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Why I Hate the Treadmill

January 30, 2016 1 Comment

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The weather here in Alaska has not been ideal for running outdoors. It’s very icy which makes for very treacherous conditions.

But I am committed to my running plan of not missing more than two days in a row. Being that I work 12 hour shifts, I need to run on those days that I am not working.

Obviously, these icy conditions make it difficult to stick to the plan. I could, of course, head to the gym and run on the treadmill, except that I absolutely HATE it. And here are 5 reasons why I simply refuse to do that.

1. Running on the treadmill is sooo boring! I am constantly looking at the stats and time. I suppose I could get lost in the music or watch TV, but I would rather get lost in the scenery of the outdoors.

2. I sound like a herd of elephants while running. I am a heavy foot striker as it is, but on the treadmill, I feel like I am just slapping my feet into the belts. I turn up the music so I don’t have to hear myself running, but I can tell from the looks I get that I am really loud. It’s embarrassing!

3. I tend to run faster and over stride during my run. Maybe psychologically I think if I run faster, it will be over soon.

4.  I am worried that it will cause injury (like falling on the ice won’t). I have achilles problems and the last time I ran on the treadmill, I was convinced that the flare up of my achilles was due to that run.

5. I don’t like the way my legs feel when I get off of the treadmill. I do a good 5-10 minute walk to cool down, but my legs just feel really tight and stiff afterwards.

So, yes I did venture out in these icy conditions, but I wore grippers and I took it really nice and slow. Thankfully, I did not fall!  An additional muscle strengthening benefit was the unintentional isometric exercises; I was very tense throughout the run. But, I still loved being outside!

Today, we got a little snow that adhered to the ice and gave a little more traction. I had a much easier run.

I am not saying that I would never run on the treadmill, but if it is at all possible to stick to the outdoors, that is where I will be. Happy running!

Comments

  1. Sonja says

    March 4, 2016 at 11:45 am

    This is by far the funnest thing I’ve seen all week…And your heavy footstep…how true.

    Reply

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Sharing the challenges that I face while training for marathons in my 60s! I'm determined to reach these goals while also meeting life's demands and spending time with my awesome and very supportive family! Read More…

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The wind died down today so we took a nice little The wind died down today so we took a nice little snow shoe up the mountain. The scenery was beautiful, just hard to capture it.  #snowshoeingadventures #snowshoealaska  #chugachmountains  #crosstraining #opt outside alaska
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