I haven't been on a treadmill in probably two years (maybe three?). I've been proud of 'out-toughing' the southern Virginia weather all this time, but I've begun to realize the no-treadmill streak really only attests to my stubbornness. It's time to let it go.
I had a recent conversation with Coach Jim where we talked about some real advantages to treadmill work, and then happenstance brought me to this article on Active about Indoor vs Outdoor Running. I figured this would probably be the winter I would end my no-treadmill 'run' and yesterday ended up being that day. We had temps just over freezing with some kind of frozen rain/sleet/snow mix that left a slushy mess. It wasn't worth the risk and the quality of the run would suffer from my fear of slipping.
...and as the lead singer in this new band that formed Christmas day, I can't afford an injury.
Coach Jim adjusted the workout for the treadmill and broke it up with pickups, hill intervals, and aerobic sections that kept me entertained. I used the treadmill at the gym to get out of the house and because it goes to '12' whereas mine only goes to '10'. I programmed the workout into my Garmin, turned the GPS off, and to my surprise the Garmin automatically tried to determine speed from my footpod. It was pretty far off at the bottom and top-end speeds, but my heart rate told the real story. The treadmill only goes up to 60 min and it was a 65 min workout so I had to stop and reset in the middle to buy myself some time.
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| Post-treadmill sweaty self-pic. Weird to ask someone, 'hey take a photo of me on this treadmill.' |
Still nothing beats getting outside in nearly any kind of weather.
Any other treadmill 'boycotters'?
