If Using A Treadmill Feels Like Torture…

You might not be far wrong:

Tread carefully!

According to this video, treadmills were created in 1818 by English engineer Sir William Cubitt, as a way to discipline prisoners while also providing useful labor during Britain’s economic difficulties following the Napoleonic Wars.

How this labor was useful: prisoners stepped on 24 spokes of a large paddle wheel, continually climbing as it rotated to avoid falling, while the rotation powered gears used to pump water, crush grain, or operate mills, which gave the device its name.

Cathedral-builders using treadmills in 1275 might have an opinion on the idea of them being invented in the 19th century, but nevertheless, within a decade of their industrial-era adoption, treadmills were operating in more than 50 English prisons and a similar number in America, while the combination of intense exertion and poor nutrition caused many prisoners to suffer physical breakdowns and, of course, injuries.

Treadmills remained in English prisons until the late 19th century, when they were banned as excessively cruel under the Prison Act of 1898.

But what of the modern treadmill? That came around in the 1950s, enjoying a surge of popularity in the 1970s. The most important difference, of course, is that you can decide when to get off, and won’t be mangled in a waterwheel if you run out of stamina!

For more on all of this, see:

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Take care!