Treadmill vs. Pavement

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devilwhiterose
devilwhiterose Posts: 1,157 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
My schedule only allows me to run in the evening, around 8:45pm.

During the summer, I had just a little bit of daylight left and it was perfect for an evening run.

Now that it's fall, I've moved my running indoors to the gym treadmill because of the shorter days...it's way too dark for me to run outside comfortably (coyotes, country backroads...etc)

I prefer pavement, but I think I'm going to be stuck indoors 4 days a week for the winter months. I have a half marathon in April (first one) that I'm nervous about. I'm already a sucky and asthmatic runner/walker. Has anyone trained on a treadmill? Would you go for higher grade, speed, distance? Any suggestions?
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  • Striving4Fit_MrsOrtiz
    Striving4Fit_MrsOrtiz Posts: 410 Member
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    Bump*
  • CarsonRuns
    CarsonRuns Posts: 3,039 Member
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    Get a headlamp and run outside.

    You need to run longer to prepare for a distance race, not faster.
  • davemunger
    davemunger Posts: 1,139 Member
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    Can you get outside and run at least one day a week? Maybe on the weekend? It's very difficult to train for a half on the treadmill.
  • devilwhiterose
    devilwhiterose Posts: 1,157 Member
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    Well, I have a halfday of work on Fridays. What do you think for M-TH treadmill and then planning a long run on Friday afternoons?

    I'm such a chicken *kitten* with running in the dark in the country.
  • TheBrolympus
    TheBrolympus Posts: 586 Member
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    If you can run outside it would be better. Running on a treadmill won't prepare you the same way that pounding the pavement will. I did a lot of treadmill work before my 1st half and I finished but felt a lot better on my second half when I did all my training outside.

    I run with a headlamp when the light becomes an issue. I do understand the creepiness of running in the dark especially in remote areas. Coyotes generally won't mess with you unless you are running with a pocket full of meat or hotdogs. Just make sure someone else knows you run path so if you need to be picked up they will know exactly where to find you. And run with some mace or a nice stick if it makes you feel more secure.

    Worst case at least try to get out on the road here and there. So you aren't exclusively on the treadmill.
  • devilwhiterose
    devilwhiterose Posts: 1,157 Member
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    I generally hate the treadmill. I'm semi-following one of the Hal Higdon novice schedules to work up to the half.

    Maybe I can do a couple short runs outside. It's so hard to get used to. Fields and woods makes me feel like something is going to come out and snatch me up. :laugh: I can save the longer runs for Friday and Saturday afternoons.
  • omma_to_3
    omma_to_3 Posts: 3,265 Member
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    Have you run on a treadmill before? If so, you should know how it compares for YOU to running outside. If not, try it and see how it compares. Most people say it's easier. On my old treadmill (a new and expensive NordicTrack one) it was HARDER. I had that treadmill replaced under warranty with a different, more expensive model, and now, it's EASIER on the treadmill. But not significantly so. I would say one run a week outside is plenty. I trained for my half last winter mostly outside. I hope to do the same half next April. I won't be doing most of it outside though - just a long run on weekends. I didn't really enjoy blue lips and ice covering my face LOL. I think ideally running outside is better, but I think it's perfectly doable to use a treadmill for much of your training. They're not all long runs after all.

    I live in Michigan so it's cold and snowy. Here's what I looked like most of last winter LOL:
    i-d8nC2Rw-L.jpg
  • omma_to_3
    omma_to_3 Posts: 3,265 Member
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    I generally hate the treadmill. I'm semi-following one of the Hal Higdon novice schedules to work up to the half.

    Maybe I can do a couple short runs outside. It's so hard to get used to. Fields and woods makes me feel like something is going to come out and snatch me up. :laugh: I can save the longer runs for Friday and Saturday afternoons.

    Oh, my other suggestion is to drive to a park to run. The park I run at is still pretty rural, but there are always other people there at least.
  • PeteWhoLikesToRunAlot
    PeteWhoLikesToRunAlot Posts: 596 Member
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    I fight with this every winter. Central Mass, living in the relative sticks with no sidewalks, and the already narrow roads have even less width with the snow and ice. When I was first starting, I relied on a treadmill, but after a couple of years, I started looking for areas in town, or around my work (slightly larger roads) that would permit keeping it outside. I found that the high school track actually stays quite clear as it sits in an open area with lots of wind. While the track is still not the same as pavement/asphalt, it's still better than the treadmill.

    Might be worth a shot anyway.
  • davemunger
    davemunger Posts: 1,139 Member
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    Well, I have a halfday of work on Fridays. What do you think for M-TH treadmill and then planning a long run on Friday afternoons?

    I'm such a chicken *kitten* with running in the dark in the country.

    That would definitely help a lot!

    If you could find a running partner that would help even more -- the camaraderie will keep you motivated and you'll also feel safer.
  • devilwhiterose
    devilwhiterose Posts: 1,157 Member
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    No dice on a running partner. They're all talk but no action. I enjoy the evening, it's a great de-stresser after a day.

    I didn't even think of running at the high school track! I'll have to check that out tonight and see what it looks like. Thank you for that suggestion!
  • Happylady123
    Happylady123 Posts: 166 Member
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    I do both, but I have learned they are different. You should definately do your long run outside if possible. I have found for me that running on the treadmill does not help me learn to pace myself (speed is already set) and that when I am outside running I tend to run at that pace in the beginning on my long run. It does not work out very well. It also uses different muxcles, etc. on the treadmill. I have one that is awesome and the incline adjusts to whatever map you have programmed into it form google maps, but it is still not the same as outside. I am glad I have it, though. I still do both. Good luck with the half. Keep running!
  • just_Jennie1
    just_Jennie1 Posts: 1,233
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    When I trained for my first half the only run I didn't do on a treadmill (unless for whatever reason I missed it. Doing 10+ miles on the treadmill sucks. Oh, and so does smacking the STOP button when you're partway through and having everything you did erased :grumble: ) was my long run. All my other training was done indoors on the treadmill.

    But then again my long run was done on Sunday so I was able to do it any time.

    ETA: As far as speed and all that goes even though I was running on a treadmill my time increased a LOT, even when I ran outside.
  • manhn1
    manhn1 Posts: 137 Member
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    I have done four half marathons (a fifth in less than two weeks) and I am approaching the 1:40 mark. I do most of my runs on the treadmill. I enjoy my outdoor long runs (I don't just leave my home and run--I trek out to a place in the city where it's scenic and beautiful and inspiring). Who knows--maybe if I did more outdoor runs I'd be closer to 1:30. Somehow, I doubt it.

    But I enjoy treadmill running. There's usually something on tv that I enjoy and I love my music.

    Do what you feel you can and don't feel like you're exerting less effort.
  • _Waffle_
    _Waffle_ Posts: 13,049 Member
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    Get a headlamp and run outside.

    This is exactly what I do in the winter months. Back out behind our housing development it's very rural. Fields, dirt roads, woods, and no lighting whatsoever. I never see anything but skunks, coyotes, rabbits, and cattle out there. You're going to feel a tad spooked the first time or so but when you get used to it you're going to really love running at night with a headlamp. It's very calming.
  • CarsonRuns
    CarsonRuns Posts: 3,039 Member
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    Get a headlamp and run outside.

    This is exactly what I do in the winter months. Back out behind our housing development it's very rural. Fields, dirt roads, woods, and no lighting whatsoever. I never see anything but skunks, coyotes, rabbits, and cattle out there. You're going to feel a tad spooked the first time or so but when you get used to it you're going to really love running at night with a headlamp. It's very calming.

    And the best part is, on those rare nights when it's crystal clear and the moon is full, you can just turn the headlamp off and run by moonlight. There is nothing, absolutely nothing, like it.
  • just_Jennie1
    just_Jennie1 Posts: 1,233
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    Get a headlamp and run outside.

    This is exactly what I do in the winter months. Back out behind our housing development it's very rural. Fields, dirt roads, woods, and no lighting whatsoever. I never see anything but skunks, coyotes, rabbits, and cattle out there. You're going to feel a tad spooked the first time or so but when you get used to it you're going to really love running at night with a headlamp. It's very calming.

    Except when you're running along and you hit a huge pothole and end up busting up your leg.

    Where I live there are mammoth potholes that can swallow cars. Even when driving a car at night, high beams on you can't see these caverns which really sucks. When I run outside during the day I have to keep my eyes on the road directly in front of me so I don't fall into one.:grumble:
  • QuietBloom
    QuietBloom Posts: 5,413 Member
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    You can train primarily inside, but be sure to run at least once a week on the surface you will be racing on. You need your body to prepare for that kind of 'hardness'.
  • justal313
    justal313 Posts: 1,375 Member
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    My gym doesn't want you on a piece of equipment for longer than an hour. That's 6 miles or maybe a little bit more for me. I couldn't train for a half without getting outside never mind the marathon I want to run next year. I've be running at night with a reflective vest and a head lamp when I run at night, but I'm a boy and we don't have coyotes so I feel a little bit safer. I started running on the treadmill but I'll run outside, in the dark, in the rain instead of a treadmill now, I just enjoy it more.

    You'll want a very small incline running on the treadmill, my gym's treadmills go by a number which I don't think corresponds with an incline (at least not 1 to 1 degree) so I do 0.5 the smallest incline it will do.

    I am seriously dreading the winter because I don't want to run inside.
  • MinimalistShoeAddict
    MinimalistShoeAddict Posts: 1,946 Member
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    Get a headlamp and run outside.

    This is exactly what I do in the winter months. Back out behind our housing development it's very rural. Fields, dirt roads, woods, and no lighting whatsoever. I never see anything but skunks, coyotes, rabbits, and cattle out there. You're going to feel a tad spooked the first time or so but when you get used to it you're going to really love running at night with a headlamp. It's very calming.

    And the best part is, on those rare nights when it's crystal clear and the moon is full, you can just turn the headlamp off and run by moonlight. There is nothing, absolutely nothing, like it.
    I agree completely with this. I love moonlight trail runs when the weather permits

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