Has anyone had any luck doing sprint workouts on a treadmill?
I detest slow, steady-paced cardio workouts. Since I do not have the luxury of a track anywhere near where I live, I'll have to make do with sprints on a treadmill.
Let me hear some tips and pointers, or if it's really even possible, to do an effective sprint workout on a treadmill.
Depends on how good your treadmill is. You could try doing sprint intervals. Crank the treadmill up to 15mph (if it will go that high) and do 10-15 seconds on with 20-30 seconds off. Use the hand rails to help jump on and off the track. For an added dimension of difficulty, raise up the incline
sprinting on a treadmill is not very good unless theres a countdown thingy that will slow it down once you reached a certain amount of seconds or risk of injury will be high. You don't want to fall off of the treadmill and get hurt due to the belt going too fast. Keep in mind that on a treadmill, the floor moves for you and if you stop and the belt does not stop, you will go along with the belt.
Injury risk is really high for trying to sprint as hard as you can on a treadmill and risk of knee injury is very high. Treadmill and sidewalk/street running is really hard on the knees, sidewalk/street running the hardest on the knees I think. Your knees will not be happy at all. You want free range of motion, not limited range of motion. Treadmills limit your range of motion and sidewalk/streets are hard surfaces; therefore, foot to foot contact with the ground will be hard on your joints.
Do you have any open spots in your house on the carpet you can sprint on or a gym around the area or grass or a park? There has to be something around your area. You do not need a track to sprint. I sprint on the grass at the park or the softball field or I sprint in a room at the spectrum club when a class is not scheduled at that time..
I do treadmill sprints, although they're not ideal in some ways... I don't jump on to the moving belt (so I don't get that plyo-style push off) but I increase speed and do about 30 seconds at a challenging speed (for me, that's a max of 10.5 mph with my short stubby little legs), then I use the rails and jump off, slow it down, step back on and recover/repeat...
I've done track sprints and it's a very different exercise. I do actually use the safety clip for sprints so I won't be a youtube "how not to use a treadmill" video. If you're looking to do it as an interval style workout, it's a decent option - I definitely get my HR up, and it's nowhere near as boring as steady-state running for me.
I do treadmill sprints, although they're not ideal in some ways... I don't jump on to the moving belt (so I don't get that plyo-style push off) but I increase speed and do about 30 seconds at a challenging speed (for me, that's a max of 10.5 mph with my short stubby little legs), then I use the rails and jump off, slow it down, step back on and recover/repeat...
I've done track sprints and it's a very different exercise. I do actually use the safety clip for sprints so I won't be a youtube "how not to use a treadmill" video. If you're looking to do it as an interval style workout, it's a decent option - I definitely get my HR up, and it's nowhere near as boring as steady-state running for me.
yeah steady state running is so boring. Its okay to jog a lap, but I have to include a sprint and some carioca and stuff a long with it if I was going to jog for longer time or I will get bored. If I want to run for endurance, I would for example sprint one pole, jog the next, walk the next, repeat... I get more of a work out this way in less time than I would just doing jogging at one pace.
At my gym "spectrum club", there are a bunch of classes including cardio dance classes and cardio kickboxing. I like the dance and kickboxing classes. They are a lot of fun. If I want to do cardio, this is what I would do. I don't like just doing one thing only. I can get bored easily.
Why not run your sprints in the parking lot of the "spectrum club?" You can walk off about 40 yards on any level surface, and run windsprints at that distance. Your "recovery" could be the amount of time it takes you to walk back to the starting line. Thirty minutes of this every few days will provide you with an "afterburn" that will eventually result in fat loss. Helps to break up boredom as well. Enjoy!
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I am not going to go stand in no stag line with old Mr. Perkins and a bunch of slumped over teenage boys. --- Barney Fife
The more you dick around on the treadmill the greater the chances of hilarity. Watching people fall down is awesome. Watching someone getting launched into a wall is awesome. Combine the two and you've got pure gold.
Unless you've got something nice and squishy to get flung at I wouldn't recommend it.
You can't sprint on a treadmill unless you're an extremely SLOW sprinter. Most only go up to 12 mph. Plus, the entire idea behind a sprint is the immediate acceleration, which you cannot get on a treadmill because it has to gradually build speed or else it would trip people. You can't react against a moving belt the way you do against the ground.
I agree with JP, there is no way you can sprint full speed on a treadmill unless you are slow. Full speed is usually always more than 12 mph, and thats if you are sprinting on the balls of your feet. If you are on your heels, you will be slower than 12 mph.
I forgot to mention...
jogging - runs on heels
sprinting - runs on balls of feet
treadmill? not very good on the knees and not a lot of range of motion and the floor moves for you. People who run on a treadmill and then try to transfer to the track, will they be able to run the same mph they run on a treadmill or slower? The simple answer..slower and you will be out of breath easier. Reason is because running the track requires full range of motion and treadmill is cheating because the floor is moving for you and you do not have to provide as much effort as you would on the ground. I have tried this before with cardio work, and I was getting tired easily on the track transfering from treadmill to track. I have not really used a treadmill for cardio since that happened. It feels weird to me when I am on a treadmill because the floor is moving under me and I feel like my range of motion is limited.
Mon, have you ever even done a gait analysis to be able to state authoritatively that when you jog you do it on your heels or that when you sprint you do it on your toes? Also, not to defend treadmills, but the shock-absorbed impact doesn't "make it hard on the knees." You should really think about whether or not you should hit the "post message" button after you write up one of these "mon-logic" stream-of-conscious posts.
Mon, have you ever even done a gait analysis to be able to state authoritatively that when you jog you do it on your heels or that when you sprint you do it on your toes? Also, not to defend treadmills, but the shock-absorbed impact doesn't "make it hard on the knees." You should really think about whether or not you should hit the "post message" button after you write up one of these "mon-logic" stream-of-conscious posts.
Sprints are my favorite HIIT, and I do them on the indoor track at my gym. It is about 115 meters around. (14 laps per mile). Wearing good running shoes (may be) is essential. I have used treadmill machine for HIIT, and it seemed to work. But what I did was walk fast for a minute at the steepest angle, and then 2 minutes or less on the level and slow.
Mon, have you ever even done a gait analysis to be able to state authoritatively that when you jog you do it on your heels or that when you sprint you do it on your toes? Also, not to defend treadmills, but the shock-absorbed impact doesn't "make it hard on the knees." You should really think about whether or not you should hit the "post message" button after you write up one of these "mon-logic" stream-of-conscious posts.
well thats what I heard..I heard it is hard on the knees due to limited range of motion. I rather have full range of motion rather than limited range of motion and cheating my runs due to a moving floor. My knees feel better on a track than on a treadmill.
umm I am saying how it feels to me with treadmills, I did not say everyone would feel the same way. Some people like treadmills, some don't. I am one of those that dont like treadmills and I am just stating how I feel about them and how my knees feel. thats all. nothing wrong with that. If you are used to treadmills and then want to run on the track one day, it will feel different. same thing with me, I am used to the track, not the treadmill. I cant go anywhere with a treadmill, its just being steady in 1 place. I rather move around and do things.
umm I am saying how it feels to me with treadmills, I did not say everyone would feel the same way. Some people like treadmills, some don't. I am one of those that dont like treadmills and I am just stating how I feel about them and how my knees feel. thats all. nothing wrong with that. If you are used to treadmills and then want to run on the track one day, it will feel different. same thing with me, I am used to the track, not the treadmill. I cant go anywhere with a treadmill, its just being steady in 1 place. I rather move around and do things.
I think I found the problem, do not do this until you've cranked up the speed on the treadmill to AT LEAST 12 mph. Now, place one foot on the treadmill and leave the other on the ground, you'll surely be moving and no longer in one place!
Sprint Workouts
I think I found the problem, do not do this until you've cranked up the speed on the treadmill to AT LEAST 12 mph. Now, place one foot on the treadmill and leave the other on the ground, you'll surely be moving and no longer in one place!
Linear Mode
