My Nemesis...The Treadmill

Its a Beautiful Sunday morning, sun is out, but not too warm.  So what to do?  Sunday long run outside, of course.  Right?  NOPE!  Not today.  I have promised my kids I will take them to the gym with me.  And, to go with our schedule, this morning is it.  So I rally my troops, get in the car, and head to the closest 24 Hour Fitness.  I check the kids into Kids Club, and off I go.  Upstairs to the Cardio Zone.

I have a serious problem with the treadmill.  Sure it is great when it is the middle of the Oregon rainy season (6 months of constant rain). Or, when I want to sneak in a workout at lunch, because the shower is right there.  But it was nice out today.  Strike 1 against the treadmill.  The second problem, I usually talk myself into a shorter distance, somewhere in the middle of my treadmill runs.  Boredom I suspect.  I'd rather be anywhere else.  But today..this was going to be my workout.  5 miles on the treadmill, and maybe a swim after.  (I haven't been in the pool in 3 months)

I turn the corner towards the treadmills.  There are only a few people on them, so I have a pretty large choice.  Proper treadmill selection is key.  Someone is on the one I usually take.  That one at least offers a view of people lifting downstairs, and I can see out to the street.  I don't want to be right next to someone when there are plenty of machines open, so I move 2 to the left.  As I get on it, I feel a breeze from the air conditioning system.  This is a good sign.  Slightly cool before I start, I wont bake in the middle of the workout.  I no longer run with music, and I do not like to have the treadmills with the TVs attached.  That is way too close to my face, and makes my eyes buggy.

The Precor, My usual style (without the TV)

So I get on the machine, feet to the sides, press Quick Start, up my elevation and speed, and jump on.  It always feels too fast at first, but I find if I start slow, the whole treadmill run ends up being at too slow a pace.  So I always start at the slowest speed I ever want to be in that workout,  I figure the 5 miles will take me about 48 minutes plenty of time to still jump in the pool.

Wow, I'm feeling good.  I can do this.  I have no where else to be, I'm not rushed, and I'm almost 3/4 of a mile in without even noticing time pass.  Then....It all starts to go downhill (except for the treadmill elevation).

Shark Sonic Duo

In the cardio area there are 10 TVs, with a variety of programming from news to sports to TNT. (I have no idea why that channel is always on.)  But what is in front of me???  An infomercial.  A Loooooooong 30 minute infomercial on the "Shark Sonic Duo".  Over and over and over I see the vacuuming, and the tape on the carpet showing dirty and clean.  It is such a bad commercial that I'm not sure weather to laugh or cringe.  I start cringing.  And then it really starts bugging me. I think.." I want off this treadmill.  I don't want to see this anymore.  Maybe I should just cut my run to 5K."  Like I said. I'm pretty good about talking myself into a shorter workout on the treadmill.  I manage to stay on through the rest of the infomercial.  I'm about 24 minutes into my run.  Woo hoo, I made it through.  And then....Infomercial #2 comes on.  The Nu Wave cooker or something.  Honestly.  Just too much for me.  I'm sure you are wondering why I didn't look away, but there were really no other TVs in a good sight line or distance.  I was trapped.  So I finished 5K, pushed STOP, cleared my workout, and walked to the water fountain.

And then I thought, "I'm not quitting today".  I turned around, and chose a new treadmill, right behind my usual one, and the Sunday Nascar pre-race was on the nearby TV.  I'm fine watching cars and garage areas.  But, this was a different type of treadmill.  TheFreeMotion Incline treadmill.  I haven't tried them before, because I always see people hanging on for dear life to the top handles.  Does the machine not go slow enough? 

FreeMotion Incline Treadmill

But hey, I have 1.9 more miles to do, so let's go!  I get on, feet to the sides, press Quick Start, up my elevation and speed, and jump on. My elevation on the Precor treadmill had been at 1.0, so I figured I'd do the same.  But, It felt like I was running downhill.  I double checked, not in the negatives, so I upped it to 2.0.  It still seemed quite different, and possibly downhill.  I did notice that the deck was a lot firmer, and much more similar feeling to a road.  This I liked.  I got going on the 1.9 miles, and in an effort to get through this workout, kept upping my speed.  So I guess I got a little speed work in too. I finished.  5 Total Miles.  Goal Met!!!!!


As for the swim... I managed to do that too.  It was a nice cool down.  I had no expectations for how far or fast I was going, and I even used flip turns.  It turns out, flip turns make the swim flow a lot better, and I don't get a break at each wall, which is much more like my open water swims.  Glad I finally learned how to do them.  400m complete.  Then a shower and picked up the kids.  Turned out to be a good morning.

Do you have a treadmill preference, brand, type?
Do you find it easier or harder to run on a treadmill as opposed to outside?
What's the furthest you've ever run on a treadmill? (I've heard of people running 13 miles. I would never make it)