How Much Faster Does A Treadmill Make You Run?

A treadmill allows you to customize the speed and incline of your run in order to get the workout that you want. Because the treadmill regulates your pace, it is easier to hold a steady speed and thus a faster average speed over the entire workout. Also, running on a treadmill allows you to train when weather or other environmental conditions keep you from training outside.

Benefits

A treadmill can be a valuable asset in a competitive runner’s tool set. Because there are no lights or traffic on a treadmill, you can run uninterrupted without altering your pace. Also, you can target an exact distance, gradient and speed without being restricted by your environment. Most treadmills have heart rate sensors to read a wireless chest strap, providing yet another way to monitor your effort. Also, because you can control so many variables, a treadmill is an excellent means to track your progress with benchmark workouts.

Pacing

Many runners accustomed to working out outside find treadmills boring. Even if you can watch television during your run, the TV draws attention away from the biological feedback that helps you gauge your effort. When a runner doesn’t have to rely on feedback from his body to moderate his pace, he doesn’t learn how to pace himself in an outdoor workout or race.

Effects

When an athlete runs regularly, her body grows more capillaries to deliver oxygen-rich blood to her running muscles. Meanwhile, her muscles adapt to draw more of the available oxygen from the blood supply. Her heart also grows physically bigger and stronger in order to pump more blood per stroke. Finally, training develops a runner’s ability to clear the byproducts of exercise such as lactic acid from her muscles, raising the pace that she can run for a given distance. Both treadmill and outdoor running develop these systems to improve a runner’s efficiency and speed.

Expert Insight

There is no wind resistance while running in place on a treadmill, allowing the runner to run faster. Since wind resistance increases exponentially with pace, this discrepancy becomes more pronounced at faster speeds. Also, since the belt is moving under the runner’s feet, he doesn’t have to push off as he would on firm ground. Picking up your feet to reposition them on a moving belt requires less energy than propelling yourself forward, which can lead to an 10 percent increase in speed, according to running expert Jack Daniels.

Considerations

As Peak Performance points out, the treadmill trains you to run on a treadmill more efficiently. While a treadmill develops cardiovascular fitness, the best way to train to race is to run on the road or trails. Treadmills don’t effectively address the pacing skills and lower leg power that outdoor running does. Also, because a treadmill platform is softer than concrete or asphalt, runners risk injury from the impact of running high spring mileage on pavement after a long winter of treadmill running. Therefore, it behooves the competitive runner to use the treadmill sparingly in her training regimen.