17 November, 2014

Treadmill mistakes

Most runners prefer to run outside and they use treadmill only when the weather is very bad- too cold, fog, rain, etc. Runners find treadmill very boring. People who run outside, find it more exhilarating and research proves that people who run outside, stick to their fitness regime more than people who run on a treadmill. There are certain do's and don'ts with running on treadmill. Here they are:

1. Do not hold the side bars of a treadmill. This will spoil the alignment of your spine and your posture. Also when you are holding the side bars, the body weight is supported. You do not use your upper body- hands and shoulders. You burn less calories. You increase the speed at which you really are not comfortable and cover up for it by holding the side bars. You do not gain confidence to manage that speed without holding the side bars.

2. Do not try to turn your neck to watch TV screen or an iPad or iPod. Anything that spoils your posture and alignment is not good. You should not be hunching the shoulders or leaning forward. Walking in that position is not good. On a treadmill, you will be constantly in that position. When one muscle is stretched, its opposite muscle is shortened. Doing that to your neck muscles, while walking is not a good idea.

3. While on a treadmill your focus should be on your muscles, on your fitness goals. To divert your mind by watching a TV is a bad idea. Focus on posture and technique, rather than a magazine, a book, TV or iPad.

4. Vary your regime. Cross train your body. If you run for the same amount of time, at the same speed, everyday, you will not get any benefits. Do different regimes on different days. If you want to focus on running only, vary it by doing different interval training.

5. Do not skip your warm up and then cool down stretches, however busy you are. Do not try to hop on and hop off the treadmill to save time. It is better to avoid injuries than to just finish and get over with, your workout.

6. Do not increase the elevation too high. Functional training is important. Elevation should be, how you have it, in real life. Not abnormally high. Chances of you holding on to the side bars are more when either the elevation is too high or the speed is too much for you to handle. Both are not good.

7. Do not get obsessed with numbers. The figures displayed on the machine- calories burnt, fat burnt, etc are approximate numbers. For an accurate figure use heart rate monitors, in which you feed in your age, height, weight, etc. Treadmill figures give your rough estimate. Do not get too obsessed with it. Sometimes it is a good idea to throw a towel on the display board on the treadmill.

8. Just because you are thirsty or you want to take an important call on your mobile, do not jump off the running belt without slowing down. Chances of you tripping and falling are too high. Many people may not be able to balance themselves.

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