a girl who claims to be

waaaaaay to unfit

would be with cardio.

It's a mass cultural delusion, saying that a girl will suddenly get buff after starting to lift.

Haha are you sure about that? From what little knowledge I have, weight/resistance training is more for toning and the few times i've been to a gym I've seen many ladies using weight machines. I'd say if anything you're mixing this up with the fact that very muscular women are found to be less attractive than those not so by some, which is all just personal preference anyway.

A treadmill + pushups + situps routine, and if you can - chinups is all you need IMO if you just want to get fit.

What's your view on the timing of these routines if they're on the same day? I.e. pushups/situps (or weights etc.) before treadmill/running, or afterwards?

I always do them afterwards, I find after running I'm incredibly exhausted and able to do far fewer pushups.

[abeybaby]

if youre going to buy a treadmill, you may as well get a gym membership. you can hunt out some really cheap ones (499/yr) depending on where you live