The best ways to exercise on a treadmill

Nearly 80% of American adults do not meet the physical activity guidelines of the U.S. government, according to a November 2019 update from the Department of Health and Human Services.

That means that millions of people are missing out on the benefits that exercise provides for heart health, cognition, sleep, mental health, cancer risk, blood pressure and more.

Do you plan to change that in 2020? An easy way to move more in any season is to use one of the most popular cardio equipment: a revolution dynamo, also called a treadmill.

Treadmills can be used for a wide variety of workouts, says Roberto Mandje, a former professional runner who competed in the 2004 Olympic Games and is now the head coach of the New York Road Runners. The machines can be used for walking, running long distances, even for high intensity interval training. You can also integrate strength training with treadmill-based workouts.

Here’s how to get started with a jogging routine, either in your gym or at home.

How to start a treadmill routine

Plan for the long term: Before you start walking on a treadmill, keep in mind your fitness goals, says Peter Anzalone, leader of the test project for fitness equipment in CR. Check out the best treadmill reviews.

If you are trying to train for a marathon, you may want to follow a specific training plan, such as those offered by the New York Road Runners, and be sure to integrate outdoor races as well.

If your goal is simply to move more, the training programs built into your treadmill can help you maintain your interest, with simple programs such as workouts focused on different goals, such as improving heart health.

Set a goal for the time you want to run every time you exercise, and try to make your workouts more challenging over time by increasing duration, speed or incline.

Stay safe and sound: if you're not familiar with the jogger, start slowly, says Chris Gagliardi, a personal trainer certified by the American Council on Exercise as an exercise medical specialist and health coach. Start walking, approximately 2 or 3 miles per hour, until you get used to feeling the treadmill moving under your feet. Then, increase the speed at a comfortable pace for jogging or running, around 4 to 8 miles per hour, depending on your level of experience. You can also buy a treadmill with Amazon promo codes

The same goes for the incline: increase it slowly and see how you feel when the machine becomes more and more inclined, do not place it at the maximum inclination from the beginning.

Some machines also allow you to enter your age to calculate the maximum heart rate and proper target.

Finally, remember to use the safety key, which fits your clothes and is designed to stop the machine if you fall. (Read more about staying safe on a treadmill.)

Find your comfort rhythm: heart rate is the most accurate way to monitor exercise intensity, says Anzalone. Some treadmills are combined with chest straps that measure your heart rate, which are more reliable than those with handles or handles. Some machines come with their own chest strap monitors, and many can connect to your personal monitor. And many treadmills allow you to gauge the intensity of your training using an objective heart rate.

You can also pay attention to your breathing to find a rhythm and intensity that matches your goals, says Gagliardi. If you can talk comfortably, you go at a low to moderate pace. At that speed, you can do a long and slow workout or use it as a recovery rate that allows you to resume breathing and decrease heart rate between faster intervals.

If it is difficult to speak, you are at a moderate to vigorous level of exercise. If you cannot speak, that is your maximum intensity rhythm for a sprint interval.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests a minimum of 150 minutes of aerobic activity of moderate intensity or 75 minutes of aerobic activity of vigorous intensity each week.

How to keep it interesting

Try an interval training program: Review the exercise programs built into the machine. Gagliardi suggests: there are often a variety of interval races, which alternate the intense rhythm and the recovery rhythm and are considered an efficient and quick way to get in shape. In general, these programs should get you out of your comfort zone, but there should be enough recovery time between the quick runs (sprints) so you can control your breathing again.

Gagliardi also recommends trying some of the interval programs suggested by the coaches of the American Council on Exercise. These training plans, available for free online, start with a warm-up, then make runners alternate between running faster or on a slope for about a minute at a time, with intermediate recovery breaks.

Do progressive, rhythm and climb workouts: Mandje recommends the use of treadmills for these specific runner workouts, as they can help you maintain the set pace without accidentally slowing down, as you would when running outside.

For progression races, which help runners increase speed and endurance, it is recommended to start at a moderate pace and then increase speed from .5 to 1 mile per hour every 5 to 10 minutes, so you will finish a race at a significantly faster pace than you started.

For rhythm races, which help improve speed and teach runners to maintain a fixed pace, it is recommended to warm up at a slow pace, run close to the pace you could try in a race for a set distance (try to run 3 to 5 miles) and then cooling at a rate of recovery.

It is not always easy for outdoor runners to practice the climbs, which can make the race more intense and improve heart and lung health, so Mandje recommends the use of treadmill inclinations for the practice of running on earrings

Develop strength training: for safety reasons, do not get on and off a machine that is still moving. But you can incorporate strength training into a treadmill workout routine if you pause your run, let it stop completely and then get off to use a resistance band, lift weights or do bodyweight exercises such as push-ups or squats before climbing back on the treadmill.

Repeat this circuit several times to achieve the same day aerobic exercise and strength training goals. The CDC recommends doing strength training at least twice a week.

Physical activity guidelines also emphasize the importance of flexibility, so try to integrate stretching into some of your workouts as well.

Consider sled training: certain gyms and training plans recommend the use of specially designed joggers (or regular treadmills with the power off) for a "sled" workout. These exercises involve grabbing the handrails and manually pushing the belt with your feet, to mimic the effects of pushing a sled with weight on the ground.

According to Gagliardi, trying this on 30-second starts (with a recovery time between them) can be an effective way to increase power, which can improve your ability to run or pick up something heavy. Increasing your power can also help you stop if you are falling, says Anzalone, and strengthen your legs, says Mandje.

But there is a key caveat: don't try this in a gym without asking first. If you are at home, first consult the manual of the treadmill you are using, says Gagliardi, to make sure you are equipped to handle the sled workouts and that moving the belt with the engine off does not damage the machine's motor. Anzalone warns that it can void your warranty if your machine is not designed for these activities.

Consistency is important

If you start running regularly on a treadmill at the beginning of the New Year, you will prepare to exercise more consistently throughout 2019, says Mandje. According to Gagliardi, starting with a consistent exercise routine is the safest way to make sure you meet the minimum recommended guidelines for CDC physical activity or your own fitness goals.

But if you're not exercising regularly, keep increasing slowly, adding a little more time each week. Even walking on a treadmill regularly while reading a magazine or watching Netflix may be enough to start transforming your health.