Monday, December 23, 2013

Training Truths: Bonding with my Treamill

After months of spending barely any time on the treadmill, last week I was forced to do all of  my runs there. Between snow, long days, and the threat of freezing rain, none of my planned runs took place outside.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not one of those runners who shun the dreadmill. I'll jump on the thing, turn on the TV and go.

However, my first choice is to run outside for many reasons:

Time goes by faster - For some reason it just feels like it takes forever to finish a run on the treadmill. Even Wednesday's short 3 miler felt like a long run.


It feels easier - For me, running on the treadmill feels like a lot more effort than it would if I were doing the same mileage outside. Like on Friday, I set the speed to 6.0 and increased gradually to 7.0. According to my sportwatch my pace was much slower than when I run outside, but it felt like I was working much harder. Are my feet made of lead?


Outside is prettier - I love the convenience of the basement especially on days like Sunday when the freezing rain prevents a safe outdoor run, but the view is pretty uninspiring. I can turn on the TV or listen to music, but it's no winter wonderland. No breathtaking views here. My sportwatch was more cooperative in reporting my pace on this one, but shorted me .20. So confusing.


On a positive note, I stayed on track with my cross training for another week and attended another session of SurfSet on Saturday. Sara took our urban surfing class through a H.I.I.T training workout and for the first time I used the resistance bands with the boards.


The Chilly Challenge wrapped up week #3 and the challengers have been hitting their workouts hard in the hopes of winning a pair of Mizuno Wave Rider 17s! You can follow along on Instagram and Twitter with hashtag #chillychallenge, but here are some of my favorite photos from last week's daily challenge posts.



How do you feel about treadmill running?



8 comments:

  1. I go through phases where I love treadmill running, then it just feels to hard, then I love it again. I have no idea why

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  2. It's a love/hate relationship for sure! I love the convenience in bad weather but it feels like time slows wayyyyy down.

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  3. Treadmill running is not my favorite.....BUT I'll take it over the ice.

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  4. I agree that my treadmill seems to tell me I'm running slower, but based on my HRM and perceived effort, I am working harder. So I typically run the treadmill for time, assuming my average pace outside times the number of "miles." If it's all about cardio fitness then it's all the same, right?

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  5. I really struggle on the treadmill unless I'm doing intervals - otherwise it feels like time grinds to a halt! But living in NE the 'mill is a necessary evil :)

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  6. I got my running mojo back by running on the treadmill back in July :)

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  7. I'd rather run on the treadmill than not run at all. Most of mine have been inside lately. I have a Nike Sportwatch too and I find the Nike+ app on my phone to be a lot more accurate than the shoe insert for the watch. Have you tried the app before?

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