Treadmill blues

Ah, the treadmill. If you have to fit in a run on days with weather like we've had the past couple of days, then the treadmill can be your best friend. We had over 12 inches of snow in less than 12 hours. The trails are covered and the streets are slushy, not to mention dangerous.

It sure would be nice to say what the heck and just blow off any running for the next week. However, with my upcoming marathon just about 9 weeks away, well, I can't afford to blow off too much running. So I opt for the treadmill. I don't know what it is, but my pace on the treadmill is much slower than when I'm out on the open road. I typically put the treadmill on a 1.0 incline at a minimum, just to simulate the outdoors, but it always feels more difficult. Maybe it has to do with the fact that there is no wind so the sweat just drips down your face. Maybe it has do to with the fact that the faster you make the treadmill go, the harder you can hear the motor working. Or maybe it's just that the treadmill is so boring. A 30 minute workout can sometimes feel like 90 minutes! You glance away for a little while, waiting for time to pass, then look back down and see that a little less than a minute has gone by! Sometimes it feels like torture.

One nice thing, though, is that one of the clubs I belong to has 8 different televisions you can watch. You plug in your headphones and can change the channel to hear which show you'd like to watch, and that can help. Sitcoms are good to watch, although I laugh out loud at the funny parts and the people around me tend to give me funny looks. Another club has it even one step better, with individual television screens attached to each treadmill so you can watch any channel you want. Very nice. But I still get bored during commercials.

A few months back, a friend suggested this treadmill workout. Don't try this at home, kids.

Treadmill Workout