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Improve Your Treadmill Running

Improve Your Treadmill Running

Learn how to improve your treadmill workouts

January 2nd, 2024

Treadmill Running

This time of year the weather might make your outdoor runs less enjoyable and potentially even dangerous. If you’re one of the many Rundown community members who is now doing more workouts on a treadmill, here are tips to make your treadmill running more bearable and even enjoyable.

5 Tips To Make Treadmill Running More Enjoyable

Listen to an audiobook
Download an audiobook and commit to running for a certain length of the book, like 3 chapters, rather than a set distance. This can help you forget about the amount of time you’ve been on the treadmill, as you get lost in the story.
Read a traditional book.
This one may require some coordination but is an incredibly helpful tip for students! Studies show that we retain information better when we study while being active. Play with the speed on the treadmill a bit while getting started, and see what pace is best for you. This is also a wonderful tip for treadmill walkers.
Watch television
Plan your treadmill runs around watching an episode of your favorite show! 30 minutes? 1 hour? Let the show determine how long you run! Most treadmills have screens for streaming or watching television. Watching 1, 2, or even 3 episodes of your favorite show on your run can be a lot more enjoyable than looking at the time every few minutes!
Go on an adventure
If your treadmill has a monitor that’s compatible with streaming and watching television, chances are it also has an option to select a pre-determined route, where the monitor takes you on a scenic journey through mountains, a forest, or even a busy city. These routes often will let you have pre-programmed incline and speed changes throughout the run, while still providing the option for you to change the speed and incline to meet your physical capabilities.
Cover up your display
Did you know, time still passes if you don’t watch the clock? Staring at the clock on a treadmill can make the time move much slower. Toss a towel over the number display or position your tablet or phone over the elapsed time while you listen to music. You’ll be surprised how much time flies!

Pro Tips to Make Treadmill Running More Bearable

Jacob Puzey ran 50 miles on a treadmill in 4 hours 57 minutes (5:56 minute mile pace) setting the world record. Jacob offers six tips to treadmill running.

Think Quality: Use the treadmill for your quality workouts, like progression runs and fartleks (aka interval training). For progression runs, Puzey recommends starting at a really easy pace and gradually increasing the speed by one tenth mile per hour every quarter mile. “I’ll start at eight or nine miles per hour and increase it up to 12 miles per hour over a 60 to 90 or 10-15 mile run,” he says. For fartleks, he recommends warming up at an easy pace, then doing a one or two minute effort with one or two minutes at an easy pace in between. “Prioritize the times you use the treadmill and you can get really fit,” he says. (Plus, hard training efforts on a treadmill makes the time fly by.)
Use Technology: Puzey acknowledges the benefit of technologies—like iFit Coach and DVDs with virtual courses, which make you feel like you’re running somewhere else. And he’s a fan of watching TV on long treadmill runs. “When I did the 22-miler, I’d go back and forth between Fox News and MSNBC. That kept me pretty fired up,” he laughs. “And I plan to preview the entire Boston Marathon course several times in training from the comfort of my own home in Calgary using the iFit Coach app on my treadmill.”
Tune In: aside from visual tech, invest in a good pair of running headphones and crank up the tunes. During the 50-Mile record, Puzey listened to everything from mellow, island-inspired tunes like Bob Marley and Israel Kamakawiwo’ole (listen to his popular rendition of Over the Rainbow), to more upbeat stuff. “The beat to Eminem’s Lose Yourself is the exact rhythm of the cadence I wanted to keep,” he says.
Split Your Runs: “You don’t have to do a super-long run every time to get all of the benefits,” says Puzey. Splitting up your run into two sessions in a day can make the distance—and time on the treadmill—more bearable, while still getting in the miles. Puzey says that double treadmill runs serve as nice bookends to the day and keep your resting metabolic rate higher than it would be with just one run.
Appreciate Your Personal Aid Station: Part of the beauty of a treadmill run is that you can load the panel up front with your food and drink. “You don’t have to carry a bottle or set things out ahead of time on your long run, hoping they’re still there when you get there,” says Puzey. “Plus you can train your system to eat and drink more consistently on a treadmill. This will help on race day if the distance you’re training for requires regular fueling.”
Embrace It: “When you learn to just ‘be’ on a treadmill, there are not many excuses to not run,” says Puzey. Running on a treadmill removes many of the other distractions and variables that may alter the way you move or feel on a run, which enables you to really get in tune with your body. “I like to focus on my stride, cadence, and breathing when I run on a treadmill,” he says. “If possible, I run in front of a mirror to ensure my arm carriage is efficient. When I first started running I had terrible form. Over the years and through deliberate practice on a treadmill I have become a more economical runner.”