Life Fitness F3 Folding Treadmill

Life Fitness F3 treadmillPrice: from £1999
Buy From: Fitness Superstore

Overall rating: 4
Ease of use: 5
Console features: 5
Value for money: 4
Comfort: 5
Build quality: 5

If you’re looking for a treadmill to use at home that has more in common with the commercial models, the Life Fitness F3 is a cracking choice. Starting at £1999 (with the Go console – the Life Fitness F3 Treadmill with Track Plus console bumps up the price to £2595) it’s a higher ticket price for a home treadmill but, as the saying goes, “you get what you pay for” and in this instance it’s quality.

The F3 offers excellent build throughout the machine as well as versatile training. Not only does it look the part (it’s really sleek and stylish) but I was particularly content with the running area. I felt very comfortable on the solid treadbelt, and I could really feel the difference from the Flexdeck Shock Absorption, which promises up to 30% reduction on impact. It definitely felt more comfortable than other home models.

As mentioned, you can choose between either the Go or Track Plus console. Both are easy to use and have USB connection, which is great. The Go console is more than adequate with 13 built in training programmes which offer great variety and handy controls like the warm up/cool down. However, if you’re looking for innovation, the Track Plus will certainly deliver as, on top of the 14 programmes, it comes with access to the Life Fitness Virtual Trainer website which lets you download countless more programmes. I also loved the fact I could link my iPad and access RunSocial (formally Paofit). It’s compatible with Android™ and Apple® fitness apps. Great!

As already said, the console is easy to use and a pretty cool feature is the “walk, jog, run” preset buttons. A brilliant quick use option.

One thing I can’t fail to point out is the fact that the F3 is fairly large for a home treadmill. But you can forgive that because the result is a far superior treadmill in terms of stability. It’s therefore brilliant that the treadmill folds. For me, it’s not critical I have a treadmill that folds, but if space is an issue, it’s great as it folds away so smoothly and is easy to manoeuvre. So it might be a bit big and bulky but it can still be conveniently stored away when not in use.

The warranty for the F3 treadmill is lifetime on frame and lifesprings, 10 years on motor and 3 years parts and labour.

Summary

The F3 folding treadmill from Life Fitness is as close to perfection as you will get within this price bracket. The deck is firm yet supportive, the console looks sleek and minimalist yet loaded with features, the price is on the high side but you’re paying for top quality equipment and the ease of use is second to none. Overall a great running experience can be had on the F3, especially if you link your iPad/tablet to it and take advantage of the apps that are available. The best one in my opinion is Runsocial by Paofit.

Buy at Fitness Superstore:

Life Fitness F3 Folding Treadmill with Go console
Life Fitness F3 Folding Treadmill with Track Plus console

 

Life Fitness CST Club Series Treadmill Review

Life-Fitness-CST-TreadmillPrice: £4,095
Buy From: Fitness Superstore

Overall Rating: 5
Build Quality: 5
Ease of use: 5
Console Features: 5
Comfort: 5
Value for Money:5

 

For those who are looking for the health club experience at home and  for whom budget and space are not limited, the Life Fitness CST treadmill is the ultimate home use treadmill. Based on the commercial model, the CST provides a genuine health club quality workout.

The patented flexdeck absorption system works very efficiently as you would expect, reducing impact levels on the joints and muscles by up to 30% when compared with running outdoors.

The 4-HP AC Continuous Duty Motor with MagnaDrive™ propels users quietly and easily to the top speed of 12mph and it also feels responsive when required for some of the more vigorous interval training programs.

A 15% motorised incline is included and the overall product weight of 195kg ensures there is complete rigidity in the frame for even the heaviest runners as the maximum user capacity of 180kg would suggest.

Life-Fitness-CST-Treadmill-ConsoleThe control layout is the same as the health club model and incorporates the GoSystem Quick Start feature which remembers your preferred walk, jog and run speeds so you can launch your training sessions at the touch of a button.

The integrity display is a smart yellow on black LED readout advising program profiles coupled with separate display windows for times, speed, distance, calories and heart rate.  They have also incorporated an ipod connectivity system which allows your ipod to sit in a purpose built in dock on the console allowing you to control track changes and volume levels with the integrated controls.

PROS

  • Amazing stability, particularly when compared with folding treadmills but even when compared to other brands of non folding machines.
  • Incredibly comfortable to run on
  • Quiet, smooth and responsive motor performance regardless of speed and incline levels.
  • Easy to read display with good variation of programs and the inclusion of ipod connectivity and controls is a real bonus.

CONS

  • A little disappointing that no wireless chest strap is included considering the price of the treadmill however this is a small concern on an otherwise pretty faultless performance.

Summary

In summary then, if space and budget are no object then this is the treadmill to purchase. It performed brilliantly in testing and finding fault was nigh on impossible. The only trouble is that a price tag of over £4,000 and the fact that it is non-folding means it has a limited market place for UK customers.

The programs are varied, all the usual suspects are there with Fat Burn, Heart Rate Hill, Heart Rate Interval, Extreme Heart Rate, Random, Hill, 5K, 10K and speed interval training.  The Lifepulse™ digital heart rate monitoring hand sensors are conveniently placed on the easy-to-grip Ergo™ bar to provide walkers with precise heart rate monitoring, and Polar® telemetry provides runners with accurate, hands free heart rate monitoring although this method does require an optional chest strap.

Having used the full commercial model club series treadmill in various gyms on many occasions I have to say that I couldn’t find a difference in the running experience when testing the Life Fitness CST. The cushioning and stability felt identical and the console has a familiar feel to it. In essence, the only differences between this model and its commercial sibling are the unseen parts, the components used in construction due to the greatly increased usage a commercial model would have to endure.

Best Price: £4,095
Buy From: Fitness Superstore

Life Fitness T5-5 Treadmill Review

Life-Fitness-T5-5-TreadmillPrice: £2,795
Buy From: Fitness Superstore

Overall Rating: 4
Build Quality: 5
Ease of use: 5
Console Features: 3
Comfort: 5
Value for Money: 4

 

Ok, so in the UK most people will need a folding treadmill due to space restrictions. Manufacturers recognise this and subsequently there are many more folding machines available than there are non folding. In fact it is really only the prestige brands that cater for this smaller niche market which means consequently you are unlikely to find a non folding treadmill unless you have a pretty substantial budget.

The T5-5 treadmill then, is a pretty serious piece of fitness equipment, packed full of the specification and features you would expect to find on a model costing over £3,000. With an oversized running belt (56cm x 152cm) you can run in complete comfort via the flex deck cushioning system no matter how tall you are.

It has a maximum user weight capacity of 180kg which tells you that this is an incredibly stable machine. The 3.0HP Magna drive motor will propel users to 20kph and a 15% motorised incline gives you the same level of options available on many full blown commercial treadmills.

The display has an extremely easy to use navigation system where the keys are touch sensitive and back lit.  The individual information windows present all the feedback detail in a coherent very user friendly manner.

Life-Fitness-T5-5-Treadmill-ConsoleThere are 15 pre programmed workouts including classic, daily and sports training with 4 user profiles to store personal fitness data and to preset your workouts specifically to your own profile. For those technically minded you can even custom design your own programmes.

Heart rate control programmes using the trade marked Heart Sync (the most accurate heart rate monitoring system on the market) are also available complete with the included wireless chest strap as standard.

Life Fitness also provide all their products with a 3 year onsite, parts and labour warranty so you can feel confident in the level of build quality.

PROS

  • Oversized large running deck
  • Very solid, stable machine
  • Complete running surface, workouts are smooth, impact free and effective
  • Masses of variable programming options for all fitness levels.

CONS

  • This treadmill is a very large heavy product and therefore difficult to move around. You really need a purpose built room to accommodate it.
  • No folding capability.
  • No entertainment features.

In summary then, the T5-5 is an expensive treadmill but it really delivers on all fronts and if you have the money this is definitely the treadmill to go for.  The lack of entertainment features like an ipod dock may put some off but frankly this performs so well as a treadmill I don’t think it is an issue. Whatever your fitness level, there aren’t many better machines out there.

Best Price: £2,795
Buy From: Fitness Superstore