The Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation is an ideal low-impact cardio machine if you’re looking to stay active while working a desk job. While all of the products in our guide to the best treadmills guide can be used for both running and walking, there are some machines that are meant for walking only, and this is one of them.
Walking treadmills tend to have a much slower maximum speed, no handlebar and a smaller tread belt. They’re usually much cheaper than standard running machines and can be stored away under furniture when not in use. If you already own one of the best standing desks, the Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation Slim Flat Treadmill could be slotted beneath it for a walking workout as you type or answer video calls.
Sunny Health & Fitness treadmills are known for being budget-friendly, though sometimes they do cut corners in terms of design and build quality. In our Walkstation Slim Flat Treadmill review, we look at both of those areas, including the spec, benefits, and user reviews to see what customers think of it.
Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation Slim Flat Treadmill review: Spec
- MSRP: $423.99
- Dimensions: 50L x 21.5W x 6.5H"
- Weight: 55.1lbs
- Tread belt size: 39L x 14W”
- Max user weight: 220lbs
- Speed: 0.5-3.75mph
- Incline: None
Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation Slim Flat Treadmill review: Overview
When you're busy at work, finding time to get some exercise can be a challenge. That's where the Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation Slim Fat Treadmill comes in. It’s lightweight and portable design gives you the freedom to position it wherever you want, including under your height adjustable desk
As with the majority of walking machines, this ready-assembled piece of apparatus has no handlebar. The maximum speed is also much lower than traditional running machines, so there’s no handlebar.
Sunny Health & Fitness still recommends positioning the machine close to a stable object in case you need to regain your balance. You can also operate the Walkstation Slim Fat Treadmill via remote control, which is a cool touch.
For other home exercise content, we’d also recommend our guide to the best home gyms for proper weight training.
Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation Slim Flat Treadmill review: Design
For obvious reasons, walking machines designed to be placed under a desk need to be as compact as possible, and this model is one of the slimmest we've come across. It measures just 21.5 inches wide.
While having a narrower tread belt could be an issue on a traditional running machine, it isn’t a concern here as you’ll just be using it for walking. The Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation Slim Flat Treadmill is also only 6.5 inches high, so it can be stored under your bed. To move it, simply tilt the machine and roll it away using the attached transportation wheels.
The Walkstation also has built-in shock absorbers. Not only should these make exercising more comfortable, they should also help protect your knees, feet and joints from long-term damage.
In our experience, not many walking machines enable you to increase the incline, and sadly this one doesn't either. With a tame 1.5 peak horsepower motor, we’re not surprised. If an incline more is important to you, take a look at our ProForm SmartPRO 9000 review instead.
Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation Slim Flat Treadmill review: Features
Walking is one of the best forms of exercise you can get, and it’s accessible for a wide range of people. According to the Arthritis Foundation, taking a daily stroll helps to improve your blood circulation, strengthen your muscles, and lighten your mood.
Operating at speeds of up to 3.75mph, the Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation Slim Fat Treadmill is capable of giving you a decent walking workout. Although, as previously mentioned, it doesn’t give you the opportunity to walk at an incline. So you’re just on the flat here, which won’t be enough for you long-term as your walking stamina increases.
While there's no eye-level display, there is a 14 x 5” digital monitor at the front of the machine. This enables you to keep track of the time you've spent walking, along with your speed, distance, number of steps and the calories burned.
This kind of information is handy for charting your fitness activity and monitoring your progress if you're following a long-term health plan. Being displayed at ground level is not ideal, though, especially if you have a vision condition that makes it difficult to read from a distance. In that case, we’d recommend using one of the best fitness trackers for monitoring your walking workout instead.
For safety, the Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation Slim Fat Treadmill boasts a non-slip surface. There’s also an emergency stop clip for when you need to halt the motor abruptly. The machine will also switch itself off after 10 minutes of non-use, saving power.
Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation Slim Flat Treadmill review: Benefits
Since it enables you to walk while you work, the Walkstation is ideal for people who lead busy lives and who need to kill two birds with one stone by exercising while working. That’s fine, but don’t forget the importance of taking regular breaks from work. For one, it’ll help you avoid digital eye strain and headaches.
The data provided by the digital monitor will come in handy if you're trying to complete a certain amount of steps each day. And the aforementioned shock absorbers could be an asset if you suffer from joint pain, though the jury is out on how effective these are during long-term use.
Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation Slim Flat Treadmill review: User reviews
This walking treadmill hasn't yet received a huge amount of user reviews, but the majority of those who have left a comment have been favorable.
On Amazon, the Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation Slim Fat Treadmill has been rated over 300 times and has an average score of 4.3 out of 5 stars, with 70% of users giving it the maximum 5-star rating.
The product fares even better on the Sunny Health & Fitness website, scoring 4.9 out of 5 stars, but we always recommend being sceptical of reviews posted on the brand’s own site.
Among those who gave the Walkstation a 5-star rating was a user who suffers from severe back and neck pain from sitting at a desk all day. “I've used this treadmill for a week. I have it set up under my desk and now walk while I work twice a day. It's changed my life! I feel a lot better and I've noticed I don't slouch as much any more.”
Another user was almost as gushing in their praise. Giving the product 4 out of 5 stars they wrote: “I use this for walking while working and love it. It's easy to use and doesn't require assembly. I can easily move it against the wall when I'm done.”
But one commentator was far less complimentary, rating it a low 2 out of 5 stars and claiming that the product is just too small. “The treadmill is so narrow! I am not even a big guy – I am barely 5'8. I am concerned that there may be harm to ergonomics and health of walking on such a treadmill.”
This is definitely something to keep in mind if you are tall, or have long legs. The Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation Slim Fat Treadmill has a maximum weight capacity of 220lbs, so it won’t support heavier body weights either. For a treadmill with a high weight capacity, read our Bowflex BXT216 review.
Should you buy the Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation Slim Flat Treadmill?
If you're content with exercising at a walking pace, the Sunny Health & Fitness Walkstation is worth trying as long as you are fully aware of its drawbacks. Chief among these is the lack of an incline mode, so you can’t use it for hiking training. It’s also narrow and not built to support weights of over 220lbs.
The positives include it’s affordable price, and how compact, lightweight and portable it is. Features such as a non-slip surface and an emergency stop clip are pretty standard but welcome. The remote-control function is handy too, as you can operate the machine without having to keep bending down.
If, however, you want to be able to run as well as walk, then you'll need to consider a more traditional running machine, most of which are not designed to fit under a desk. For the best in class right now, read our NordicTrack Commercial 1750 Treadmill review.
