Tru Grit Grit Runner Elite Review

Who this treadmill is for

The Grit Runner Elite is a manual curved treadmill from Tru Grit Fitness. It's for somebody who wants to train on a treadmill, not just walk on one, and who needs it to hold up. I'm 6'5" and 275 pounds. The home treadmills I'd tried before weren't built for my size. They'd shake, and I felt like I was going to break them.

I should say up front that I'm not a runner. I've never been a runner. I'm a pro wrestler who wanted to get better at running and wanted one cardio machine that could do more than one job in a single car garage gym.

If you mostly want to walk and watch a big screen, this probably isn't your treadmill. I'll explain why below.

How I've used it for a year

I started simple. In the first eight days I ran a mile a day on it, one mile at a time, with no resistance. Since then I've walked on it, jogged on it, done sprints as short as 15 seconds and runs as long as 60 minutes, and done a lot of sled-style pushing with the resistance turned up.

Over the year I'd say I averaged about three times a week. Some weeks less, some weeks a lot more.

I like that I can just hop on and go. It's not motorized, so there's nothing to turn on and nothing to plug in. The console runs on batteries, and half the time I don't even look at it because I've got a clock running in the gym.

The resistance is what sets it apart

There are four levels of resistance, and they're the reason I'd pick this over other curved treadmills. With most of them you can run and you can sprint, and that's all you can do.

Level one is the base. Level two is a little harder to move, like running slightly uphill. From two to three there's a big jump, like a steeper hill. Level four turns it into a sled push. It's not a heavy sled, you can go heavier with a real one, but it mimics a light sled push or pull.

I can sprint easy on one. I haven't been able to just start sprinting on four. You have to stop, gather yourself and push to get the belt moving. So now I've basically got a sled and a treadmill in the same footprint, and in a small gym that matters a lot.

Backward walking and my knees

My favorite thing to do on it a year in is put it on level four, turn around and walk backwards. If you've heard of the knees over toes guy, that's one of the things he prescribes.

Early on I was doing five minutes forward and then five minutes backward at level four. Over the last year I've noticed a huge difference in my knee strength and my knee pain. At my age, the more knee support I can get, the better.

How it feels under a big guy

The first time I stepped on it I expected what I'd felt on other curved treadmills, which is that the belt takes off and you feel like you're going to fall. This one doesn't do that. The belt is smooth but it isn't too fast, so you can step on and walk before you run.

It feels solid under your feet. No shaking at all. The tread is 17.3 inches wide, and I was a little worried about that because I've got a wide stance, but I've had plenty of room on both sides. On length there are no issues either, but there isn't any extra room for a guy my size.

Somebody asked me about the belt surging or hesitating, because cheaper treadmills tend to do that. I never had an unwanted surge. The belt does feel different when you change resistance levels, but that's the whole point of them.

One small thing. If you go barefoot, you'll probably get pinched a little between the slats.

Your calves are going to be on fire

This is the thing nobody tells you. In that first week my calves lit up about a minute and a half into every run, mostly down low in the soleus. The first day I didn't feel like I could walk afterwards.

It's the nature of a manual curved treadmill. You're pushing the belt yourself, and you're not used to it. My wife's calves lit up the first time she used it too. It also comes back if you take a week or two off.

It's like lifting too heavy one day and being sore the next. You recover, you get used to it, and then it's not a problem anymore.

Size, noise and moving it around

It's 66 inches long, 31.5 inches wide and 55.5 inches tall, so about 14.5 square feet of floor. I was a little concerned about that in a single car garage, but it wasn't as big as I thought it would be. The commercial motorized treadmill I'd been considering would have taken over the whole space.

It weighs 291 pounds, so it's not light. But there's a handle on the back and wheels on the front, and you're never moving the full weight of it.

It isn't loud. I can walk on it and still hear a YouTube video over my gym speakers without headphones. With my air bike or my rower I need the headphones. It does get louder when you run.

I got asked about putting one in a basement. It would be fine, it's just heavy, so get a buddy. It's easiest before you assemble it, but the uprights also come off with a couple of bolts on each side if you need to move it later.

Console, phone holder and tracking

The console is simple, and that's fine with me. It shows wattage, speed, pace and distance, and you can switch between miles and kilometers. It has Bluetooth and ANT+. I haven't used either because I track my workouts on my Apple Watch.

On distance, running it was right in line with my watch. I'd run a mile and the watch said 0.99. Walking was a different story. I walked a mile on the console and the watch said 0.75.

The phone holder is one of my two gripes. It holds my iPhone fine, and a standard Kindle fits. My iPad Pro won't. It's a phone holder, I get it, but on a long run a bigger screen would be nice. One more thing I noticed early on is that it's tight enough to press the side buttons on your phone if you set it in sideways.

The water bottle holder is on the outside of the left upright, which I like. You can grab it and keep going.

Delivery and assembly

Delivery was simple. The shipping company texted me, I picked a four hour window, and they showed up on time and brought it right into my garage. It ships at 335 pounds.

Assembly is seven steps, and the tools are in the box. The uprights hang on little notches while you put the screws in, which makes it a one person job. The one spot I'd want a helper is lifting the base out of the box.

If I hadn't been filming, I could have had it together in under 30 minutes. It even came with the four AA batteries for the console.

How it's held up after a year

It's as good as new. It's a little dirty and I need to clean it, but that's it. It doesn't feel like it's getting loose, the treads aren't getting worn, and it isn't getting stiffer.

I haven't done any maintenance. Tru Grit sends a little container of grease for the treads, and I've never used it. I actually don't even know where it is.

The warranty is lifetime on the frame and the resistance belts, five years on the tread and three years on the console.

The catches

The one that's a real issue for me is the resistance lever. It sits on the inside of the handrail, and when I walk my right hand swings right into it. Early on it bruised my hand. It's not a problem when I run, because my hands are higher. I've learned to adjust, and my wife doesn't have the problem at all, so it may just be a wide guy thing. Tru Grit, put it on the outside next time.

The other catch is cost. This is a real investment, and it only pays off if it gets used.

How it compares, and would I buy it again

People ask about the Assault Runner. It's a very similar build. The two differences for me are the resistance levels, which the Assault Runner doesn't have, and the belt speed. Every time I've been on an Assault Runner I've felt like I was going to fall. If you're not a skilled runner, the Grit Runner Elite is easier to use.

People also mix this up with the base Grit Runner, and a lot of the bad reviews out there are about that one. I haven't had much experience with the base model. The resistance on the Elite is better, and the console is bigger and sits closer to you.

A year in, I'd highly recommend it. I don't see myself replacing it or upgrading from it. If you're a bigger guy, or you want a treadmill and a sled in one spot, this is the one I'd tell you to look at.