Bad Treadmill Habits (page 5)
Interval training
Walk a high incline for a few minutes (hands off), then go level for two minutes to recover. Alternate tough high inclines with easy low inclines at a fixed speed for 30 minutes. Do not keep the incline high and simply hold on for your easy intervals! Instead, lower the angle and keep your hands off. For fitness results, you must mimic reality.
Or, maintain a 15 percent grade, but vary the speed. For instance, alternating one-minute intervals between faster speeds and very slow speeds. Don’t think 2 mph is too slow; you may still be out of breath after only one minute at this recovery interval, especially as time progresses into the routine.
If you don’t prefer intervals, then walk or jog sustained at an incline low enough to permit releasing your hands, but high enough to charge up your heart rate. Raise the incline 1 percent every week or two. Experiment with different grades, speeds and interval times for varying degrees of intensity.
If you initially feel dizzy or unsteady, it’s because you’re used to using your arms as anchors. Stick it out and your body will adapt to your new, correct walking. If your lower back aches while using the incline, it’s because those muscles are working for the first time! Keep walking hands off, and your lower back will get stronger.
Holding on is make-believe walking. This is what you had to do when you were just learning to walk as a baby. But a baby never learns to walk efficiently until he finally lets go. Walking is the most fundamental function of the human body. It is something you want to retain for as long as possible.
When you hold onto the treadmill, the machine becomes an external support system for your body. Essentially, this “un-teaches” efficient walking, and I can’t say this enough: Holding onto anyplace on the treadmill maims posture, and that’s the last thing anybody needs.
You’ve been walking without holding onto anything since you were in diapers. Unless you walked into the gym using a cane or walker, there’s no reason to hold onto a treadmill unless you’re turning around to greet somebody, or momentarily (30 seconds!) checking heart rate. Don’t ever forget how the human body was engineered to walk.
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