End Those Boring Treadmill Workouts with These Easy Tips

Let’s face it; walking on a treadmill can get rather boring after a while. But, the good news is there are many things you can do to make your treadmill workouts fun and interesting again. Here are just a few:

Movies, Music, TV and CDs. Are you a movie or TV buff? If so, treadmill workouts are an ideal time to feed the craving. Music lovers often find that walking to their favorite music makes workouts more enjoyable and productive. If you don’t have time to read, listening to audio books or motivational CDs during your treadmill workouts is a great way to get lost in thought while you are walking.

Pyramid Walking. A really cool mental challenge you can do during your treadmill workouts is pyramid walking. All you have to do is try to increase your pace by .1 mph every minute. Do this for 15 minutes. Then, try to decrease your pace by .1 mph every minute for the remaining 15 minutes of your treadmill workout.

Dancers. If dancing is a favorite pastime, you can build up your strength and increase your balance by walking backwards on your treadmill. Keep your pace steady and even. This should only be tried by people who have good coordination!

Count the Numbers. If you are a number junkie, count your steps every other minute. See how your steps change and increase as you move from one fitness level to another.

Circuit Training. Treadmill workouts can benefit greatly by adding circuit training into the mix. Those of you who are interested in strength training can do lunges, crunches, free weights or some other strength building exercise for one minute after every five minutes of walking.

Stretching. Stretching exercises are also a great addition to treadmill workouts. Stretching is a favorite for many people because it feels good! After you successfully complete ten minutes of treadmill walking, get off your machine and treat yourself to five minutes of stretching exercises.

Climb and Walk. Someone who wants to take it to the next level can put a stepper next to their treadmill and take turns stepping for five minutes and walking for five minutes.

Walk To a Destination. Many people love finding out how many miles it is to a favorite destination or relatives home and seeing how long it takes them to walk there on their treadmills. Chart your results and see how far it takes you to walk where you want to go.

Heart Rate Training. Use a heart rate monitor during your treadmill workouts and cycle in and out of different heart rate zones for two minute intervals. Heart Rate Training workouts should last no longer than 20 or 30 minutes and should only be done 2 or 3 times per week.

These are just some ideas to make your treadmill workouts more fun and interesting. The possibilities of what you can do are endless. Try new things and see what works for you. Keeping boredom at bay will keep your fitness goals on track and make your treadmill workouts fly by.