How to Use Life Fitness Treadmills

A treadmill is a piece of exercise equipment which has a belt (usually powered by an electric motor) that runs over a platform on which you walk, run or jog. Treadmills allow users to get a cardiovascular workout while they are indoors. One company that manufactures treadmills and other exercise equipment is Life Fitness. Proper use of a Life Fitness treadmill can help you develop and maintain a physically fit lifestyle.

Stand on the treadmill when the conveyor belt is not moving. Make sure that your clothing (like your pant legs) is short enough that it won't get caught in the belt, and that any towels you are using will not fall onto the belt.

Hook the clip attached to the emergency stop magnet to your shirt. If you fall, the magnet is pulled off of the treadmill and will immediately turn it off to prevent you from suffering from further injury. If your treadmill has a heart monitor, place it on your body.

Choose your workout. You can either scroll through the pre-programmed workouts on the treadmill and choose the one you want, or just hit the start button (this may be called "Start" or "Quick Start") to begin a manual workout.

Follow the prompts on the screen to set the time and treadmill speed. For a manual workout, you can also change the incline of the treadmill to make your workout easier or more difficult (the incline changes automatically in the pre-programmed workouts).

Enter your weight when prompted by punching it into the keypad. Combined with the speed of the treadmill, the incline and the length of time you work out, this will calculate a rough estimate of how many calories you're burning during your workout.

Complete your workout. If you use a pre-programmed workout, the treadmill will automatically enter a cooldown phase after the workout is over.

Tips

Interval workouts alternate periods of high intensity and low intensity in your workout, which burns fat more quickly than a steady-state workout, which is when you exercise at a steady pace for the length of your workout.

Warnings

Always consult a doctor before beginning an exercise program if you have been inactive for over a year, especially if you have a heart condition or respiratory condition such as asthma.

Stop exercising if you feel light-headed or dizzy, or if you feel pain.