4 simple tricks to make the treadmill less terrible.

January 2020 newsletter.

Sources: Canadian Running Magazine.  December 3rd, 2019 by Madeleine Kelly.

It’s officially treadmill season in Canada, which means that runners across the great north are looking for ways to improve their experience on the indoor conveyor belt.

Matt Hughes is the Canadian record-holder in the steeplechase. As Hughes adjusts to the harsher Canadian winters, he’s also accepting that the treadmill is part of training like a Canuck. Hughes reached out to Twitter for advice on how to make his indoor miles more palatable and he got some great responses from many different kinds of runners.

1. Don’t look at distance

A treadmill minute can sometimes feel like an hour. Scott Olberding recommends putting a towel over the distance and time markers and binge-watching your favourite show: ‘’Put a towel over the distance / time. iPad with Netflix. When I was on the elliptical I was able to read on the iPad but haven’t tried it on the treadmill. For some reason binge watching shows is more distracting for me than music’’.

2. Wear a lighter shoe

Wearing a lighter shoe, like your lighter trainers or racing flats, can help runners avoid the clunky feeling that can come from treadmill runs.   ‘’I always wear a lighter, more performance oriented shoe. Most of the time a beefier type racing flat. That tends to help me stay away from the “Clunkiness” that sometimes comes with running in regular training shoes on the treadmill.’’ says Gary Brimmer, coach at Training Peaks.

3. Play with your speed and adjust the grade

If you’ve got a steady long run on the docket, play with your treadmill speed the same way your speed would naturally fluctuate on the road or trails.

Jamie Langley recommendations: Speed manipulation every minute or few changing it up by 0.1km.h, you can do some great progression runs like this. Or breaking it up into small chunks.

Reid Coolsaet, one of Canada’s fastest-ever marathoners, recommends that runners also adjust the grade while running to break up the workout.

4. Watch inspirational videos

Training through the winter months for a spring race can cause a runner’s interest to wane. If you’re struggling to find the motivation to hop on the treadmill, put on either a video recap from your goal race, or a race that one of your running idols crushed. This can help you find the motivation you need.