When it comes to cardio, people always wonder what is best; running on a treadmill or running on the ground? (That ground can be a track, grass, even asphalt, but never concrete.)
Treadmill machines have become popular because they look high tech, you can watch TV as you use one and you can see “how many calories you’ve burned”, which is never accurate because it’s impossible for a treadmill machine to calculate that based on your age and weight.
Running on the ground is always the best, this way you use your body in a natural way, without adding extra stress. the Sports Biomechanics Laboratory at the University of Alberta found that at slower velocities, there were major differences in knee drive and contact time on a treadmill versus the ground. Knee drive and contact time will have a huge impact on your stride rate and stride length, which are the major determinants of running speed. at a higher velocity, even greater mechanical breakdown and differences were seen. the momentum on a treadmill, meaning that the band does most of the work, have shown a significant decrease in the hamstring and glute muscles (because you don’t use them properly). the result is an increased stress on the quads and the knee joints, leading to muscle imbalance and a huge risk of injury. the next time you use a treadmill, take time to feel how your muscles are working and you will notice that your quads are working extra hard because of the momentum.

But let’s face it, sometimes you have to use the treadmill and there are no ways around it. the solution is to hit the weights to build up your leg muscles the right way and remember to always use proper technique, both while lifting weights and while running.

The proper running technique:

1. Your foots position when it hits the ground. the foot and ankle needs to be pointing straight ahead, any flattening or rotation will cause stress and decrease your performance and could lead to injury.

2. when sprinting it’s important to keep your core neutral, without any leaning back or forth. try to keep torso straight and long. Slouching prohibits proper breathing and hurts the back. you want to run with your elbows at a 90-degree angle and never have tight fists.

3. Breathing. you need to breathe through your diaphragm (your stomach), if you breathe with your secondary respiratory muscles (short, shallow breaths) you will not supply air for the whole body which will make you tired more quickly and it will lead to muscle alterations, for example your shoulders will come up more and the muscles will become stiff. It’s very unhealthy to run that way, but way too common these days since girls doesn’t want their bellies to stick out as they breathe right. Relax your shoulders and focus on breathing right, who cares about your belly sticking out! at least that way you’ll exercise right and get the results you want.

4. the knees needs to remain straight ahead, to avoid injury. if you are sprinting, you want to lift your knees up higher for maximum power. Optimum stride length is 2.1 to 2.5 times leg length.

5. Your head needs to be in line with the core, that needs to be in line with the legs. Don’t twist and turn your head to watch a TV somewhere, if running outside- use your whole body to check for cars.