BIP.

Exercise library · Cardio

Treadmill

Cardio on a machine.

How to do it

  1. Starting position

    Stand with your feet on the side rails, attach the safety clip to your clothing and hold the handrails lightly.

  2. The movement

    Start the belt at a slow speed, step on once it moves, and walk or run in the center with your arms swinging freely.

Most common mistake

Don't hold the rails once you're moving, lower the speed if needed and stay in the center of the belt.

Muscle group
Cardio
Equipment
Machine
Where
Gym
Logged as
Time and distance

What it trains

The treadmill trains the same things as running outdoors: your heart, lungs and leg endurance, with the calves, quads and glutes working hardest. The difference is that you set the speed and incline exactly. Incline is the treadmill's best tool. At a few per cent, your heart rate climbs even at walking pace and your glutes, hamstrings and calves get more to do. Steep walking therefore raises your heart rate without running, if running is too much for your legs. Many people set a slight incline, around one per cent, when they run, so it feels more like being outside.

Common mistakes

  • Choosing a speed you can't hold. Outdoors you slow down on your own, but the belt keeps its speed until you change it. Start lower than you think and raise it during the session.
  • Jumping off while the belt is moving. It is easy to trip when your feet leave a moving belt. Slow down and walk for a minute, then press stop and step off once the belt has stopped.
  • Pressing the same buttons every session. The same speed, incline and time every week soon becomes routine. Mix easy sessions, intervals and incline walking.

Variations and alternatives

  • Running is the main exercise, outdoors and on varied ground.
  • The elliptical gives a running-like movement without your feet ever leaving the pedals.
  • The stair climber when you like incline walking and want even more climbing.

How to plan your sessions

The treadmill suits intervals, as a button sets the pace. A common format is one minute fast and one to two minutes walking or jogging easily, repeated 6 to 10 times. For a steadier session, walk on an incline for 20 to 40 minutes, so you get warm and out of breath but can still answer a question. Start with a few minutes of slow walking. If you also lift, the guide on how often to train shows how much cardio fits into your week.

Progress in small steps: half a kilometre an hour faster in the intervals, one per cent more incline or a few minutes longer. Adjust one setting at a time, so you can tell what worked. Small, measurable steps like these are the heart of progressive overload.

Swap for

Taken, or missing the equipment? The same movement with something else.

Want it in a programme?

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