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You don’t need speed to succeed. Learn how an incline grade of 22% or 27% can get you a killer workout in this review of the Xebex Trekker 4000.
Updated: May 16, 2024
The Xebex Trekker 4000 Treadmill isn’t your typical treadmill. It isn’t motorized. It’s manual but it doesn’t have a curved slat belt. The Trekker 4000 is not optimized for endurance running or sprint intervals unless you happen to be a vertical or sky runner. The Trekker 4000 has two incline settings: 22% and 27%. It has “speed levels” number 0 to 9 that reduce the resistance applied to the belt to help you speed up. The Xebex Trekker 4000 is an incline manual treadmill with a flat belt designed for athletes who want to hike, trek, and sled push. In this review of the Xebex Trekker 40000 Treadmill, I’ll help you decide if you are ready for this intense workout.
The Xebex Trekker 4000 feels very stable for its compact size. It has a 5-year warranty on its frame and just 1 year for parts. It doesn’t quite meet the industry standards of 10 years for the frame and 2 years for parts. While I’m happy with the construction overall, there are a few areas I think could be improved. However, the Trekker $4000 is considerably more affordable than curved manual treadmills and motorized incline treadmills.
The Xebex Trekker 4000 has a steel frame. It weighs up to 101.4 lbs and can support a maximum user weight of 265 lbs. I was a little disappointed by the weight capacity. The industry standard is 300 lbs. This is the type of treadmill I would like to use a weighted vest with. Unfortunately, it doesn’t leave much room for many users to add weight. It also excludes many athletes.
There is no motor on the Xebex Trekker 4000. You are the motor powering the belt and setting its speed. The speed is limited to around 3.7 mph or 6 kph for safety. If you push hard enough, you can slightly override the speed limit, but that’s not necessary for getting a quality workout. There are 10 speed levels numbered 0 to 9. 0 has the most resistance and moves the slowest. 9 has the least resistance and moves pretty quickly. The resistance is created by a generator, not magnets like most other manual treadmills use.
Before you worry that 3.7 mph is not fast enough, consider this study by Gidley and Lankford (2021) which had participants self-select a speed while walking up a 20% incline. The average speed chosen was 2.37 mph. Compared to walking at 3 mph on a flat grade, walking at a 20% incline at the selected speed increased rate of perceived exertion by 66%, heart rate by 69%, and oxygen consumption by 38% on average. To put it simply, walking at an incline is more difficult than walking on a flat surface even if you slow down. Add on top of that the extra challenge of moving a manual treadmill belt with resistance levels, and you have one difficult workout on the Xebex Trekker 4000.
The running surface is 18 inches wide and 51 inches long. The length feels appropriate for the slow speed most users will be at during their training. The width may feel a little narrow for some users but is on par with other manual treadmills.
This manual treadmill has a traditional flat belt as opposed to a curved manual treadmill belt. It feels pretty firm, but I don’t think a treadmill like this needs too much cushioning. The firm surface helps you get more traction and provides more support as you sled push.
The Xebex Trekker 4000 is a folding treadmill. It has unfolded dimensions of 60” x 28” x 60”. When folded it shrinks to just 35” x 28” x 60”. That’s 40% less floor space taken up! The Xebex Trekker 4000 is not too hard to move around. It has transport wheels, and you can use the handles to help you tilt it back and roll it around.
The folding mechanism has a pneumatic cylinder to softly lower the deck to the ground. The treadmill locks into place with a pin. You can just pull the pin to release the deck, but the deck will fall very quickly until about ? of the way down.
The Xebex Trekker 4000 is permanently inclined. However, you can change how steep the incline is by adjusting the support bar under the deck. Extending this bar fully lifts the deck to a 22% incline. If you push the bar all the way down, the treadmill will be at a 27% incline. Both inclines are very challenging. The steeper incline makes it easier to get the belt moving because gravity is helping you, but it is also more challenging to walk up the steep grade at a faster pace. The 22% incline makes it harder to rotate the belt but is slightly less challenging to walk up. Both incline grades have their purposes.
I could use a few more features on the Xebex Trekker. It doesn’t have quite the versatility that the Bells of Steel Dreadmill has. Yet, the Trekker 4000 has the essentials. I like its features for short workouts the most.
The only feature I felt that I was lacking was storage in the form of a phone holder and cup holder. Keeping water on hand would be useful during a taxing workout on the Trekker 4000. You don’t necessarily need a phone holder to watch content because you want to stay concentrated on your training. But, having your phone nearby is useful for exercisers who like to listen to music while they work out. For me, it adds the extra motivation I need to tackle the Trekker’s steep incline.
The console has program buttons, buttons for adjusting the treadmill speed level, and starting and stopping a workout. The console is LCD and shows your interval time, time, distance, watts, calories, heart rate, pace, speed, and resistance level. The console’s distance and speed parameters default to the metric system with kph and km. The screen is not backlit so it may be hard to see in low-light conditions. It is battery-powered and will activate when you press a button or walk on the treadmill. It times out on its own.
The Xebex Trekker has substantial sled push and looped handles. These handles help you get more traction on the belt as you sled push, walk backward, or do more dynamic drills. The handles feel very sturdy and easy to grip.
The user manual for the Xebex Trekker 4000 demonstrates that it can connect to a heart rate monitor. Unfortunately, it does not specify which type of heart rate monitor it connects to. I was unable to connect my Garmin watch. Based on this console’s similarity to the Bells of Steel console, I guess that it could connect to 5 kHz heart rate monitors. If I can confirm this connectivity, I will update this review.
The Xebex Trekker 4000 Treadmill is very challenging. I was very appreciative of the handles for their support. The Trekker is very versatile with its built-in training programs and speed resistance. The steep incline can be easily converted from 22% to 27%. The 22% incline is called Hike mode while the 27% incline is called Trek mode. Both are very challenging. The 27% incline makes keeping a faster pace at lower speed levels easier, but it is harder to keep up with the belt. The 22% incline is great for keeping a slow and steady pace or sled pushing.
I was most surprised by the Xebex Trekker 4000’s compact size and light weight. I expected something bulkier and sturdier. The Trekker 4000 felt very stable to me, but the weight capacity is only 265 lbs which surprised me. If you also expected something burlier, check out the Xebex SledTrac 5000 and 6000. The Trekker 4000 is the better option for users with small spaces and who need to stick to a budget. I really liked how easy it was to move around.
Five preset training programs, six user-defined programs, interval workouts, and target programs give the Xebex Trekker 4000 many training possibilities. You can use any of these training options. The built-in training programs only last 5 minutes. The Trekker is challenging so these programs are a great place for beginners to start. I was wiped out after a 10-minute workout. The Trekker 4000 is a great alternative to a long traditional treadmill workout.
The built-in training programs work by automatically adjusting your speed level. The incline level does not vary since you have to adjust it manually. The Trekker 4000 doesn’t really have a “rest” interval. You are constantly working up a steep incline just at a slower speed.
The user-defined programs allow you to customize your own training program. You are limited to a 5-minute timeframe. Interval workouts include Tabata, reverse Tabata, and custom intervals. Target programs include target time, distance, and calories.
The Xebex Trekker 4000 is great for hiking, trekking, sled pushing, and more. It has built-in training programs and customizable programs. You can adjust the incline from 22% to 27%. The Trekker is compact and easy to move around, but, a tradeoff of this design is the 265 maximum weight capacity. Yet, its build feels sturdy and durable. There are multiple speed levels to adjust your training intensity from fast to higher resistance as you train. The Xebex Trekker 4000 is a treadmill for exercisers who are ready to leave traditional cardio behind.
