Teeth-chattering cold and icy roads force some walkers and runners to crank up their treadmills or head to a gym to use treadmills there. We’re frequently asked, are there differences between outside walking and running and using a treadmill?
Actually, there are differences, both good and undesirable. The big advantage of using a treadmill is the ability to continue training on a regular schedule. A treadmill allows you to set a specific speed and, in some models, set a level of elevation to simulate hills.
A treadmill makes you keep up with the speed of the belt and, therefore, the consistency of the pacing of the workout is very high. This isn’t so with outdoor walking or running, where you may meet obstacles and slow down or speed up your pace. Many treadmills have built-in heart rate monitoring devices that allow you to tailor your workout to fit a specific cardiovascular training program. It is important to check with your doctor to set the heart rate that is safe for you to maintain during a specific length workout.
Another advantage of a treadmill is the level surface it provides. This contrasts significantly with New England roads, which are designed to slope down on the edges. For anyone running or walking on these roads, it’s important to switch sides of the road and keep a level pelvic balance, because the leg closer to the road’s edge is always stepping lower.
Another plus is that many treadmills have built in programs that give you workout variety. The variety helps to keep the workout interesting while enabling you to track your progress.
But a major drawback of a treadmill is boredom. Walking on a belt-driven surface just isn’t the same as walking outside in the fresh air where there is always something new to see. To combat this, many people watch TV or listen to their favorite music while striding on a treadmill.
A further disadvantage of a treadmill is a lack of wind resistance. When you walk or run outside, calories are burned just from the resistance of your body moving through the air. The faster you move, the more wind resistance. In fact, in high level runners, the lack of a forward lean when they run on a treadmill changes the biomechanics of their running form. This tends to create a more up and down motion, leading to wasted energy.
If, to begin with, a walker or runner is out of balance in any way, meaning that the pelvis is unlevel and out of alignment, compensations will take place throughout the body. A compensation is your body’s attempt to overcome a physical difficulty. But the difficulty remains and the compensation itself eventually will turn into a difficulty, potentially causing further compensations, and on and on. Discomfort and even serious pain that can inhibit the doing of daily tasks can be an unwanted outcome.
When the process of compensation is underway, the regularity of stride and footfall on a treadmill, in contrast to that done out of doors, makes problems more noticeable.
While treadmill exercising (with a doctor’s approval) is better than being sedentary, overall it is best to leg it in the great outdoors (with a doctor’s approval). The changing scenery, variety in the footing, and the fresh air combine to make pleasurable what is also good for you.