Treadmill Training

Treadmills should come with a warning. Not because they are dangerous in the way you are thinking, but because they seriously alter the way you run!

As I stepped onto the treadmill the other day, headphones on and plugged in, channel selected on the near by TV, I found my body settle into the familiar routine of running. The gentle glide under my feet and cushion in my knees, a fan blowing in my face cooling the drops of sweat...ahhh, running.

Disrespectfully the damn thing jerked me into a vicious incline and due to it being a treadmill it decided I would keep my pace as I raced up the "hill" and also due to it being a treadmill, I was tethered uncomfortably close to the operation panel by my headphone cord!

I hate interval settings.

After that ridiculous experience, a long summer of indoor running, and a glass (alright a bottle!) of wine, I realized that I could hit the actual pavement in the cool Fall air. I wouldn't be tethered to anything, but rather feel free to glide on the road, changing my pace any time I wanted. Free to stop for a sip of water rather than the gymnastics jump I execute on a treadmill to escape being jerked off the relentless spinning track. However, the sip of water will now need to be a handheld bottle...that I will have to run with. I wonder if Jess will run with me? I need him to hold my water.

The next day, I hit the road. As I ran, the hard surface wore at my knee joints. My iPod bored me with music that just wasn't quite right. I missed my "shows", the crappy TV I allow myself to watch while on the treadmill; it makes an hour fly by. My water bottle was really heavy too, Jess had not come with me. I also had to sprint from a very aggressive mini dog. I was miserable. That is when I realized it had only been 20mins.

I needed to meditate if i was going to get through this. Deep breaths. Settle in. My body relaxed into the familiar rhythm and like Pavlov's dog, my head gently veered to the left. I didn't realize it for a while, but as my right side narrowly escaped a close encounter with a car, I realized this was not normal. While most road runners stare down the road ahead of them, treadmill runners run with their head off to one side...as trained by the placement of the TV they watch! This does not apply to those of you that go to fancy gyms with the treadmills that have personal TVs. We live in Northern NM where you are lucky to find a gym that has a TV in it at all!

After a Forest Gump type of run, I decided the treadmill sounded appealing again. Like being called home. Running outside had proven to be highly over rated! So I again saddled up, water in my treadmill holster, cell phone in place, headphones plugged in and that glorious crap TV show blaring in my ears. My feet hit the soft whirring track and I was off...comfortable 45 degree turn to the left in my neck.

Suddenly with a loud smack and various groaning, I was pulled from my reverie. Like a fine tuned gymnast, I grabbed the side rails of the treadmill, pushed myself up and sprung my feet to a perfect 10 landing on either side of my spinning track, a slight slack in my headphone tether. I asked the tangled lump of person and headphone cord on the treadmill next to me if they were OK. "ya, ya...just not use to running with my head turned to the side!"
Newbie.