Kyle E Kirch: The Benefits of Treadmill Training
I grew up always running on roads and trails, I would scoff at the idea of running long distances on a treadmill. In my youth and as a young adult I would occasionally run on a treadmill for a half mile at a time prior to beginning a work out just to get the blood flow going. Even the short four minute time span that it would take to run a half mile would be tedious and boring. My perception of time would slow down and a four minute jog would feel like a half hour.
Fast forward about ten years and I started having significant shooting pain in my knees after running several miles a day on roads and trails. This was also accompanied by soreness in my ankles, hips and lower back. I took a few weeks off of running to let my knees heal, and decided that I should start running on a treadmill due to most treadmills being built with shocks that significantly reduce the impact on joints.
Fast forward another five years and what a difference! I am now running more miles every week at a faster pace than I was in my younger years and my joints feel better than ever! Without a doubt the number one benefit that I have found to running on a treadmill is the reduction of impact on my joints. If I was still running on a road or a trail I know that I would be dealing with joint injuries on a regular basis.
The key to maintaining the treadmill regiment has been killing the boredom and monotony of running on a treadmill by watching videos. Whether the video consists of sports highlights, motivational videos or first person running videos, the time on the treadmill now goes by fast! I find something that interests me and watch it while running as entertainment.
The second most important benefit to running on a treadmill that I have found is the lack of a need to constantly monitor my pace. I like the fact that all I have to do is set the pace on the treadmill and as long as I keep up and don’t push any buttons to slow down I will make my desired run time. I’ve found that when training for a 5k, as long as I set my treadmill to at least a 1.5% incline I will be able to match my 5k treadmill run time to my racing time on the road or trail.
A tertiary benefit to a treadmill is with it being in doors, you can’t use a rainy day or poor weather outside as an excuse to not run. When I was a road runner and storm clouds would roll in, I could easily talk myself out of running that day. Not as a treadmill runner, I am consistently completing my weekly mileage goals at a much higher rate than I was in my younger years.
So if your finding yourself struggling to get outside on the road or trail and running for miles, think about investing in a treadmill. You will be saving your joints for your later years and likely increasing the number of miles and speed of each mile run even as you get older.
About the author:
Kyle E Kirch is a writer with a passion for treadmill training advice. You can find more of his training advice and content on these great platforms:
https://www.instagram.com/kyle_e_kirch/
https://twitter.com/Kyle_E_Kirch
https://www.tumblr.com/blog/kyle-e-kirch
https://www.quora.com/profile/Kyle-E-Kirch1
https://www.pinterest.com/Kyle_E_Kirch/_saved/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCV1TWiQ9hYPx4BxGDzYqUyg
https://www.flickr.com/people/192008300@N08/
