Best Windows 10 apps for the Treadmill

Treadmills offer a great alternative for those in which outdoor runs are not practical for health or geographic reason. The Windows 10 apps that can help maximize your treadmill time range from popular running apps that have indoor or treadmill settings to entertainment options to help make up for the lack of outdoor scenery. These are the best treadmill apps for Windows 10.

Update April 8, 2017: We have made a few changes to this article based on new releases, reader's input or staff debate. There are some new titles in the mix, as well as those that we continue to view as the best from the Windows Store. Let's look at how things have changed!

Runtastic

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Runtastic

While Runtastic may be a more traditional Windows 10 Mobile app for managing your outdoor runs or distance activities, it does a good job of charting your treadmill runs. Runtastic charts your distance, time, pace, calories burned and more.

At your disposal are four workout types that include:

  • Basic Workout: This mode tracks the basic statistics for your activity.
  • Interval Workout: Select from an assortment of preloaded interval workouts or create your own.
  • Training Plans: Choose from a variety of training plans that focus on weight loss, marathon training and more.
  • Story Running: If you need a distraction from the workout, Runtastic offers a selection of immersive audio stories where you take on the role of the protagonist of the storyline.

Please keep in mind that some of these workout features require an in-app purchase and/or an upgrade to Runtastic Pro ($4.99).

Along with being a capable Windows 10 app for the treadmill, Runtastic is a feature rich option to consider if your workouts include activities such as cycling, kayaking, hiking and more. Key features that span the full activity spectrum include GPS tracking, social network support for sharing your activities on Facebook, Twitter or Runtastic.com, hydration monitoring and more.

Tracking covers the basics and includes the ability to note your mood, the temperature of the day, surface details, personal notes, and photographs. Activity history is available through the app to chart your progress, and by signing up for a free Runtastic account, you can review your activity history online.

Runtastic is a solid running app for those who spend more time on the track, bike path or hiking trail than in the gym.

Download Runtastic from the Windows Store

Endomondo Sports Tracker

Endomondo Sports Tracker

While it is disappointing that Endomondo has put development of a Windows 10 app on hold, their Windows Phone 8.1 app remains one of the best fitness apps available in the Windows Store.

The free app tracks almost any distance-based exercise such as running, bicycling and kayaking. The app also tracks and charts your time on the treadmill. Endomondo tracks the time spent on the treadmill, along with distance, calories burned and you can establish a duration or distance goal for each workout. You can even compete against a friend to see who outlasts the other on the treadmill.

Performance data can be reviewed for historical analysis with the option to maintain a training diary where you can jot down notes on issues the app doesn't track (e.g. legs are sorer today, can feel the pain, rained today during the run, etc.).

The free Windows 10 Mobile app offers a level of convenience during your workouts. If you need to review performance data from a big screen, you can create a free Endomondo account and access all your fitness data online at Endomondo.com. We hope Endomondo resumes development of a Windows 10 update for their app, but in the meantime, the original app remains a solid option.

Download Endomondo Sports Tracker from the Windows Store

Netflix

Netflix

Treadmill workouts can be a little tedious, walking long distances without moving an inch. The Netflix Windows 10 app can add a little zip to your step and make your treadmill time more enjoyable

Available for Windows 10 PC and Mobile, the Netflix app delivers the world's largest subscription service for watching television episodes and movies to your devices. Netflix requires a paid subscription, but offers a vast range of TV series and movie titles that can help a treadmill run go a little quicker.

The layout isn't overly complicated, offering the ability to search for titles, rate TV shows and movies and tag titles as favorites for easy reference. If you get hooked on a movie during the time on a treadmill, you can pause playback and resume watching on a larger screen after you hit the showers.

Download Netflix from the Windows Store

Treadmill Assistant

Treadmill Assistant

There was a time where workouts were charted using paper and pencil (pen if you were daring). Treadmill Assistant is a Windows 10 Mobile app designed to replace the paper and pencil method of charting your treadmill workouts, making it easy to record distance, duration, and notes on your runs.

Treadmill Assistant

The free app also tracks your progress by providing run stats that can be filtered to a specific date range, as well as charted for visual effect. Compared to the likes of Endomondo Sports Tracker, Treadmill Assistant takes a more minimalist approach to fitness tracking, which some may find more appealing.

It's a simple and effective way to track your treadmill sessions and is available for Windows 10 Mobile and Windows Phone 8.1.

Download Treadmill Assistant from the Windows Store

QR: Treadmill Assistant

Groove Music

Groove Music

While the treadmill is convenient, it can easily be one of the most boring ways to stay fit. You can use it rain or shine, but you need something to take your mind off the monotony of running in place. While Netflix offers you television shows and movies to help spice up your treadmill runs, if listening to music is more your cup of tea there is Groove.

Groove is already installed on your Windows 10 device and has support for playlists, random shuffle playback, and a built-in iHeartRadio feature. You can also use your OneDrive account to deliver tunes to your PC, Xbox, tablet and smartphone.

If you need to build up your music library, new tunes are available from the Windows Store, or you can pick up a Groove Music Pass to instantly stream and download more music than you can shake a stick at. The music pass is currently priced at $9.99 per month, $29.97 for three months and $99.90 annually.

Download Groove Music from the Windows Store

Fitness Bands

Garmin Vivosmart HR+

While they aren't Windows 10 apps, we'd be remiss to not include them here. Fitness bands are a great way to track your time on the treadmill. Plus, the leading two fitness bands do have feature-rich Windows 10 apps to chart and track your activities.

Garmin and Fitbit offer an assortment of fitness bands that track your daily steps, heart rate, sleep cycles, runs, steps climbed and more. Popular models include the Garmin Vivosmart HR+, the Fitbit Charge 2 and the Fitbit Blaze, each very capable of keeping pace with your treadmill runs. Both systems also offer a connected scale to make it easy to document your weight loss and harder to cheat at manually entering daily weigh-ins.

Fitbit Charge 2

Both Garmin and Fitbit offer Windows 10 apps to monitor your activities, as well as online access to your records. Each app charts your daily activities and allows you to review a historical perspective on things. Fitbit offers a dietary component that tracks what you eat during the day.

Both Garmin and Fitbit offer a ton of features to track and analyze your fitness activities. I give Fitbit the edge when it comes to appearance and design, but for me, the Garmin wins out for me due to the better water resistance rating (helps when I'm out on the lake). Should Fitbit ever offer a device that can hold up to water sports, then the decision gets a lot harder to make.

George Ponder

George is the Reviews Editor at Windows Central, concentrating on Windows 10 PC and Mobile apps. He's been a supporter of the platform since the days of Windows CE and uses his current Windows 10 Mobile phone daily to keep up with life and enjoy a game during down time.