Yowza Treadmill Review

  About Fred Waters

I was recently in Florida and visited the Yowza Fitness headquarters to review their line-up of treadmills. Although this is a relatively new name to the treadmill industry, the manufacturer GreenMaster, has been in business for 24 years and ships fitness equipment to over 47 countries. 

Yowza Fitness is their factory direct outlet in the U.S.

Note: You can purchase direct at www.YowzaTreadmills.com. All models came with free shipping and 2-year labor warranty.*

Holiday Special: Get $100 off any treadmill except the Siesta, use coupon code "TG12" during check out.

I previously worked for a company that resold GreenMaster fitness products, and I can personally attest to the fact that these machines were very low maintenance and were built to be solid and stable. In addition, they are equipped with some of the best shock absorption systems in the industry.

In talking to Joe Alter, the head of their U.S. operation,  I asked what distinguishes Yowza Fitness.  He mentioned a couple of factors...

Factory Direct Prices — The company is selling direct and only online.  Of course, there are a number of companies that sell direct.  The problem is they also sell through retailers, and consequently they have  to inflate their prices in order not to undersell their resellers.  So they may be selling direct, but not at factory direct prices.  Yowza treadmills are priced minus the overhead costs of resellers.

Quality Components — The reliability of the components really impacts the durability of the treadmill and future servicing.  The components in the Yowza treadmills have a very good track records.  That includes the motor, computer, belt and deck.

Extended Warranty — All the treadmills come with an industry leading lifetime motor, 5-year parts and 2-year labor warranty. The coverage even applies to their $999 model, the Siesta Treadmill. This extensive coverage suggests these treadmills are both low maintenance and reliable.

What Joe Alter also mentioned is that the focus of the Yowza treadmills is to provide a solid machine at a value price.  You won't find any frills like built-in TVs, audio coaching by celebrity fitness trainers, access to online journals or video displays on the console.  The investment is in reliability and providing the user with the best walking, jogging or running machine for the price.

Yowza Treadmill Features...

Transformer Deck Design — Found on their Osprey and Sebring, the Transformer treadmills offers the solid and stable benefits of a non-folding treadmill in a treadmill that can fold. Folding treadmills use a sub-frame that compromises the stability. With the Transformer models the entire frame raises and lower, giving you a much more stable running surface than you will find on typical folding treadmills.

Intelligent Weight Managment — The company realized the weight management is an overriding concern for individuals who buy fitness equipment. The Intelligent Weight Management feature allows you to manage your weight by defining your exercise routine based on your weight gain or loss. In a nutshell you get a weight scale that downloads your weight and body mass stats to the treadmill. Press Start and IWM will adjust your workout time, speed and incline automatically to make you burn a pre-prescribed amount of calories all based on real-time data.

Simple Assembly — Several of the models require minimal assembly.  You lift up the console, add a couple of screws and you are done.

Speakers and iPod Docking Station — Speakers in treadmills are becoming fairly common, but not all systems are the same.  Joe Alter mentioned he wanted speakers that weren't an embarrassment like so many other treadmill sound systems.  I would rank these speaker systems as above average in quality and sound. The higher price models have iPod docking stations rather that MP3 plus-ins. The direct docking stations offer better sound quality.

Swing Arm Shock Absorption — The majority of Yowza treadmills use their patented Swing Arm Shock Absorption. There are rocker arms towards the front the deck that acts like hydraulics. As you stride the deck you can visibly see it give with the impact, reducing the shock to your body. As your foot moves down the deck you get a solid push-off towards the rear. In addition there are a series of rubber grommets, called elastometers, that run the length of the deck to further absorb the shock.

Our Review — Yowza Treadmills

Yowza treadmills are primarily about substance. Considering the track record for their comparable models in other countries, you are probably getting some of the most reliable machines in their category.   That is because the focus is on quality components and not a bunch of frills that most people won't use. 

The other consideration is that Yowza Fitness is a pure play factory direct seller.  They don't have to inflate their prices to match resellers.  There is some savings, however it is not the 26%-44% they suggest on the site.

I've known Joe Alter for a number of years, and I've met the manufacturers from Taiwan.  Knowing their past commitments to providing a quality machine at a value price, I would say Yowza treadmills will match or surpass the competition in their price range.

Learn more at YowzaTreadmills.com.

Yowza Treadmill Reviews:

• Yowza Daytona Treadmill
• Yowza Osprey Treadmill
• Yowza Siesta Treadmill