Start by measuring the size of desk you want to custom fit for your treadmill. What you see here are the measurements that you’ll need. You’ll need from the arms from the inside and the outside and the depth.
Visit your local hardware store like Home Depot or Lowes, to purchase your material. You’ll find your choice of plywood in the lumber isle.
There are different thicknesses of the plywood, but I recommend going for the ½ inch thickness. The 2ft by 4ft pieces are already cut for you
You’ll also need to purchase Velcro to tie down your desk to the treadmill and a good idea is to buy a non-slip pad for your laptop
These are all the basic tools you will need to build your treadmill desk.
Drill: for drilling in the holes for your Velcro tie-downs
Pencil: drawing out your design
Jigsaw: for cutting out your design
Tape Measurer: for measuring out the midpoint of your desk to make sure its symmetrical
Safety Goggles: most important thing you need to keep safe while cutting wood. Sanding Block: for sanding out all the rough edges when you are done!
Now we’ll get into designing the desk, but first, take your measuring tape and figure out the midpoint of the plywood.
My desk is 48 inches so I will mark the center at 24 inches. This is important to make sure the board is centered on the treadmill.
Here comes the fun part: making your own design!
Place your board on the treadmill
Line up the center of the treadmill with the center mark you just made. This will make sure there is an equal amount of desk on each side.
With another person or a clamp if you have it to secure the board to the treadmill as you sketch out the design. Make sure that midpoint you drew earlier lines up to the middle of the dashboard.
Start making marks where you want to cut.
For my design, I made sure that there was a space for the safety key so its not obstructed
I also rounded out the corners to avoid sharp edges
Now I need to mark a large semicircle so I can comfortably reach the treadmill controls still allowing space for a laptop and away from the back of the treadmill. Don’t worry! These don’t have to be perfect ~
Once you’re done with sketching the cutouts, take it to your workspace and clean up your markings. I used a trashcan lid and bucket to make better outlines.
Once that’s done, put on your safety glasses, pick up the jigsaw and start cutting away!
Take your board back to the treadmill and center it on the treadmill. I used a clamp so it didn’t move.
Now mark the arm location underneath the board using the tip of your pencil and running it along the side each handle. This will be the place for the Velcro strap cutouts that secures the board to the handles.
You’ll want to do this step after making all your first cutouts since it may change how the board sits on the arms of your treadmill.
Now were back at the workbench
Next, you’ll need to cut 4 slots for the Velcro strap. Using the marks, you made for the arm location, drill 2 holes one inch apart for each slot
Take the jigsaw and cut a space connecting the holes to make a slot for the Velcro to go through
You may want to drill these slightly away from your markings so the Velcro is easier to tighten.
After you’re done with that, start sanding out all the imperfections and pencil marks
Voila! and you’re done!
I hope you find these instructions helpful in making your own treadmill desk. Have Fun! :)
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