Get more fit with these treadmill tricks

Whether you’re a complete exercise novice or experienced gym user, chances are you’ve used a treadmill before. The treadmill is a great piece of cardio equipment that allows you to burn more calories, and build strength and endurance. But if you come unprepared and step on the treadmill without a real plan in mind, you won’t get the results you hoped for. We’ve listed some useful tips to help you cut down your run time while still getting the same, if not better, results.

Do intervals

You may have heard that consistency is key to fitness success, but in fact it’s better to break up your treadmill sessions with speed intervals. Make your workout a challenge by throwing in a few minutes of quick strides between your steady pace on the treadmill. This requires much more effort than running at a consistent pace, but will also generate better results.

Add incline

Modern treadmills have an incline function that, when activated, tilts the treadmill to simulate a hill. This is perfect for you if you want to take things up a notch and make your treadmill run more interesting. But you should start small, by running for a few minutes before increasing the incline by one percent. Run for a few more minutes and increase the incline by half to one percent, until you reach the five percent mark. Be careful not to go over seven percent though, since a steep terrain will put too much strain on your back, hips, and ankles.

Pump your arms

Don’t just swing your arms around aimlessly when you’re running on the treadmill. Your arms play a big role in determining the efficiency of your runs. By pumping your arms and bending your elbows at a 90-degree angle as you stride, you’ll run much faster and burn up to 15 percent more calories during your treadmill session. A little movement modification can go a long way in helping you achieve better outcomes.

Gradually increase speed

Running at the same pace for days on end won’t get you anywhere near your fitness goals. Before long you’ll most likely get stuck at a fitness plateau. So when the time is right, you’ll need to increase your treadmill speed to make the workout a challenge to your body. There’s no fixed formula here, but you should give yourself a little push by running at a pace that’s neither too rough nor too comfortable for you.

Increase running duration

More running time means more distance, resulting in more calories being burned. Your fitness levels will increase over time, and when you’re ready to take your treadmill workout to the next level, you can simply run for longer in order to produce better results.

These tips can upgrade your treadmill time and maximize the outcomes of your training. For more fitness tips and tricks, get in touch with our experts today.

Published with permission from FitnessAdvisory. Source.


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