Easy Tips to Spruce Up Your Treadmill Workouts
Growing bored with an exercise routine is one of the top reasons that many people slack, or quit, exercising. If you are growing bored walking on your treadmill, there are many things you can do to make treadmill workouts more interesting. Here are some ideas that can keep your treadmill workouts fun and interesting:
Music, CDs, TV and Movies. Most everyone has a favorite style of music. Use this to your advantage. Listening to your favorite music during treadmill workouts can make the time pass faster and it also helps you focus more. If music isn’t your thing, you may prefer to listen to audio books or motivational CDs. Treadmill workouts are also a great time to catch up on TV shows and watch movies.
Pyramid Walking. Increase your walking pace by .1 mph every minute for 15 minutes. Then, slow your walking pace by .1 mph every minute for 15 minutes. This is an awesome mental and physical challenge.
Dancers. If dancing is a favorite pastime, you can build up your strength and increase your balance by walking backwards on your treadmill. Keep your pace steady and even. This should only be tried by people who have good coordination!
Numbers – 1, 2, 3. For one minute, count how many steps you take during your workout. The following minute, give your mind a break. Start counting your steps again for one minute. Counting steps makes treadmill workouts fly by for some people. It also is nice to see how your foot speed increases over time.
Circuit Training. To give your body an aerobic and strength training workout, walk for five minutes. Then, get off of your machine and do lunges, push-ups, crunches or work with weights for one minute. Repeat this process throughout your workout.
Stretching. Most everyone loves stretching. A very enjoyable thing to incorporate into treadmill workouts is stretching. Walk 10 minutes, get off your machine and do stretching exercises for five minutes. Repeat this until your workout time is over.
Climb and Walk. Someone who wants to take it to the next level can put a stepper next to their treadmill and take turns stepping for five minutes and walking for five minutes.
Chart Your Progress. Pick a place you have always wanted to visit and chart your mileage there after each workout. See how long it takes you to walk to Hawaii, China or the Bahamas.
Heart Rate Training. Heart rate training involves finding out your maximum heart rate and cycling in and out of different heart rate zones for two or three minute intervals. This type of treadmill workout shouldn’t last more than 20 or 30 minutes and you shouldn’t do it more than three times per week because it is intense.
This is just a small snippet of the things that you can do to bring fun back into your treadmill workouts. Find out what works for you and don’t be afraid to change it up. Chasing away boredom is crucial to keeping your exercise program going long term.
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