How does one stay in shape when chained to a desk all day? Try an under the desk treadmill.
Old school treadmills are large, heavy, bulky and noisy. You enter them from the back and are then surrounded by the control panel in the front and hand holds on the side.
These new “under the desk” tread mills strip down the treadmill experience to the essense of a moving platform. Without the upright sides and front, they can slip under standing desk where you can walk while in a Zoom meeting or working on a spreadsheet.
We looked at several models of treadmills. Our priorities were low noise, easy to use, good looking, remote control and the ability to change the incline which is very important for getting a good workout. Price was also a consideration but we weren’t going to get some cheap piece of junk.
The machine that best matched our criteria was the UREVO Foldable Treadmill with Auto Incline also known as the Spacewalk 3S Treadmill.
Priced at about $50 more than the non-auto incline version, the Spacewalk 3S by Urevo is still under $400. We paid $350 as it was 25% off at the time of purchase. Non-incline treadmills will save you even more but they might get boring being the same flat level all the time.
The treadmill was shipped fast. We even got it a few days earlier than Amazon said we would. Setup out of the box was easy enough. Remove it from the box (it is heavy so two people should take part in the unboxing) and place it where you want it. Plug in the power cord.
The unit has wheels on one end so if you remove the power cord you can tip it up and move it around like a wheel barrow. It is also low profile and would fit under most beds and some couches.
There is a nice large LCD screen for displaying speed and incline levels.
Now we did have a problem with the remote. Right out of the box the remote was not sycronized with the treadmill and there were no instructions to be found on how to get the remote to work with the treadmill. Finally after about an hour of searching online we found out how to pair the remote to the UREVO Spacewalk 3S Treadmill.
1. Turn power switch off on treadmill
– helpful Amazon reviewer
2. On remote: Hold plus and minus together to unpair.
3. On remote: Hold mode and minus to pair.
4. Turn treadmill power switch on,
5. On remote: Hold play button for 5 seconds and remote pairs and everything works.
So how does the machine perform? It’s great, nice and quiet for taking calls or working – except for the warning beeps when it starts up. The only way people on a zoom call will know you are exercising is if your head is bobbing up and down as you walk. A stand up desk is perfect for giving you a bit of stability if needed as you are walking. The auto incline is smooth and quiet.
