Are you the one who switched to treadmill running during the COVID-19 pandemic? Are you looking for a fitness tracker or smartwatch for tracking treadmill running? To help you choose the suitable activity tracker to track your treadmill running, I have come up with a list of the best fitness tracker for the treadmill.
Related Post: Does Fitbit work on Treadmill? An In-depth Guide
Remember, all fitness trackers and smartwatches do not track your indoor running accurately unless it has a treadmill mode. So, it is essential to make sure that the smartwatch or fitness tracker you buy has a built-in treadmill activity tracking mode.
Why do you need a Fitness Tracker while running on a treadmill?
A treadmill with a heart rate monitor detects your heart rate when you hold on to its bar or through the chest strap. However, this is not the correct method to track your heart rate while running on a treadmill.
On the other hand, having an activity tracker that tracks indoor running has multiple benefits over other devices you use to track treadmill activity.
- You can keep all your fitness data on a single platform. You do not need to keep a separate record for the treadmill.
- There is no need to use any separate (wired or wireless) device to track your body metrics such as heart rate, blood oxygen (SpO2), calorie burned, etc.
- Suppose you are not using an advanced treadmill. In that case, a smartwatch or fitness tracker can tell you the quality of your workout by measuring critical running metrics such as cadence, symmetry, Vertical Oscillation, and much more.
Most fitness trackers under $100-150 dollars come with all the necessary features to track the treadmill running.
6 Best Fitness Tracker for Treadmill Running
1. Fitbit Charge 4
Fitbit Charge 4 is one of the best fitness trackers that comes on-board Treadmill Mode. If you are looking for the best fitness tracker for running indoors and outdoors, it is the right fitness tracker for you.
It comes with a dedicated treadmill mode that tracks your steps on the treadmill, along with other health essential health metrics.
To get an accurate step count with Fitbit Charge 4, you should calibrate your stride length correctly. Check the video for how to calibrate your stride length for walking and running on a Fitbit wearable.
In addition to indoor running, Fitbit Charge 4 is best for outdoor running as well. It comes with a built-in GPS that allows you to track your speed, distance traveled, number of steps, and route even when you are away from your smartphone.
Smart features such as smartphone app notifications and music control allow you to do most tasks right from the activity tracker.
Its predecessor, the Fitbit Charge 3, is good at tracking treadmill activities, but it does not have features like built-in GPS, music control, streaming, etc.
What do we like about Fitbit Charge 4?
- Fitbit Charge 4 is best for both indoor and outdoor running.
- Beautiful design and user-friendly user interface
- Music streaming features (Spotify, Pandora, and Deezer)
- In-built GPS
- Many health-tracking features, such as heart rate monitoring, female health-tracking, SpO2, and much more.
- Automatic activity detection
- Goal-based activity modes.
- Sleep Tracking and smart alarm
- Fitbit Pay
- 5-7 days of battery life
What do we not like about Fitbit Charge 4?
- Bit expensive
- Grayscale display
- No Music storage
2. Fitbit Charge 5
Fitbit Charge 5 is the most advanced fitness tracker available in the market today. Even if it is a fitness tracker, it is packed with advanced health tracking features such as ECG monitoring, Stress monitoring, sleep tracking, etc. It also features a built-in GPS that allows you to run or walk by leaving your phone at home and still tracks your activities accurately.
Smart features such as smartphone app notifications and music control allow you to do most tasks right from the activity tracker.
It is also waterproof up to 50 meters and is compatible with Android and iOS devices.
Other Features of Fitbit Charge 5
- Premium design
- 24/7 heart rate monitoring
- FDA Approved ECG
- Irregular heart rate detection like atrial fibrillation
- Stress monitoring
- Sleep tracking and silent alarms
- Sedentary alerts, inactivity reminder with clock display
- Waterproof up to 50 meters
- NFC
Disadvantages of Fitbit Charge 5
- No music control
- ECG feature is not available at the time of launch
3. Fitbit Inspire 2
If you are looking for the best Fitbit for a treadmill under $100, the Fitbit Inspire 2 is a suitable activity tracker for you. It was released along with Fitbit Sense and Versa 3. it also comes with decent health and fitness tracking features along with a dedicated treadmill mode.
As mentioned above, do not forget to calibrate your strider length for improved accuracy while running on a treadmill.
In addition to the treadmill workout mode, it comes with 20 other goal-based activity modes to keep you motivated to achieve your goals.
If you replace its strap with Fitbit Inspire 2 clip, you can use it as the best pedometer for treadmill activity tracking. You can get a clip for Fitbit Inspire 2 from the Fitbit Store or Amazon.com.
Other Features of Fitbit Inspire 2
- Nice and sleep design
- Health tracking features include 24/7 heart rate monitoring, sleep tracking, female health-tracking, calorie burned, heart rate variability, and many more.
- Ten days (about one and a half weeks) of battery life on typical use
- Connected GPS
- Waterproof up to 50 meters.
- Automatic activity detection
- Smartphone notifications
- Sedentary reminder
Disadvantages of Fitbit Inspire 2
- No built-in GPS
- No Music controls
- No Fitbit Pay
4. Honor Band 6
Honor Band 6 is one of the best fitness trackers for treadmills. It comes with a dedicated treadmill sports tracking mode to track your running metrics along with essential health metrics such as heart rate, the number of steps, distance traveled, and duration.
In addition to the treadmill workout mode also comes with other indoor activity tracking modes such as indoor cycling, rowing machine, elliptical machine, indoor walking, and pool swimming.
You can see all your fitness data on its wide 1.47-inch AMOLED screen with 456 x 280 resolution. It also comes with a smartphone music control feature that allows you to skip, play or pause music right from your watch while running on the treadmill.
What we like about Honor Band 6
- Wider and bright screen
- 100+ watch faces
- 24/7 heart rate monitoring with irregular heartbeat alerts (High or low)
- 10- 14 days (about two weeks) of battery life
- Find your phone
- Smartphone camera control
- Smartphone app notifications
- 5 ATM water resistance
Pros of Honor Band 6
- Not compatible with Android (5 and above) only
- No GPS
5. Mi Smart Band 6
Mi Smart band 6 is another cheap smart band that comes with a treadmill mode and other indoor and outdoor activity tracking modes. It uses advanced motion sensors (three-axis acceleration sensor and three-axis gyroscope) to track your activities. As a result, you can expect high accuracy when running or working out with Mi Smart Band 6.
It is also suitable for outdoor activities. It uses your smartphone GPS to track other outdoor activities such as running, cycling, etc. It also tracks other indoor activities such as yoga, indoor cycling, elliptical machine, and rowing.
You can see your real-time heart rate and the number of steps on its 1.56-inch AMOLED touchscreen display at a glance.
Features of Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 6
- Affordable fitness tracker for treadmill
- 30 Sport modes
- 24/7 heart rate monitoring
- Sleep tracking, including a nap.
- Female health tracking
- Compatible with Android (5 and above) and iOS (10 and above)
- Waterproof up to 50 meters(5ATM).
- Smartphone notifications
- Music control
- 14 days (about two weeks) of battery life
- SpO2 Monitoring
What are the cons of Mi Smart Band 6?
- No NFC(in the USA Version)
- No voice assistance
6. Amazfit Bip U Pro
Amazfit Bip U is one of the best cheap fitness tracker smartwatches to track your treadmill activity. It just weighs 30 grams and is highly comfortable to wear throughout the day during your workout and sleep. You can see all your health and activity metrics on its large AMOLED screen.
With Amazfit Bip U Pro, you can track more than 60+ indoor and outdoor activities. Along with activities, it tracks your heart rate, SpO2, sleep, etc. It uses BioTracker PPG biological optical sensor to track the heart rate, and it is pretty accurate and alerts you in incase of higher or lower heart rate.
It uses a Lithium Polymer battery, which can last for more than nine days on typical use, and it can last up to 5 days on regular use.
What do we like about Amazfit Bip U Smart Watch?
- Always-on display
- Lightweight and comfortable to wear.
- 50 watch faces
- PAI and stress level monitoring
- Waterproof up to 50 meters.
- Longer battery life
- Built-in GPS and GLONASS
- Music control
- Smart notifications
What do we not like on Amazfit Bip U Pro?
- No speaker or microphone
- No camera control.
Fitness Tracker Buying Guide for Treadmill Run Tracking
If you are looking for a treadmill fitness tracker, you must keep the following points in mind. This will help you in choosing the best product based on your needs.
Design and Build
The first thing that you consider while selecting a fitness tracker or smartwatch is its style and built.
Display
Display Size and type is another crucial factor that you should consider while buying a fitness tracker. The latest fitness trackers and smartwatches come with an AMOLED touchscreen display. Fitness trackers with AMOLED displays consume less power and have clear visibility, even in outdoor environments.
Features
Music control or storage is an essential feature that you should consider when buying a fitness tracker. So, you can control your smartphone music right from your wrist without grabbing the smartphone.
GPS is another feature that you should consider if you are also interested in outdoor activities. Fitness Tracker like Fitbit Charge 4 tracks your route, pace and distance traveled without a phone with the help of its built-in GPS.
Even if it cost you more than any other fitness trackers mentioned here, it is the most advanced fitness tracker available in the market today.
Battery
You must also look for battery specifications for the battery life of your fitness tracker. You must choose a fitness tracker that gives a battery backup for at least five hours for an uninterrupted workout section.
Also, you should remember to choose a fitness tracker with a USB Charging port if you do not want to carry your charger every time.
Most of the latest fitness trackers and Fitbit bands come with a USB charging port so that you can charge the device by connecting it to your laptop or power bank.
Compatibility
Make sure you are buying a fitness tracker that is compatible with your smartphone. Some fitness trackers work only either with Android or iPhone.
For instance, the Honor Band 6 is compatible with Android devices only. So, you should not buy this activity tracker if you are currently using an iPhone.
To avoid this mistake, make sure that the device you are going to purchase is compatible with your smartphone.
Budget
It is essential to consider your budget before you buy a fitness tracker or smartwatch. Make sure you are purchasing a fitness tracker that does not create a hole in your pocket.
If you have any further questions about the best fitness tracker for treadmill workouts, please check the following FAQs.
Conclusion
I think this article was helpful for you in choosing the best fitness tracker for a treadmill workout. With that said, no fitness tracker or smartwatch tracks your treadmill running 100% accurately. However, it is very convenient to use, and it also allows you to track your body metrics like heart rate, heart rate variability, SpO2, and much more.
