Why do some people choose to walk on treadmills at the gym?

Oh god I’m going to do this soon and already feel embarrassed about what people may think 😂😂😂 not enough to not go though.
I had an operation and I can’t lift weights or do anything except walk at the moment. Ds and I go to the gym together, he’s too young to go without me but he’s really missing it as much as I am. I said well go on Thursday, I can walk on the treadmill and maybe try the stairmaster while he works out.

I also only run inside on a treadmill as I once had a stress fracture from running and ended up miles away with no signal to call dh and had to hobble for about half a mile to the nearest road. I didn’t run for years and now I’ll do a 15 minute running warm up on the treadmill but I’m still a bit wary about running outside.

I choose a treadmill at a gym because I’ve been called names/approached by men while walking/jogging.

The gym has air-con, during the summer kts
too hot to walk/run outside in the heat.

It’s also flat and I can remain level at a consistent speed. I’m a clumsy person and have tripped/fallen over on uneven land.

I feel safer at a gym compared to walking/running outside on my own.

What are the treadmills for if not walking/running?
Yes, we could all exercise outside, but then treadmills/gyms wouldn't exist.

And there's many reasons people might not run (non-visible injuries/to avoid injuries in the future), and walking is the only other obvious exercise (I know there's the pushing when it's switched off one, but few people do that).

I've been raped and feel much safer in a brightly lit, public gym. In a rape survivors group many other survivors recommended it as a way to restart exercise and feel safer than being outside.

To cool down…

Hay fever

Because they are probably doing a weight session as well, so they get their steps and strength training done together. They may not get the chance to dedicate time to two separate sessions.

I quite often walk on the treadmill if it’s not a running day. I have it on a 3% incline and walk at 6mph for 30 minutes. It feels like a workout and then I can go straight to the cross trainer or weights.

To warm up?
that’s what Dh and I do.

I often wonder this. But I walk to the gym and forget some people drive there.

I use the treadmill to warm up and cool down. I have injuries so cannot run on the treadmill and cannot walk on an incline.

If I'm having a bad day (injury wise) it can be too painful to walk on the pavement as they are often uneven and where I live is hilly. Using the treadmill at home or at the gym means I can still get my steps in

Exactly.
Complete with "why do people use a machine exclusively designed for walking and running for those purposes"?

Say it like that op and you'll realise how silly your question is.

Perhaps the gym might not be in a dodgy area but where they live is.
Perhaps they work long hours so by the time they are home its already dark
Perhaps they have non obvious mobility issues
Perhaps it makes sense to them to do cardio, use machines, weights and showers all in one place rather than doing a gym work out and then going for a walk at a different time
Perhaps they go for walks outside as well!
Perhaps, given its out 5th heatwave in 2 months its been too hot to exercise outside for much of the summer so they got a gym membership and now want to get their use out of it
Perhaps they do like to watch TV etc while working out
Perhaps theyve had bad experiences with people being rude to them or men being inappropriate when exercising outdoors

Or, most relevant PERHAPS THEY JUST WANT TO!

I do long distance walk challenges - 50km+ - but live in a very flat area with no hills whereas the events are often in very hilly areas. So, treadmill walking on an incline while I'm building up to a long walk is as close as I can get.

When I used to go to the gym, my main exercise was walking on the treadmill. I would do an hour. I could read a book or watch a film and there's a nice little holder for my drink. None of that happens on an outside walk. Plus when I had enough I could just turn it off and be exactly where I started.

I did the whole of C25K on a treadmill! Then when I’d finished it I felt a lot more confident going for a run outside.

warm up
cool down
recovery
reaching their steps quota safely
and without being harassed or annoyed in the street
building up to a specific program
motivation because they find the street boring and they are going to the gym to do other exercise too
because they want to?

We have people who are active instead of slobbing on the sofa watching tv or their phone, and someone still manage to be negative?

Warming up and cooling down or just as a break after a jog/run.

Why shouldn’t they though, just because they’re young? They’ve paid for gym membership because they want to use the gym. Perhaps they like the air con if there is any, perhaps they like the social side of a gym rather than solo walking. Plus all the other things about consistent speed, consistent terrain, lack of obstacles, obstructions, dogs, sun.

Plus if it’s at the end of their gym session then clearly they are warming down in a consistent and controlled way, rather than using their walk home to do so.

I do it while I’m waiting for the teenagers to get off the weights machines that I want to use. May as well raise my heart rate while I wait and points in the right direction so I can leap into action when there’s a gap. Also my book is in a good spot so that works too. Are these acceptable reasons OP?

I like walking. I don't like running.

You've mentioned "walking" and "ambling" on a treadmill - do you think people should only run on them?
Or should there not be treadmills?
Not being "snitty", genuinely curious.

Oh my gawd you guys , why do
people use a gym when they can just go like outside ? Why are they using exercise bikes when you can just cycle outside . I don’t understand why people can’t lift lift tins of baked beans in the kitchen rather than taking up space in the gym

The brass bands who use the treadmills for rehearsals must go at a different time to you OP.

Maybe they’re gorgeous and want to show off in gym gear, maybe they want to watch other people walk in gym gear, maybe they’re sick of men in vans watching them walking outside, maybe they don’t like getting sweaty before a lecture, maybe . . .

Id struggle to run 10 min on a treadmill because id be bored, I could happily run for an hour outside. But not everyone likes to.
DD is starting c25k (she's 20) It involves walking and running. she feels self conscious running outside. She feels she can pace herself better on a treadmill and she uses it for a warm down or cool down if she's doing weights.