The treadmill is one of the most popular pieces of fitness equipment in commercial gyms worldwide. And while treadmills and functional fitness don’t typically go hand in hand (any WOD that calls for running can be done without a treadmill) this convenient machine lets you do running WODs indoors when it’s too cold/hot/wet/inconvenient to run outdoors, but you still want to get your endurance training in.

Travel: Treadmills are also common in hotel gyms, making them an ideal cardio option when you’re traveling (also check out these dumbbell WODs and bodyweight WODs for some great hotel workouts with limited or no equipment).

Motorized Versus Non-motorized Treadmills: For the most part, the treadmills that you see in cardio rooms of big box gyms are the motorized kind—the standard electric treadmills that have hundreds of settings and use electricity to run the belt. The functional fitness movement brought non-motorized treadmills (think TrueForm Runners and Assault AirRunners) to the scene. These treadmills are controlled by the movements and force of the athlete using it—i.e. no electricity.