A couple of years ago, I upgraded my treadmill to a model that would communicate with the outside world enabling me to better record any workouts.
I used the treader to talk to Zwift via bluetooth so that my little avatar could more through the virtual world in response to what I was doing on the treadmill.
This made walking without going anywhere slightly less boring.
At least with the cycling side of Zwift, you get the added benefit of terrain changes which is not easily duplicated on a treadmill which runs at a set speed an inclination. I believe some of the high end treadmill can be controlled from Zwift to alter the incline but not in my price band !
I was using the treadmill in a ’communal’ area at home but had to put it away after each use. That was until I got my own ’pain cave’ where it could be set up permanently.
It was then that I added a bike to the mix and the walking machine was pushed aside to make room.
Earlier this week ,I dug out the treadmill and took it into work where I’ve set it up in an old storeroom to use during my break (and my co-workers can also benefit).
I have also installed a small locker for my gear and also added a fan to the mix to keep me cool.
I have had a couple of sessions so far using Zwift on my iPad or iPhone. Neither was one hundred percent satisfactory as I can’t get a HRM to interface properly. I can get my Apple Watch to connect to my iPhone but the iPad can’t see it. A heart rate strap that came with the treadmill give me my HR on the treadmill display but it doesn’t transfer to Zwift.
At some point, I may install an monitor on the wall with an apple TV so that I can mirror my iPad / iPhone to a larger screen.
Update
Since the initial installation, I have added a monitor and an Apple TV.
Running Zwift on my iPhone, I can connect to the treadmill and the treadmill HRM (not sure why this didn’t work before !).
I can mirror the iPhone to the Apple TV so show my exercise on the monitor.