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In this episode we are joined by special guest Chris Galaty to talk about the joys of treadmill training and answer listener questions about training on the treadmill (#dreadmill). You will learn about pace conversion, stride length, the 1% rule, mental training and more! See how you and the treadmill can become BFFs!

Biggest Take-a-Ways From This Episode

Since Angie and I don’t own a treadmill and do 99% of our running outside we decided to bring Coach Chris Galaty on the podcast to help us answer these listener questions about treadmill training.

Chris Galaty -a RRCA certified running coach, a sub 3 hour marathoner and accomplished triathlete. When he lived in Bangladesh he trained for 4 marathons and half Ironman triathlon exclusively on the treadmill. He works one-on-one with runners through our MTA Coaching Services.

1. You don’t need to run at 1% incline to simulate outdoor running. According to this runner’s world article, there is no science to back up this rule. The originally notion was that a 1% incline would simulate the wind displacement of running outside (as your body cuts through the outside air). But, if you are running less than an 8 minute mile there is not enough air displacement to matter in a measurable way.




2. Treadmill speed might not match the speed on your GPS watch. So, if your online MPH to pace conversion doesn’t seem quite right it’s because treadmills are not perfect in their calibration. Coach Chris uses the speed on the treadmill as a basic guide but ultimately goes by his perceived effort.




3. Researchers have found that there is little bio-mechanical difference between running on a treadmill and running outside.
   There does appear to be higher stride frequency and reduced impact on the body -which are positives for a runner.




4. If you keep bumping into the front of the treadmill then you probably need to speed it up.
   Since the calibration could be off, you might be used to running faster than the speed on the dashboard indicates.




5. Training on a treadmill is better than an indoor track
   because on an indoor track you are making many turns (probably in a single direction) which over time can be hard on the body.




6. A slick way to do interval training is to use two treadmills side by side! Chris would workout at a gym where he could use two treadmills -one he could set fast and the other slow. Then he’d bounce from treadmill to treadmill for his tempo and recovery runs. This was more efficient than adjusting the settings every time.




7. You should welcome the monotony of treadmill running. We know the treadmill can be boring but remember, a key part of marathon training is developing mental discipline.

Thanks again to our wonderful MTA Members for sending in the great questions used in this episode!

Also Mentioned In This Episode . . .

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Thanks again to our special guest Chris Galaty for helping us with this episode. Read Chris’ story here.