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A
Few Thoughts about Treadmill Running
Many distance runners,
including former world record holder Ingrid Kristiansen and 2000 US Olympic
Marathon Trials champion Christine Clark, have successfully used the treadmill
as part of their training. Like any training technique, however,
"the mill" has its pros and cons.
Pros
Treadmill running is safe, convienent,
and weatherproof. Once you arrive
at your local gym or health club, you are ready to go. You don't
have to worry about traffic, bad neighbourhoods, potholes, or hard concrete.
Moreover, when the weather outside is extremely hot, extremely cold, or
extremely windy, conditions inside are nearly ideal.
Treadmill running can teach pacing consistency.
On a treadmill, the belt sets the pace. Run
too fast and you crash into the front; run too slow and you fly off the
back. (Surprisingly, this rarely happens.)
Treadmill running builds mental toughness.
Let's face it, running like a crazed hamster on a wheel ain't easy.
Runners who master the mind numbing boredom of running for an hour, 90
minutes, or even longer on the treadmill, are ready to tackle those long
races.
Cons
Treadmill readings are notriously inaccurate.
Treadmills are machines that measure. Like any machine that measures,
treadmills need to be calibrated correctly to give an accurate reading.
Everyday use and wear and tear quickly knocks many treadmills out of kilter.
It's quite possible that the effort needed to run 8.0 mph can vary considerably
between 3 or 4 treadmills in the same fitness club.
In addition to the calibration problem, treadmill readings need to be
adjusted to account for the fact that you are running in place and not
fighting air resistance. One simple adjustment factor is to set the
grade to 1.5 degrees (i.e. 10 mph at 1.5 degrees on the treadmill = 10
mph for real running.) The following links provide more sophisticated
adjustments:
Kevin
Beck's Treadmill Pace Conversion Chart
Merv's
Running Pace Calculator (includes a treadmill calculator)
Ignoring the treadmill readings and relying on a heart rate monitor
is a good solution to these potential inaccuracies. For example,
running at between 90 to 95 percent of maximum heart rate for 20 minutes,
can simulate pretty close to 10 km race pace for many people.
Treadmill running is cross training.
It's unrealistic to expect to race well if you do most of your running
on a treadmill. Races are held on land and you need to develop those
"land legs." As a general rule, the closer you are to your peak race,
the less running you should be doing on the treadmill.
A
few Treadmill Workouts
Treadhills. Warm
up for about 10 minutes with easy running. Next, run a series (i.e.
start with 5 or 6 repeats and work up) of 2 to 3 - minute intervals at
a challenging pace with between a 5 to 10 percent grade. Take about 60
to 90 seconds between intervals. Cool down with about 10 minutes
of easy running.
20 minutes, go like hell.
Warm up with 10 to 15 minutes of easy running. Next, run for 20 minutes
at about your current 10 km race pace (make sure you adjust treadmill pace
per the above guidelines.) Cool down with 10 to 15 minutes of easy
running. This is an excellent workout for preventing the "mid race
sag" many runners suffer in a 10 km race.
Treadmill Intervals.
Your favourite track workouts such as 6 x 800m or 3 x one mile can be done
on the treadmill. Please note that short repeats (i.e. 200s and 300s)
are difficult to simulate on many treadmills due to the fact that most
club treadmills max out at 10 or 12 mph. The short, fast stuff is
best left to the track.
For a comprehensive help for all
areas of your running, check out a Run
Quick training
program. |
