How To Understand Your Treadmill Display

Stepping on the treadmill for the first time can be confusing. The display screen has several buttons and labels you probably don’t recognize. Some may be obvious, but others are more complex. Therefore, you should learn how to understand your treadmill display to shape your workout goals.

Speed

The speed button on a treadmill gives you an idea of how fast you’re going. Assuming that your measurement is in miles instead of kilometers, the number it displays reflects your miles per hour. Speed helps interval training, considering you need to know when to turn it up and slow it down.

Pace

Speed and pace sound like they could be the same, but they evaluate two different variables. Speed is the rate of how many miles you cover in an hour. The pace measures the number of minutes you take to run a single mile or kilometer. It’s basically the reverse counterpart of speed, and it’s a useful measurement for people trying to meet their goals.

Distance

It helps to know how far you’re going, particularly when training. Usually, treadmills monitor your distance from the number of belt revolutions. Hence, a higher speed allows you to cover more distance in less time.

Incline

The incline feature isn’t much of a concern for people who like leisurely walks. However, upping the incline level is an excellent solution for those trying to burn extra calories. Incline simulates what it feels like to walk or run up a hill. Adjusting the incline is easy to do during your workout, so don’t try to push your limits too early. Get a feel for it before you make the treadmill’s incline steep.

METs

While the display features we’ve covered thus far are primarily self-explanatory, METs (Metabolic Equivalent Tasks) may be unfamiliar to many beginners. METs alert you to how much oxygen you burn for your workout. Like calories, everyone burns varying levels of METs because they depend on your body weight. So, when you enter your body weight on the treadmill, your METs may alter if you drop some pounds.

Heart Rate Monitor

A heart rate monitor lets you know how many heartbeats you have per minute. It helps to know your heart rate because it notifies you when you aren’t pushing yourself enough or are going too hard. Most treadmills have handles in the front or on the sides to provide you with this information when you grasp them. If you have your own heart monitor, it may be beneficial to compare the two numbers and see if they match.

Calories Burned

Along with the heart rate, calories burned is another figure that you should take with a grain of salt. The treadmill estimates the number based on your height, weight, speed, and distance. You can compare the number of calories burned with a smartwatch to see if there’s a difference between the two.

Now that you know how to understand your treadmill display, you can plan a fitness regime with Utah Home Fitness’s treadmills for the home to conquer those resolutions. We have a wide variety of exercise equipment, so browse our selection to see what best suits you!