Signing up for that winter or early-spring race seemed like a fantastic way to stay motivated and in shape through the holiday season. And then the temps start dropping, the wind starts whipping, and the clouds start sleeting, snowing, and otherwise wreaking havoc on your best intentions. And while the dread, er, treadmill is most runners’ distant second place to “real” running outside, its prime location (indoors!) suddenly, majorly boosts its appeal.
But is it okay to run in place when you’re training to run a race?
Running coach Jenny Hadfield says you should go for it, at least for some of your runs. “I’ve done a hodgepodge myself, where I’ve or my clients have trained some inside and some outside,” she says. “Having survived 20-plus Chicago winters as a runner, the treadmill has become a useful tool.” In fact, she’s quick to point out that Alaska native Christine Clark won the 2000 U.S. Olympic Women’s Marathon Trials having done the bulk of her training on a treadmill.
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Make no mistake: Training outside for an outdoor race is preferable—it gets your legs used to the impact and the feeling of propelling your body forward (and the wind resistance that comes with that), teaches you how to navigate changing terrain and, of course, acclimates you to cool weather, all of which you’ll face on race day. However, Jenny points out, “On a day where it’s icy, snowy, or brutally cold, I’d rather have a runner on the treadmill than risk injury or have the workout’s quality suffer on account of the elements.”
Here’s what she recommends for a part-treadmill training plan:
Find a Balance
The optimal indoor-outdoor training compromise for someone who’d really rather stay indoors is to aim to do 50 to 60 percent of running on the treadmill and the other 40 to 50 percent outside, says Hadfield. Her suggestion: Do some or even all of your shorter training runs during the week inside and the long run outdoors on the weekend. That way, you can sleep in and run midday when it’s a little warmer out. Plus it’s a longer distance, so you’ll warm up and stay that way for the duration of the mileage.
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Play with the Treadmill
Just because you're acting kind of like a hamster on a wheel when you train on the treadmill doesn’t mean you have to feel like it. Hadfield suggests having fun with the treadmill programs, choosing rolling hills or varying the speed settings, to both make it more interesting and to improve the quality of the workout. She also suggests occasionally breaking your workout up, circuit fashion, in which you run, say, two miles, then cross-train on a bike for 15 minutes, then finish with your second two miles on the treadmill. “Now you’re training for the later stages of the race—when you’re tired, but you need to give that final kick,” she says.
Even on a “steady” run, it’s fine to fluctuate the speed or incline based on how you feel, says Hadfield. “It drives me crazy when I see, ‘You should always run at two percent on the treadmill,’” says Hadfield. “Yes, there’s research that says it simulates the intensity of running outside. But running at an angle for the whole run can cause so many issues with your body mechanics, such as strain on your Achilles tendons.”
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And When You Do Head Outside…
When it comes time for that outdoor run, you’ll need a serious warm-up routine. Hadfield recommends taking a warm shower to heat up muscles before you go out. Dress for 15 to 20 degrees warmer than the outside temperature, and wear layers that you can vent or remove. The layer closest to your skin should be made of wicking material so, as you sweat, the moisture doesn’t end up making you feel colder. When it’s sub-freezing, top it all off with a wind-breaking layer to fend off the air’s chill as you run through it. Add head and hand protection, and you’re good to go. Once outside, Hadfield suggests running into the wind to start, so it’s at your back when you return home: “As you move, you’ll get sweaty, and then when you have a headwind, you’re going to freeze.” She also likes the idea of running loops that keep your home or car on the route, so you can stop by to drop off a layer as your workout heats up.
Hadfield’s bottom line for any run is to train by effort and how your body feels. “That will translate better, outside and inside,” she says. “And don’t beat yourself up if you skip a workout or have to shorten one. It’s okay—just get in what you can.”
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Amy Roberts is a certified personal trainer.
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