Don’t Dread the Tread

By Dr. Trish Kana, PT, DPT

It’s winter-time, folks. Runners in the frigid and snowy Northeast are prepping layering strategies and hunting down their warmest gloves for these freezing temps coming our way. The first snowfall of the season means slippery roads underneath your feet and sidewalks that pile up with lumpy dirty snow. Even if the first half mile feels fine and stable, it only takes one slip to completely derail your day, week, or even longer.

We all know that sometimes the treadmill is the safer option based on the variable conditions in the winter months.

But it can feel like a cop-out to some who feel like treadmill miles don't count or they aren't as good or as real as outdoor miles.

Let’s dive into the age-old debate of treadmill vs. outdoor running:

Running Mechanics:

• Outdoor Running:

  • Pros: Your body is responsible for forward propulsion, aka your hamstrings, glutes, and calves (the posterior chain) must generate enough power to keep you moving forward.

• Treadmill:

  • Cons: Does not require as much forward propulsion due to the moving belt under your feet, which takes some load off the posterior chain

  • Pros: Does preserve the mechanics at your lumbar spine and pelvis, making the stimulus similar to outdoor running according to a 2001 study. In a small study conducted with 10 male participants, they found that runners increased their cadence and decreased ground reaction time when running on the treadmill vs. running outdoors - which is great in terms of reducing load to joints. So don’t fear doing your easy miles on the treadmill- it can be helpful for reduced impact!

Conditions:

• Outdoor Running

  • Almost entirely out of your control: wind, precipitation, hills, uneven terrain, cars, bikes, dogs, crowds, slippery roads.

  • Cons: Can be dangerous to run outside in temperatures below 0deg F since skin is at a significantly high risk of frostbite within 20 minutes. (Personally, single digit temperatures feel unbearable for me, and this could be due to being a woman with Raynaud’s). Maybe the road doesn’t feel too slick, but it only takes one misstep on a snowy/icy patch to completely derail your day or your whole training block. Unless you have sneakers with excellent traction or are using microspikes, definitely call it a treadmill day.

  • Pros: Running in less than ideal conditions outside prepares you for less than ideal race day conditions. Also, gives you a sense of accomplishment to say “hey that was terrible, but I did it.” And you can keep doing hard things.

• Treadmill:

  • Cons: If you do every run in ideal environment, your race day conditions could totally throw you off- both physically and mentally if you haven’t trained in adverse conditions.

  • Pros: Temperature controlled, all your necessary running items have their place (gels, water, phone), you can binge your favorite Netflix show, the surface is the same and sometimes even softer/cushioned compared to pavement.

Effort:

• Outdoor Running:

  • Because of the variable conditions, running outdoors can feel harder. For runners who are used to doing their runs on treadmills, they might find that their outdoor runs feel like a slog. The more your practice something, the better you get at it. If you’re training for a road race, make sure you’re getting enough training miles outside on the road so your body (and brain) get used to the difference.

• Treadmill:

  • Treadmill running is not necessarily easier than running outside. For runners who are used to doing 99% of their runs outdoors, running on the treadmill can feel harder - especially when trying to run at the same speed.

  • Our advice? Ignore the speed/pace that the tread screen shows you, and go by effort level or feel when having to do a treadmill run.

Final answer?

Treadmill miles are JUST AS BENEFICIAL as outdoor miles - for your lungs, your heart, your legs, one may even argue for your brain (to get used to the tediousness).

If the weather is presenting an obstacle, or if you are just dying to watch the latest episode of your favorite show, or for a multitude of reasons that make treadmill running more accessible for you - jump on and get running!