TREADMILL EXERCISE
FITNESS TIPS: Interval Training

The treadmill exercise fitness information on this page is here to help you with the following:

Improving your aerobic fitness
Provide variety in your training
Help you to progress over time rather than stagnate and do the same thing

Interesting point to note:
Travelling at the same speed on the treadmill as you would outdoors is easier. This is so because the belt is already moving on the treadmill and all you have to do is keep your feet moving at the same pace. Outdoors the road beneath you is still, and it takes extra energy to propel your body forward and run at a particular pace.

BUILD A BASE FIRST

Before you look at mixing up your training on the treadmill make sure you have built a base, or good foundation of general fitness first. If you plan on only walking on the treadmill, a good base would indicate that you are able to walk 20-30 minutes, or for joggers/runners, that you can keep a steady jog for the same amount of time.

Building a base is quite simple. Walk/jog at a consistent pace for as long as your mind and body can sensibly take in the beginning. Over a period of 3-4 weeks slowly build up time until you can keep that pace for 20-30 mins.

2-4 times per week of training is adequate. Allow 1-3 days between sessions. You don’t need to go like a bat out of hell if you aren’t a seasoned athlete. If you are still sore from your previous session, allow your body to rest, or do a light session. But don’t make excuses!

TREADMILL EXERCISE FITNESS
RUNNING TECHNIQUE

Improve your treadmill exercise fitness using interval training

Ok, now this is where training on the treadie gets juicy! I am going to provide you with some great tips which will help you increase your fitness and break up your treadmill exercise fitness routine.

Remember to always start your session with a warm up and cool down period.

Scroll down to watch a clip explaining interval training on the treadmill

TIME
Choose a speed that is at, or slightly slower, than a constant pace that you can maintain easily for 20-30 mins. You can use time as intervals by alternating between this initial pace and a speed at which you cannot maintain.

It is a good idea to start by having your slower speed interval go longer than your faster paced interval.

e.g. 3 minutes at 9.0km/hr pace, 1 minute at 11km/hr pace
(alternate between the two for your desired total amount of time)

As your fitness improves you can gradually lower the rest period (slow pace) and increase the time you spend on your faster pace.

e.g. 1 minute at 9.0km/hr pace, 2 minutes at 11km/hr pace
(alternate between the two for your desired total amount of time)

DISTANCE
As you would do if using time for to build your treadmill exercise fitness, choose a speed that is at, or slightly slower, than a constant pace that you can maintain easily for 20-30 mins. You can use distance as your intervals to alternate between the initial pace you set, and a speed at which you cannot maintain.

e.g. 1km at 9.0km/hr pace, 0.5km at 11km/hr pace
(alternate between the two for your desired total amount of time)

As your fitness improves you can gradually lower the rest period (slow pace) and increase the time you spend on your faster pace.

e.g. 0.5km at 9.0km/hr pace, 1km at 11km/hr pace
(alternate between the two for your desired total amount of time)

INCLINE
Using the incline is a little different to the first two (time and distance) as you will be using a constant pace and varying the grade/incline level on the treadmill, rather than alternating the speed.

To begin with choose a speed that is at, or slightly slower, than a constant pace that you can maintain easily for 20-30 mins. You can either use time or distance as an indicator to change the incline level on the treadmill. To begin with, it is probably easier to use time.

e.g. 3 mins at 9.0km/hr pace with 0% incline, 1 min at 9.0km/hr pace with 3% incline
(alternate between the two for your desired total amount of time)

As your fitness improves you can gradually lower the rest period (slow pace) and increase the time you spend on your faster pace.

e.g. 1 min at 9.0km/hr pace with 0% incline, 2-3 mins at 9.0km/hr pace with 3% incline
(alternate between the two for your desired total amount of time)