It is only with extreme reluctance that outdoor runners move their workouts inside the gym during unbearable winter temperatures. After feeling the freedom of the open outdoors, the enclosed space and humid air of indoor exercise inspires little other than claustrophobia and despair. There are many reasons track and trail runners loathe the treadmill, including difficulty setting pace and lack of exciting scenery, which often inspire runners to abandon their cardio exercise altogether. However, there is a better way.
Though the treadmill will never equate perfectly with a good outdoor route on a sunny day, there are ways to make a treadmill workout work for you. After you step into the gym, take these six steps to ensure your experience is a good one.
1. Suit Up
Outdoor runners typically own and regularly wear heavier clothing to combat the elements they encounter outside: precipitation, wind, colder temperatures, insects, and the like. However, wearing full leggings, long sleeves, and other outdoor gear makes for an uncomfortable gym experience no matter the intended activity. Even if it is snowing outside, the gym is going to be warm and humid, which means you are going to sweat more. Ditch your outdoor ensemble for wicking T-shirt and shorts, and try to clean the mud off your regular running shoes just for propriety’s sake.
2. Study Up
Higher-quality treadmills you usually find in the gym will probably have a built-in measurement system that can provide you with data like time, distance, pace, caloric burn, and heart rate which would be incredibly useful to runners — if the measurements were correct. Investigations report that exercise machines are unable to accurately make even simple calculations, like distance, and their devices for recording heart rate are difficult for regular people to use properly. Thus, if you want a reliable source of data to record your progress in the gym, make sure to bring your own devices. Pedometers and heart rate monitors aren’t expensive, and you can use them to drastically improve workouts both in and out of the gym.
3. Warm Up
When running outdoors along a path or trail, the body naturally awakens the muscles necessary for the activity; you probably feel slow at first, but once you become warm, you can continue at your regular pace. However, in the gym, runners can set the treadmill to start at their preferred pace, which robs the body of its necessary warming period. This can cause unexpected early fatigue as well as damage to delicate muscles, tendons, and ligaments that will bench runners for months.
There’s a better way. As soon as you step on the treadmill, walk for three minutes, incrementally building up speed. Then, begin to jog; by this point, you shouldn’t yet be running at your regular pace. Once you feel your muscles waking up, you can start with intervals: 20 seconds of slightly faster than regular pace followed by 40 seconds of jogging or walking. After three of these intervals, your body should be ready for a regular run.
4. Speed Up
Many outdoor runners find treadmills unsatisfying because it feels like less effort to achieve the same pace. In fact, treadmill runners are using less energy; an eight-minute mile run naturally boosts the heart rate to 150 beats per minute, while the same pace on a machine only gets the heart pumping 140 beats per minute.
However, this diminished exertion on the treadmill can actually help improve a runner’s form. You can practice running at a faster pace by increasing the length of your strides or taking more steps. Eventually, you will build up strength that will aid your outdoor running as well.
5. Run Up
Incline training targets different muscles, but many outdoor runners are hard-pressed to find appropriate hills and valleys to incorporate into their regular routes. One of the major advantages of running on a treadmill is the ability to create and control the grade of the running surface. Ambitious outdoor runners can experiment with various inclines, testing and building strength in their quads, glutes, and lower abs. In reality, running on a flat treadmill is more akin to running slightly downhill; most manufacturers encourage users to set their machines at one percent incline to achieve just a normal pace and natural movement.
