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Tanya’s Treadmill Tales (guest post).

By MizFit | July 30, 2009

Hey Mizfitters …or should I say mizfits!

It’s Tanya here from Iateapie & IntheGym.

I’m a food scientist turned teacher of chemistry & food principles.

(Yes - I was once researching & making those long multi-syllable chemical sounding names you find in some foods!)

I’m really into all things food … ummm …. let me ammend that to say except for cooking, which I like to do … because I need to eat.

You won’t really find me in the kitchen for more than 30 minutes. You will however, find me in the gym every morning.

It seems I have moved to a new city every year, and the first 2 things I do are get a library card and a gym membership.

Some people can work out at home - I can’t. I wouldn’t ever leave the computer screen!

It’s even more important to me now that I’m currently taking care of 2 little boys (and 1 big boy) - it’s my means of escaping … I mean, making sure I stay fit. Yeah … that’s what I meant…

So here are a few things Ive learned along the way—hope they help you as well.

Getting Creative With Treadmill Runs.

I run a few times a week, but it wasn’t until recently that I started playing around with altering the speeds during my run to make it more exciting, and boy did it ever work. My treadmill runs are no longer as boring and I ended up challenging myself by incorporating higher speeds than I would normally do.

I started sharing my treadmill runs at IntheGym.net and here are 2 of my favorites.

Blast It 20 Minute Treadmill Run

* Run like the wind for 8 minutes. Speed 7.0.
* 8-10 minutes. Walk for 2 minutes. Speed 4.0.
* 10-15 minutes. Faster - you can do it for 5 minutes. Speed 7.5.
* 15-17 minutes. Walk for 2 minutes. Speed 4.0.
* 17-20 minutes. Blast it for 3 minutes! Speed 8.0.
* Slow down. Cool down. You did great!

5 4 3 2 1 Sweaty Interval Treadmill Workout
This interval type workout has you running for a set period of time with 1 minute of rest in between. The basics: Run for 5 minutes, walk for 1, run for 4 minutes, walk for 1, run for 3 minutes, walk for 1, run for 2 minutes, walk for 1 minute, sprint for 1 minute, walk for 1. Each time you run, increase speed by 0.5. Example:

* Set 1Warm up with a 5 minute jog. Speed 6.2.
* Slow it down for 1 minute. Speed 4.0).
* Increase the pace and run for 4 minutes. Speed 6.5.
* Take a breather for 1 minute by walking or jogging. Speed 4.0 or 6.2 for a jogging pace).
* Increase the pace and run for 3 minutes. Speed 7.0.
* Slow it down for 1 minute by walking or jogging. Speed 4.0 or 6.2 for a jogging pace).
* Increase the pace and run for 2 minutes. Speed 7.5.
* Slow it down for 1 minute by walking or jogging. Speed 4.0 or 6.2 for a jogging pace).
* Increase the pace and run for 1 minute. Speed 8.0.
* Slow it down for 1 minute by walking or jogging. Speed 4.0 or 6.2 for a jogging pace).
* Set 2REPEAT Set 1.
* The Finish41-46 minutes. 5 minutes tempo run. Level 6.5.
* 46-50 minutes. Cool down with a 4 minute walk. Level 4.0.

Want some MizFit with your Thursday? You can find me ranting posting over here.

Topics: Food Glorious Food |

19 Responses to “Tanya’s Treadmill Tales (guest post).”

  1. Erica Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 3:34 am

    Love this! I must prefer to run outside but due to weather etc, sometimes we all have to hit up the mill. I did so yesterday and found myself totally bored. I will be using your tips in the future for sure :)

  2. Hanlie Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 4:33 am

    Hi Tanya! I’m also a 30-minute cook!

    I love doing intervals on the treadmill, even though I can’t really run yet!

  3. Susan Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 5:03 am

    LOVE doing intervals on the treadmill to keep me from losing my mind from boredom!! Thanks for the new sets :) I’m tucking this away for when the snow re-appears and I’m forced back onto the treadmill.

  4. healthy ashley Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 6:46 am

    I love the idea to adding creativity to treadmill runs. When I mix things up time passes by so quickly!

  5. Angie Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 7:25 am

    Great workout Tanya! I get so bored on the treadmill, so this is a great way to make it more exciting! (Well as exciting as running on a treadmill can be..lol)

  6. Cindy Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 9:02 am

    Thanks for this! I hit the treadmill every day I am at work on my lunch break and I struggle sometimes with the same ole!

    I am gonna try the blast it today!

    Happy Thursday!

  7. Jannie Funster Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 9:31 am

    Holy cow, that’s so precise.

    Exercise is soooo great, what a feeling to move and challenge our muscles. After I post this comment I plan on hopping up to do a little dance followed by 20 buttock lifts on each side!

    Thanks for the inspiration.

  8. Ann Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 9:58 am

    Thanks for sharing these workouts! I am wondering if you manually change the speed as you go? If so do you find it cumbersome?

  9. POD Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 10:05 am

    I would need a new treadmill. Smoke comes out the back at 4.0.

  10. Jody - Fit at 51 Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 11:28 am

    I do a lot of different things on the treadmill from steady sate to HIIT to intervals to highest level hill walking , slow hill jogging, side stepping, walking backwards & anything else I can think of… plenty of ways to change it up! Thx for sharing!

  11. Sagan Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 11:44 am

    Great workout! Switching up the speed/elevation makes it all that much more interesting.

  12. deb Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 2:04 pm

    Gah! My “sprint” speed is between 7 and 8 MPH depending on the day. Would totally have to adjust those numbers.

    Still love the way folks make treadmills interesting.

    And, I, too. am a 30 minute cook.

  13. Spring Girl Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 2:51 pm

    I like intervals for outside too plus it keeps your body guessing. I get bored pretty quickly at the same pace even outside.

  14. Quix Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 4:37 pm

    I actually blogged about this yesterday - instead of just a boring run I challenged myself to beat my best 5k race time and I smashed it! For me, just attaching a goal to a workout changes everything…

    Next week I’m going to give intervals a try. I had taken a break from them but I think it’s time to go back…

  15. Cindy Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 6:11 pm

    I am back…just wanted to tell you I gave the “blast it” treadmill run a go. I couldn’t run at 7 but started it at 6 and changed it accorndingly… It wasn’t easy but I did it!

    Thanks for the inspiration and it was nice to change things a bit.

    was a challenge for sure

  16. Tanya Says:
    July 30th, 2009 at 10:41 pm

    Hey guys - thanks for the feedback. Adjusting the levels during the run isn’t too dificult since most of the intervals are the same. I also only adjust either speed OR incline but not both at the same time - too much going on.

    Hope you guys have a great time switching up your runs!

  17. Brianna Says:
    July 31st, 2009 at 3:27 pm

    Love the sound of those treadmill workouts. Now that the weather has returned to Pacific NW normal, I think I’ll give those a go (assuming I don’t fly off the back at speed 8 and smack the wall behind me) on my run-at-home days. :)

  18. Monique Says:
    August 2nd, 2009 at 9:46 pm

    Seriously - I can’t imagine running on a treadmill without doing intervals!

    boring!

  19. Monthly Recap of Workout Music | Hard Sweat Says:
    August 27th, 2009 at 12:02 am

    [...] on this playlist were all chosen as a Workout Song of the Day in June & July. But I also wrote Tanya’s Treadmill Tales at MizFitOnline.com and Stop The Weight Loss Sabatoge at FatBurning Tips 4 [...]

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