ENRGi was founded in April 2009 originally under the name TEAMiFIT. Our programs began as outdoor boot camps at numerous parks around Chicago. Our founder, Amy Lee, launched TEAMiFIT with the intention of it being a spring/summer seasonal business to supplement with being a full-time elementary school teacher. After running our first online deal, we went from 20 to 500 clients overnight and Amy was forced to quit her teaching job. See our story unfold below.
When you are busy or just avoiding bad weather, there is always the opportunity to work out on the treadmill. But do you make optimal use of your time on the treadmill, or do you just stick to the same program?
With a few tricks, you can get more benefits and burn more calories during your treadmill workouts. Here’s how you can do it.
1. Raise the slope of the canvas
If you usually run in a non-ascent and descent mode, start adding ascents sometimes. “Lifting makes you work better and develops your muscles, and makes your body burn more calories,” says Meg Takacs, a professional running coach.
“The addition of a tilt puts even more muscle groups into action than running on a flat surface,” says Nicholas Hilton, a running coach and manager of a specialty running store in Flagstaff, Arizona.
For example, a July 2013 study found that running at a 7 percent incline increases glute muscle activation by 83 percent, and hip (hamstring) muscle activation by 6.16 percent. A study of gait and posture conducted in January 2012 found that walking at an angle involves the muscles of the thighs, buttocks, calves and ankles more than walking on a flat road.
Try to run:
Walk for 10 minutes on a flat surface to warm up. Then increase the slope to 7 percent, Hilton says. Walk or force yourself to run for 20 seconds. After that, switch to movement (walking or running) for one minute, but with the slope of the treadmill from 0 to 2 percent, to recover. Repeat this sequence a total of five times and complete the workout with a 10-minute walk or jog.
2. Practice interval training
Alternating between a fast run and a restorative walk or jog will help you burn more calories than running at a monotonous steady pace.
Not only does your body need to use more oxygen and activate more muscles, interval training will speed up and slow down your heart rate throughout your workout, which eats up more energy (and therefore calories) than maintaining a single pace, ” explains Takax.
Your body also burns more calories after a fast (or hilly) run, thanks to a physiological effect known as excess post-workout oxygen consumption (EPOC). Heavy exercise, such as sprinting or running on hills, creates micro-tears in the muscles and consumes a lot of fuel, mainly in the form of glycogen and adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Once you stop exercising, your body uses oxygen to help you recover, allowing you to burn more calories over longer periods of time.
In fact, studies say that interval training leads to greater body fat loss and overall fat loss than continuous, medium-intensity exercise.
Try to run:
Start with a 10-minute warm-up walk or jog. Then perform the following complex:
2 minutes at a hard pace (load at 8 or 9 on your scale of 1 to 10)
a minute-long recovery walk or jog
a minute at a hard pace
a minute-long recovery walk or jog
30 seconds at a hard pace
After completing the complex, 2 minutes of walking or jogging, and then repeating the entire list again. Finish your workout with a 10-minute walk or jog.
“If you want a more challenging task, add a 3rd repetition of the list or include a three-minute interval of hard running in each set,” says Hilton.
3. Use weight-bearing exercises
Treadmills are designed not only for walking and running, try to include body-weight exercises in your workout, as well as lunges when walking and raise your knees high.
“Adding exercise to your treadmill workout will add variety and burn some extra calories,” says Nicole Gainacopulos, a certified weight training and running specialist from Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Try to run:
Set the speed to safe before performing any of the exercises below. Once you get the hang of it, you can slightly increase your speed and/or tilt to make the exercises harder.
Nicole suggests alternating one minute of walking or running with one of the exercises that are presented below. Repeat the exercise once or twice, depending on your fitness level. Be sure to walk or jog for 5-10 minutes as a warm-up and recovery exercise.
Exercise 1: Walking Lunges
While the treadmill is moving, take a step forward with a deep lunge. Push off with your front foot to straighten up and take a lunge step with your other foot.
Continue to alternate your legs for some time, trying to keep up with the treadmill.
You can keep your hands in front of you or hold on to the handrails for balance if necessary.
Exercise 2: Heel strikes
Reduce the speed of the treadmill.
Hit your buttocks with your heel, and as soon as your foot is back on the canvas, do the same with your other foot.
Continue to alternate this movement for some time.
Exercise 3: Lateral movements
Stop the treadmill and turn sideways. Bend your knees slightly and activate the movement of the canvas.
Take quick steps to the side, landing gently on the balls of your feet.
Repeat the movement for the other side.
Exercise 4: Raising your knees
Reduce the speed of the treadmill.
Quickly raise one knee to your chest. As soon as the leg is lowered, lift the other leg high to the chest.
Continue to alternate lifting your legs for some time.
Exercise 5: Pushing
Stop the treadmill.
Holding on to the handrail, try to move the canvas with your foot.
Alternate one minute of this effort with 1 minute of walking or running.
4. Develop the pace
“If you can comfortably run 6.5 kilometers in 34 minutes, you will be able to challenge your body and increase the number of calories burned, steadily gaining pace throughout the workout,” explains Takax.
Gradually increasing your pace while running requires more oxygen and muscle activation, which helps you burn more calories.
For example, if you weigh 70 kilograms, you will burn approximately 298 calories during a 30-minute run at a speed of 8 km / h, but if you increase your pace to 9.5 km / h, you can burn 372 calories in the same time.
Try to run:
“The next time you challenge yourself, set a time target for a given distance,” says Takax. For example, try to run 6.5 km in 30 minutes. Start your workout at a comfortable pace and gradually pick up speed as you go, finishing at the maximum pace.
5. Strength training on the treadmill
“Alternating strength training with treadmill training adds variety and can help increase calorie burning,” says Nicole Gainakopoulos.
Adding strength training to your cardio routine also offers long-term benefits, namely helping you build muscle over time. And the more muscle you have, the more calories you burn. “Because muscles are metabolically active, they burn calories even when your body is at rest,” says Takax.
Elastic bands-expanders are comfortable weight training equipment that can be held directly on the treadmill. Exercises with an elastic band can be performed on the simulator in between cardio workouts. It is recommended to use long expanders with handles.
Try to run:
Nicole Gainakopoulos suggests choosing the three exercises below to combine them into a circuit. First, walk or run for five minutes, and then do 15 repetitions of each selected exercise, one after the other. Rest for one minute, then repeat the entire walk/run and strength circuit two more times, adding rounds as your fitness improves. Walk or jog for 10 minutes to cool off.
Exercise 1: Twisting the biceps
Place one or both feet in the middle of the elastic expander. Take the edges of the elastic band in your hands and raise your hands up.
Bend your arms with the expander at the elbows, raising your palms to your shoulders and flexing your biceps.
Squeeze your biceps at the top before gently lowering your arms down.
Exercise 2: Triceps Stretch
Stand up straight, with your feet shoulder-width apart. Take the edges of the expander in your hands and put your hands behind your neck.
Keeping your hands close to your head, pull the tape toward the ceiling until your arms are fully extended and you feel a tightness in your triceps.
Lower your hands gently down to the starting position.
Exercise 3: Chest Press
Stretch the expander on the floor or place it perpendicular to the treadmill. Lie down on the tape with your back so that the edges of the expander pass just under the armpits. Take one end of the tape in each hand at the chest.
Stretch your arms with the edges of the expander up to a straight position.
Lower your hands down with the control to the starting position.
Exercise 4: Upper bench press
Place both feet in the middle of the expander, feet shoulder-width apart.
With your hands on the handles of the expander, raise your hands to shoulder height, palms forward. Tighten your abs.
Straighten your arms up until they are fully extended over your head.
Exercise 5: Pulling up the expander
Place one or both feet in the middle of the elastic expander.
Hold the edges of the tape with your hands, creating tension.
Keep your back straight. Tilt your torso forward at least 45 degrees or 90 degrees. Straighten your shoulders.