If you are looking to create a challenging yet enjoyable cardio workout on a treadmill then keep reading. This article will have everything you need to keep your workouts effective yet keeping wanting more.
The mistake that most people do when they use their treadmills, or rather when they start up a cardio workout on treadmill at all, is setting their expectations far too high. Some try to do a fast sprint that is way too fast for their current fitness level so they back it off to walking or else cut their workout short because it simply felt like too much work to do.
Running on a treadmill can be a deadly effective way to burn calories and over time excess weight. You just have to do in a systematic way that your body both handles well yet still gets challenged.
Emulating The Outdoors
Think of running outside. You don't just start running at a full sprint right away just to lose steam. In many cases you have to plan out your run because you're running a set distance. You have to get back home in a decent timeframe right? Treadmills are meant to emulate the outside running experience. You need to pick a distance, something reasonable, then stick to it.
One aspect that many people neglect is the incline of the treadmill. You will often see people in gyms with the incline at a really high rate yet they are walking. Even though it's completely fine, it's really not the best way to go about challenging themselves.
The incline should be combined with a light jog that increases the heart rate. The lower your heart rate is at higher inclines and high speed runs, the better fit you are. This is because your heart needs to pump blood through your body less frequently. If you're a bit out of shape you will notice that your heart pounds when you push yourself.
As you get used to faster and more challenging runs you will be able to push yourself more. Doing so will also push down your resting heart rate since your body will be more used to pumping blood in a more active body. When you have less activity and you do less cardio your resting heart rate will increase since your body will be more used to pumping blood through a less active body.
Pushing Yourself Past Your Limits
Once you get to the point where you can jog at a decent pace (whatever that is for you) at an incline you might want to try throwing in a bit of interval training. Most treadmills have features where you can select programs that better simulate being outside. In most cases you will experience hills as well as flat areas when running outdoors. So why not have a similar experience on your treadmill?
These exercises will typically have you run at a very high rate for a few minutes, then lower back down to a jog with or without an interval. This all depends on what you personally want out of your workout. This also helps in allowing you to have a little breather in between high intensity sprints. You are less likely to cut your workout short if you have small periods of lower intensity workout. So if you have a 40 minute interval run and hill climb you may be more inclined to finished than if you simply did an incline run for 40 minutes that had no change in intensity.
Over time you should be able to push yourself more and more adding more time to your run as well as speed and incline.
The Dying Feeling... EEK!
Most people who are starting out think that simply walking or doing a jog for a long period of time (30+ minutes) will allow them to lose weight quickly since they were sweating. The truth is that the real calories come off when the run becomes more of a struggle. This is where your body gets ready for the long haul and uses your fat reserves (fat is no more than stored energy) to provide energy for the run. So the more you push yourself the better off your run will be each time you get on the treadmill.
Is it essential that you feel like you're dying during the entire run? Obviously no. But the latter half of the run should feel like a struggle since that is when the real fat calories begin to get pulled as energy. And of course doing this on a consistent basis on is the best way to force your body to eat up the fat reserves. But it really must be done consistently on par with a balance diet (no junk food - duh!).
You should also be sure not to skimp on the only thing of you that's actually touching the treadmill. Your shoes wearing out can easily cause injury and damage to your joints, especially if you're an experienced runner. Changing out your shoes once every 6 months or so will greatly improve your run performance.
And please don't be the type that goes for the Dr. Sholes insoles but has cheaper shoes. This is a recipe for injury once you get more into your running habit. Invest in some decent shoes that will last you. Then and only then should you think about changing the insoles out for something higher quality. Never mix quality insoles with non-quality shoes.
The mistake that most people do when they use their treadmills, or rather when they start up a cardio workout on treadmill at all, is setting their expectations far too high. Some try to do a fast sprint that is way too fast for their current fitness level so they back it off to walking or else cut their workout short because it simply felt like too much work to do.
Running on a treadmill can be a deadly effective way to burn calories and over time excess weight. You just have to do in a systematic way that your body both handles well yet still gets challenged.
Emulating The Outdoors
Think of running outside. You don't just start running at a full sprint right away just to lose steam. In many cases you have to plan out your run because you're running a set distance. You have to get back home in a decent timeframe right? Treadmills are meant to emulate the outside running experience. You need to pick a distance, something reasonable, then stick to it.
One aspect that many people neglect is the incline of the treadmill. You will often see people in gyms with the incline at a really high rate yet they are walking. Even though it's completely fine, it's really not the best way to go about challenging themselves.
The incline should be combined with a light jog that increases the heart rate. The lower your heart rate is at higher inclines and high speed runs, the better fit you are. This is because your heart needs to pump blood through your body less frequently. If you're a bit out of shape you will notice that your heart pounds when you push yourself.
As you get used to faster and more challenging runs you will be able to push yourself more. Doing so will also push down your resting heart rate since your body will be more used to pumping blood in a more active body. When you have less activity and you do less cardio your resting heart rate will increase since your body will be more used to pumping blood through a less active body.
Pushing Yourself Past Your Limits
Once you get to the point where you can jog at a decent pace (whatever that is for you) at an incline you might want to try throwing in a bit of interval training. Most treadmills have features where you can select programs that better simulate being outside. In most cases you will experience hills as well as flat areas when running outdoors. So why not have a similar experience on your treadmill?
These exercises will typically have you run at a very high rate for a few minutes, then lower back down to a jog with or without an interval. This all depends on what you personally want out of your workout. This also helps in allowing you to have a little breather in between high intensity sprints. You are less likely to cut your workout short if you have small periods of lower intensity workout. So if you have a 40 minute interval run and hill climb you may be more inclined to finished than if you simply did an incline run for 40 minutes that had no change in intensity.
Over time you should be able to push yourself more and more adding more time to your run as well as speed and incline.
The Dying Feeling... EEK!
Most people who are starting out think that simply walking or doing a jog for a long period of time (30+ minutes) will allow them to lose weight quickly since they were sweating. The truth is that the real calories come off when the run becomes more of a struggle. This is where your body gets ready for the long haul and uses your fat reserves (fat is no more than stored energy) to provide energy for the run. So the more you push yourself the better off your run will be each time you get on the treadmill.
Is it essential that you feel like you're dying during the entire run? Obviously no. But the latter half of the run should feel like a struggle since that is when the real fat calories begin to get pulled as energy. And of course doing this on a consistent basis on is the best way to force your body to eat up the fat reserves. But it really must be done consistently on par with a balance diet (no junk food - duh!).
You should also be sure not to skimp on the only thing of you that's actually touching the treadmill. Your shoes wearing out can easily cause injury and damage to your joints, especially if you're an experienced runner. Changing out your shoes once every 6 months or so will greatly improve your run performance.
And please don't be the type that goes for the Dr. Sholes insoles but has cheaper shoes. This is a recipe for injury once you get more into your running habit. Invest in some decent shoes that will last you. Then and only then should you think about changing the insoles out for something higher quality. Never mix quality insoles with non-quality shoes.
Didn't think the article would be this long? Neither did I! But there was a lot to cover and the more you know the better off you are, right? Anyway, checkout running gear and your treadmill options.
