If your treadmill workout has become about as exciting as running on a hamster wheel, sprint exercises can boost the excitement as well as increase your fitness level. One way to incorporate sprint exercises into your treadmill routine is with high-intensity interval training. As with any exercise program, check with your doctor before starting.
What They Do
High-intensity interval training gives you the endurance and cardiovascular benefits of an aerobic workout while it also trains your body to effectively use anaerobic energy for short bursts of power. Because of their high intensity, such treadmill workouts are best done no more than twice each week. Let your body rest for at least one full day between your high-intensity sessions.
How to Do Them
Start your treadmill workout at your usual pace and usual incline, but instead of keeping the same pace and incline throughout your entire workout, intersperse it with short bursts of sprinting. Use speeds that give you high-intensity bursts, but don't go so fast that you become too exhausted to finish your full workout. Your overall goal is to include 10 to 12 high-intensity intervals throughout your workout. High-intensity bursts should be a perceived exertion of 7, on a scale of 1 to 10, with your steady pace a perceived exertion of about 5.
Treadmill Workout Example
Always spend at least five to 10 minutes warming up before you get into the body of the workout and at least five minutes cooling down at the end. Start the warm-up slowly, with a gradual increase in speed until you reach your usual pace. Once you've reached your usual pace, start the intervals. If your steady treadmill pace is usually 5 mph, for example, increase your speed to 6 mph or higher for one minute, then resume your 5 mph speed for two to three minutes for active recovery. Increase your speed again for one minute, then back to two-to-three minutes of active recovery at 5 mph.
Another Way to Boost Intensity
Rather than relying on speed alone, you can also boost the intensity by increasing the treadmill incline. Commonly called hill workouts, treadmill workouts that boost intensity through incline use the same methodology as the sprint workouts. Start at your usual pace and incline. Instead of increasing your speed to a sprint for a short burst, increase your incline while keeping the same pace. Continue at the same pace as you increase the incline in a series of intervals, then bring your incline back to starting level while you increase your speed. Continue the incline intervals at your newly increased speed. Repeat the process through the remainder of your workout.
References
- American Council on Exercise; How Do I Fight Boredom with My Current Cardio Workout?; Jessica Matthews; Dec. 15, 2010
- Fitness; Run/Walk: The 20-Minute Treadmill Hill Workout; Dec. 2005
- American Council on Exercise; What is High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) and What Are the Benefits?; Pete McCall; Nov. 18, 2010
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