Maximizing Your Treadmill Workouts: 5 Tips for Better Results

What do you think of when you hear the word treadmill? You may think of them as monotonous and boring. It’s all in how you approach it. You can maximize this form of cardio in a variety of ways to make it interesting, challenging and something that you look forward doing every week. Here are 5 ways to make the most of your treadmill workout.

Prepare Your Body

Stretching before exercising is a good idea, because tight muscles can lead to injury. According to Harvard Health static stretching (like quad and hamstring stretches), it does not prevent injury. Stretching cold muscles before they have warmed up can lead to injury or soreness.

Prepare for your treadmill workout instead by taking a short walk. Spend 10 minutes warming up and increasing the speed of your treadmill. Blood will flow into the major leg muscle groups as you move. This will help them become more flexible for your workout. It’s a great way of preparing for a good training session.

Incline: Level Up Your Game

Do not be afraid to increase your incline. Inclination training is a great way to exercise different leg muscles. It’s similar to hiking outdoors. Harvard Health states that “[a]n inclined setting generates greater muscle activity than walking on flat surfaces since you are working against gravity.”

You could start your treadmill workout by walking briskly, and then, once you are warmed up, challenge yourself with incline or jogging. Interval training is another option. You would alternate between periods with higher and lower intensities. You could, for example, lightly jog with a zero-grade slope for two minutes, and then increase the treadmill’s incline to run at a slightly higher pace for another minute.

Move To The Beat

You can make your treadmill workouts at home as energetic as you want, especially when you add music. Ever wondered why cycling and HIIT classes play high-tempo music? According to research, fast-paced music can improve physical performance.

A 2020 small study discovered that listening to fast-paced music during exercise increased heart rate and changed the perception of difficulty. Music with higher BPMs can motivate us to push harder, which is why electronic music is often heard in boot camp and cycling classes.

Change Up Your Routine

On some days, you might not want to jog or walk on your treadmill unless there is something else added. When your treadmill is set on a slow speed, you can do many different bodyweight exercises. Exercises like quarter squats and calf lifts can be added to your cardio routine. As you work your leg muscles, you’ll build strength.

Do you not want to do strength training on your treadmill? Cross-train on the machine while doing a HIIT exercise! If you do not want to plan out your own workouts, we offers an extensive Workout Library with hundreds of great workouts on the treadmill. Hannah Eden, Stacie Clare, and John Peel, among others, will guide you through immersive, exciting workouts.

Take Advantage of Cooldowns

Cooling down helps prepare your body to exercise on the treadmill tomorrow. After your workout is complete, you can stretch statically to help with muscle recovery. We offers a variety of stretching workouts that will guide you through the specific movements related to muscle groups you have trained. Stretching for 10 to 15 extra minutes can make all the difference!