treadmill tips

When freezing temps and snow have brought your runs indoors, hitting the treadmill can be pretty redundant, causing you to hit the ever-awful workout plateau. If you want to kick it up a notch and burn more calories, then here are four easy techniques to incorporate into your next treadmill run.

• Go longer and faster: If you always run for 30 minutes at a pace of six miles per hour, it's no wonder the workout feels easy. Picking up your pace and going a little longer, even five extra minutes, will help increase your calorie burn.
• Practice negative splits: If you don't have extra time to hit the gym, then try doing negative splits. It involves running the second half of a run at a faster pace than the first half. Conserving your energy in the beginning and allowing your muscles to warm up will actually help you comfortably increase your pace on the second half of your workout, so you end up with a faster time.
• Go for speed intervals with incline: Altering the steepness and speed of your run is a cinch with a treadmill, since it just requires a little push of the button. Increasing the pace and incline helps burn more calories, tone the lower body, and beat boredom. Try this: alternate between running moderately for three minutes, then pump up the incline to five percent (more if you want) and the speed to a mile or two faster for one minute. You're sure to feel the burn!
• Get there early: Hitting the gym in the early a.m. will help you beat the crowds, but research shows that morning exercisers also work out harder and longer than those who exercise at other times of the day.

If inclement weather has kept your running routine indoors, you may be getting bored of the revolving belt. Not only can running on the treadmill be tedious, but you may also be noticing that you're losing the strength and endurance you've built up from running outside, where everything from the elements to a rocky trail helps tone muscles and make you a better runner. If high-intensity intervals aren't doing it for you anymore, here are a few other ways to make your treadmill workout harder.

Just climb: If you can't or don't want to run, walking at a high incline can still burn major calories and get your heart pumping. Find a speed that works for you and crank up the incline; here's a treadmill hill hike to use.

Run the hills: Once you've gotten used to a high incline on your treadmill, you can up your treadmill workout even more. This running hills workout has you running at a consistent pace as the incline slowly ramps up.

Power lunges: While you're still at a high incline, start doing walking power lunges. It's an effective way to target leg and butt muscles while adding difficulty to your treadmill workout.

End on a high note: You jogged your way through another workout, but don't slow down as you see the end nearing; sprint your way to the finish line by upping your treadmill's speed. Make sure you ramp down afterward for a few minutes to cool down safely.

Many who are new to the running scene start on a treadmill. And while it seems easy enough to just turn it on and go, there are three things every new treadmill user should know before starting out.

• It's not the same as running outside: It's actually easier. The moving belt of a treadmill helps to propel the body with each step, allowing muscles to not work as hard as compared to running outdoors. And while a treadmill's softer surface can be easier on joints, the finite running space can alter gait and your form. To avoid injuries, focus on taking a normal stride and make sure the pace isn't causing you to lean forward, creating unnecessary strain on your lower back or knees. Check out more tips on proper running form.
• The readouts are misleading: After a 45-minute run, the machine's summary reads that you burned 400 calories. Step on a different treadmill, and the readout says you burned only 300 doing the exact same workout. What gives? Unfortunately, the readouts on treadmills aren't always the most accurate, especially if you don't plug in your height and weight. For the most accurate stats, use a heart rate monitor when on the treadmill.
• Don't ignore the incline: You hate hills you say? No need to pump the incline up to the highest setting possible, but zero incline on a treadmill can mimic a slight downgrade, making it one way to get shin splints, so to prevent this dreaded issue, be sure to raise the incline slightly to one or two.

Whether or not you love the treadmill incline as much as Jennifer Aniston does, increasing it is an efficient and smart way to get the most out of your run. Here are three important reasons to up the incline on your treadmill.

Calorie burn: Upping the incline, even just a little bit, will help you burn a few extra calories with just a little more effort. Going from a zero-percent incline to five-percent incline burns over 100 more calories when running for 30 minutes, no matter your pace. Check out our chart to see just how many calories running on an incline burns. You might be pleasantly motivated.

Bikini bum: Kill two birds with one stone by working your lower body while raising your heartbeat, just in time to show off all your hard work on the beach. Just like running hills or hiking, running on the treadmill is a great exercise for toning your glutes and quads.

Better runner: If you've never run outside before, hopping off the treadmill and onto the road can be a wake-up call, since running outside isn't as easy as running on a flat, consistent treadmill. But if you increase the incline whenever you run inside, you'll be amazed at how much better your endurance and stamina become.

Of course, you'll really feel it when you start upping the incline more than a few percentages (it'll affect your pace as well, so take it slower if needed), but you'll be glad you did. Ready to start? Here's an under-20-minute incline treadmill workout if you're pressed for time, or try this rolling hills treadmill workout instead.

Pumping up the incline on the treadmill not only tones your tush and legs, increases your endurance, and can help you improve your speed, it also burns crazy calories — significantly more than with no incline. Need a little more proof? Check out the chart below for some inspiring numbers.

*All calculations are based on a 130-pound woman.

Numb fingers. Black ice. Risk of frostbite. These are all common reasons to skip running outside in Winter and take refuge in a warm, dry gym. Treadmills might feel safer, but you might even find the workout feels a little easier. Don't sell yourself short! Use these tips to upgrade your treadmill time and maximize the benefits of your run.

To Burn More Calories

• Do intervals. Running at a consistent pace is great for longer training runs, but during your intense workouts, take advantage of intervals. By alternating between running a few minutes at a moderate pace and throwing in bursts at a quicker pace (or even sprinting), you'll burn more calories, build endurance, and become a faster, stronger runner. Not to mention, intervals have also been proven to fight belly fat. Here's a 30-minute treadmill interval workout for you to try.
• Gradually increase your speed throughout your workout. You definitely don't want to start your run at a seven mile per hour (mph) pace since you need to give your body a chance to warm up. Start out with a brisk walk (4 mph) and every five to 10 minutes, give your speed a little push until you're running at a 5 to 8 mph pace.
• Run longer. It's good to mix up the type of running workouts you do, so on days that you're not running intervals or building up speed, do a longer run at a consistent pace. If you run for 30 minutes (at a pace of 10 minutes per mile) you'll burn 270 calories. Forty-five minutes burns 405 calories, and even longer, an hour-long run burns 540 calories.

Keep reading to learn ways to tone your muscles and become a faster runner.

Some days it's just too hot to work out outside. On days like that, I like stepping into a gym and getting on a treadmill. Problem is, I usually turn it on and go from running 0 mph to 6 mph in under a minute, and then when I'm done, I just hit stop without cooling down. This is not good since a proper warm-up and cooldown is what helps prevent cramping and injuries. Instead of rushing my workouts, here's what I'll be doing instead:

• Warming Up: Warming up is very important on a treadmill because it loosens up your muscles and preps your body for what's about to come. To start, walk for about 3 to 5 minutes at an easy pace (2.5 mph to 3.5 mph) — you can slowly increase the speed to 3.5 mph every one to two minutes.

Keep reading to learn how to properly cool down.