Is marching in place the poor man's treadmill?

I mean, in both cases you're going nowhere fast, right?

Back story short: My beloved Smooth Fitness 5.15 treadmill (above — seen both in the video and my picture in the upper right); long since discontinued) finally died last month, after nearly four years of faithful service, on average 4-6 hours daily seven days a week.

The guy who came by about once a year to replace the odd exhausted component said it was amazing it worked so well for so long — especially since I never lubricated the belt or removed the masses of dog/cat fur + dust he'd find each time he came by and opened up its innards.

Smooth's replacement model, the 5.45, looks a lot nicer but doesn't offer the same bulky frame and console that made the 5.15 such an excellent treadmill workspace armature.

So I've been working here at the computer for the past month atop the treadmill's now still bed, with a gel-filled mat between my bare feet and the machine.

Comfy enough,  but I'm finding working while standing still to be not nearly as energizing as walking at my customary 1.0 mph.

Then the penny dropped: what if I walk in place?

Consider: With "Slumdog Millionaire" still on endless rotation on my boom box there's plenty to march along to; no electricity cost; no need to drop another fat chunk of change on a new treadmill that esthetically doesn't do a whole lot for my living room; and possibly a whole new movement....

I'm all over it.