5 Tips to Make the Best of Your Treadmill Workout

Treadmills are great machines for shedding kilos and getting in shape. They are customizable as per your fitness level, eliminate any weather-related excuses, and reduce the stress on your joints. But, as with any other equipment, your results will depend on the efforts you put in.

To maximize the performance of your treadmill workout, you need to make it more challenging. This way, you can push yourself to the limit and enhance your endurance, efficiency and overall fitness.

Here are 5 treadmill workout tips you can use to get the maximum output from your treadmill:

1. Always Warm Up

Many people walk into a gym and use a treadmill for 5-10 minutes for warmup before lifting weights or doing other exercises. For this reason, those who only use a treadmill for their workout routine think that it’s okay to skip the warm up. But you need warmup exercises regardless of the exercises you do to avoid injury and make your workout more efficient. You can jog for 10 minutes on the treadmill and gradually increase your speed.

2. Set Your Goal

Do you hate running but do it to lose weight? Or are you using the treadmill to get a cardio fix? Maybe you’re training to run a marathon? One plan cannot work for all scenarios so, do some research and find a plan designed to achieve your goal.

This will give a sense of direction and you won’t have to keep guessing what you should be doing. Moreover, most plans gradually increase their intensity which will keep you interested and enable you to see how far you’ve come.

3. Use the Incline Setting

The incline setting on your treadmill is one of the most effective ways to increase the intensity of your workout. It boosts weight loss, builds your leg muscles, enhances your VO2 max level and improves bone density. Try it the next time you’re at the gym or on your personal treadmill, and you will instantly feel a difference. Even a 5% incline can burn an extra 100 calories for the same 30-minute run.

4. Improve Your Cadence

Cadence or stride rate is how often your foot hits the ground in a minute. It is measured in strides per minute (spm). You can measure your cadence by calculating the number of steps you take in 10 seconds and multiply it by 6. While most runners have a cadence of 150-156 spm, 180 is what you should be aiming for.

Higher cadence makes your foot strike directly below your center of gravity, which improves your efficiency and avoids injuries. Since your footwork will increase, you will have to put in more effort to maintain your stride and this will lead to higher calorie burn and heart rate.

5. High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)

Many people don’t have much time to work out. If you’re one of them, you’d want the maximum result in the shortest duration. HIIT is proven to show the same results as a regular workout in a shorter time. You can maximize your treadmill routine to its fullest by alternating between short bursts of high intensity workout followed by a recovery period.

To try an HIIT routine, run at normal pace for a minute and then at maximum intensity for 30 seconds, followed by another minute of normal pace running. You can pick the right ratio depending on your fitness level and endurance. However, high-intensity running increases the risk of injury so you will need to first prepare your body for some months before trying this workout.

Convert your treadmill to a shredmill by following these tips and amplify your performance and fitness level. Let us know if you follow any different methods to improve your treadmill workout in the comments below.