Best for Home Use
Best for Serious Runners
Best for Walkers
Best for Seniors
Woodway Treadmill Review
Woodway is an international brand of high-end fitness equipment with a special focus on treadmills. This brand tends to attract shoppers from health clubs, hospitals and other commercial settings. For home use, a Woodway treadmill could easily last for a generation. The company’s global headquarters are in Wisconsin. Woodway treadmills are built in the USA, Germany, and Japan.
Woodway treadmills are distinguished by their unique tracks (called Slat Belts), which last for 150,000 miles before replacement. That’s ten times the performance capacity of typical commercial treadmill belts. On some units these tracks are especially large: The Woodway 4Front treadmill has a 22″ x 68″ workout space and Woodway also makes a treadmill for skaters that is essentially a mini-rink with about 50 square feet of workout room. The Woodway Curve is especially attention-grabbing. It has a more traditional size than the Blade but features a curved track. Powered by gravity and the user’s shifting body weight, the Curve is a motor-free treadmill that offers especially rapid calorie burn compared to the standard commercial alternatives.
Woodway treadmills are built for all skill levels and training purposes. They’re available with hospital-grade circuitry and some are specifically designed to support intense physical therapy and gait analysis. Across the product line, exceptional engineering for low maintenance and low energy consumption make Woodway treadmills wise buys if long-term value is a top priority.
Woodway caters to its high-end clients with many custom options. Most Woodway treadmills have 15% inclines as a standard spec but are also available with 25% inclines. Different monitors are available, some providing access to digital entertainment and wireless data tracking. Reverse track motion and extra-high speed capacity are also available.
What We Like:
- Long-Lasting Tracks: Woodway treadmill tracks outperform all other brands. While traditional workout tracks are made from continuous sheets of material such as nylon and PVC, Woodway’s patented tracks (called Slat Belts) are comprised of dozens of interlocking slats of vulcanized rubber. These slats are excellent shock absorbers and extremely durable. Paired with Woodway’s smooth track guides, a Slat Belt can support up to 150,000 miles of training before performance starts to wane. That’s about 10 times the durability of tracks used on other commercial treadmills.
- Energy Use: Woodway treadmills are especially energy-efficient. Those in the Curve series are actually motorless, using gravity and user weight to deliver intense training. Treadmills in other Woodway series have powerful motors yet draw about half the electricity compared with competitors from other brands.
- Unique Curve: The Curve series of Woodway treadmills supports especially rapid calorie burn thanks to uniquely curved workout surfaces. The Curve, the Ecomill, and others in this collection let a user control track speed simply by shifting their body position.
- Track Sizes: Woodway builds treadmills for people of all heights and girths. The 22″ x 68″ workout space on the Woodway 4Front, for example, is one of the largest in the industry. (Typical commercial treadmills for runners have 20″ x 60″ tracks.) Most spacious of all is the Woodway Blade treadmill for skaters. It has a 94″ x 83″ training surface for practicing lateral movements and crossovers.
- Inclines: Most Woodway treadmills have power inclines with a top setting of 15% and can be upgraded with max 25% inclines.
- Workout Programming: Monitors for Woodway cardio trainers are loaded with diverse training programs and a variety of fitness tests. Additionally they let users save up to 99 customized routines.
- Data Sharing: Trainees can export treadmill workout data using USB ports. Additionally some Woodway treadmills are available with online data tracking.
- Displays: This brand uses a variety of consoles. Some are “strictly business” and only show workout data (heart rate included) on simple LED screens. Others have 19″ HDTV monitors, touchscreens with customized on-demand programming and other advanced technology.
- High Capacity: Typical commercial treadmills have 400 pound user weight capacities. Many Woodway treadmills exceed this high standard and can safely accommodate up to 800 pounds.
- Decks: Woodway’s decks, just like their tracks, are built to serve for up to 150,000 miles.
- Warranties: Woodway warranties are competitive for the commercial treadmill industry. An example is the four-year whole-machine warranty on the 4Front treadmill built to hospital-grade standards.
What We Don’t Like:
- High Prices: Woodway treadmills cost more than others up-front. They deliver exceptional value in the long run because they are virtually maintenance-free and draw relatively little electricity (if any!), but some shoppers might be interested in leasing a new Woodway or choosing a refurbished model to save money.
- Heavy Machines: These treadmills are not easily moved. The 4Front, for instance, weighs about 450 pounds. The Blade, a treadmill for skaters, weighs 3,000 pounds!
Our Verdict:
Woodway is a top brand for shoppers with higher budgets. Brilliant engineering results in treadmills that feel luxurious to use and are easily maintained. With options ranging from hospital-grade circuitry to on-demand music videos, the Woodway treadmill line has something for every shopper in its price class.