Treadmill vs. Pavement

Posted February 28, 2008 at 04:00 PM by Jamal Walker

Section: His Fitness, Cardio Training, Injuries & Rehab, His Health, Physical Health

Ever wonder if you’re cheating yourself by running in the treadmill instead of the pavement? Somehow, it seems a bit easier. According to Olympic runner Jeff Galloway, hitting the pavement can make a huge difference, even if you are just a beginner.

“Treadmills help you run,” says Galloway, in a recent Runners World blog response. “Most of the treadmill calibrations I’ve seen show that these machines tend to show that you’ve gone farther and/or faster than you have really run.”

As for adaptation (moving from the indoor treadmill to the outdoor pavement) Galloway suggests that you take frequent walk breaks. He explains that many treadmill-oriented runners, when they go outside, tend to start the runs too fast, or run too fast uphill, or fail to slow down as the temperature rises.

During the first 10 minutes, run for a minute and walk for a minute. If all is well, shift to run 2 minutes run/walk 1 minute during the rest of the run. Otherwise, stay at 1-1 or 30 seconds/30 seconds.

Galloway says that weather conditions also make a difference. He suggests slowing the pace down by 30 seconds a mile, for every 5 degrees above 60F.