Treadmill Advice, Tips, Secrets!

The Treadmill can be a little intimidating for beginners and non-frequent users. Misuse and overuse often limit the people who can use this exercise machine. Aches and pains from the repeated pounding the joints take force many people to give up. Also, the ole runners plateau and lack of results can end up being the turnoff and exile of this machine. But if used properly and by following some of these hints, I find the treadmill to be a very effective and essential piece of exercise equipment.

The Aches and Pains

• One of my biggest problems on the treadmill was the pain it ended up causing in my lower legs. I developed Shin Splints. It is a very irritating pain below the knee, on the shin, or inner lower leg. This is most often caused by doing too much too soon. Here are some helpful tips to reduce and rid of this pain:
• Always stretch out before you start your workout. With a case of shin splints make sure you particularly focus on stretching out and warming up the calf muscles.
  Start out slow. Don’t overdo it. You can’t run a marathon without training. Train your way up to longer distances. Read your body and only do what you’re comfortable with.
• Raise the incline of the treadmill. Another relief on the shins is to raise the treadmill’s incline. This makes up for the lack of resistance that you would normally feel when running outside. To me, when the treadmill is set on zero incline, I feel as if I am running downhill.
• One last thing that I’ve found help was purchasing one of those copper compression sleeves for my shin. It has definitely relieved the pain for me and I would recommend using it if you suffer from shin splints.

Runners Plateau and Lack of Results

• One trick I picked up from watching others has been to place a towel over the screen of the treadmill. I found that I would too often check the screen for my progress and get frustrated with how little time or distance had gone by. Cover the screen and focus on your music or TV program and before you know it you will hit new highs.
• For my tip on lack of results please refer to my previous article on HIIT Workouts and the effectiveness of speed interval training.