Ruts, Treadmills and Five Fingers

Photo Credit: site

So yesterday was my cheat day for the week. Filled with some form of hacky-sac after work and some bomb wings (spicy of course) and a day of no working out. My body was eeerrr is sore from the last work out. It was what I needed, out of routine not what I was used to. Pushups (mucho) in different variety really work arms, chest, and core. I did wide, triangle, incline and decline and my Tri’s are letting me know what’s up. So as I dive in to tonight’s workout remember change it up don’t fall in to a rut, make your workouts fun.

Tonight I will most like start off with a warm up on the Stair-Master (imagine an arcade game announcer voice here), and hop on the treadmill for a 3mi run, do my 3 set of sit-ups and pull-ups, once am done with that am free to pick and choose any machines or exercise in the gym.

So treadmill running or outdoor? What are some benefits and cons? I enjoy the outdoor running but treadmill is practical. Many people say different things about your joints and your shins but check out this article. Ultimately it come don to what your body is comfortable with. Me I do all of my running with my Vibram five Finger shoes and I really enjoy using them outdoors and on the treadmill.

Photo Credit: Mario Sandoval

In general, you can get a similar workout on a treadmill as running outside as long as you maintain the same effort level. You can usually judge this based upon your heart rate or your (rating of perceived exertion). If, however, you run the same pace on the treadmill as outside on flat pavement, you will expend less energy on the treadmill. This is due to the lack of wind resistance, terrain changes and because the treadmill belt helps propel you along. In order to compensate for the treadmill's momentum, studies have found that simply raising the treadmill incline to at least one percent will better simulate the energy expenditure of walking or running on flat pavement outdoors.

For more on this click here. Author: Elizabeth Quinn, About.com

I will do a future blog on barefooted running and how I got started on it but please feel free to tell me your story. And let me know do you enjoy the treadmill or outdoors better?

And remember whether you’re indoors or outdoors be safe and watch your surroundings whether it’s a worn out belt on a treadmill, a towel that can fall on the belt or on coming traffic on the road. (Road ID mention on a future blog)