I know what you’re thinking—why waste money (and space) on one of the best home treadmill machines when you can just slip on your sneakers and pound the sidewalk?

The fact is, the best treadmill for homes can have advantages over outdoor exercise.

These include:

• Safety—remaining within the home can prevent the dangers of injury through running on uneven surfaces, personal attack in poorly lit areas, and risk of accident from vehicles.
• Convenience—you can do it at any time, whatever the weather, wearing anything you wish, and can stop whenever you want without having to walk all the way home again.
• Reduces impact—many treadmills have cushioned belts which can alleviate the chance of injury—running on concrete is high impact and can damage the knees and ankles.
• Paranoia—if you’re concerned about others watching you as you exercise, especially if you’re starting out on your fitness journey—running in the comfort of your own home can relieve self-consciousness.
• Likelihood of exercise—you’re possibly more likely to exercise if there’s a treadmill in front of you, rather than having to make your way to the gym or donning your outside exercising attire.

You may hear the argument that running outside expends more energy than using a treadmill. This is due to the fact that outdoor exercise has the added resistance of the wind as you run, whereas indoors, although your legs are moving, the rest of your body remains in a single place.

However, a recent study indicated that if your treadmill has an incline feature, just raising the belt by one percent replicates the wind resistance and you receive the same health benefits.