Treadmill vs. Road Running

Hey guys,

How has your Sunday been?
My motivation has not evaporated at all after a day of taking stock. I have lost 3.6kg in one month, which I think is pretty impressive and is definitely the best result I have achieved in the last decade with any training or nutritional program. It has been a tough month. I went through a lot. I veered off course for pretty much half the time… But I did. I stuck with it and I feel great about it.
Now my own personal challenge for February is to step it up a notch and show Jeni what I am really made of!

I started today, actually. Remember, we were talking about me running a race yesterday? I took three steps in that direction today:
- Firstly, I registered for the race! Yep. I am in! There. Bite my dust in 68 days! (But eish, that’s an expensive thing to do… With all the timing chips and temporary running licenses and what-have-you my bill came to R200!)
- Secondly, I set up a “running track” playlist on my iPod. Old music but nice beat and fast tempo – perfect to keep me going when the legs are not cooperating.
- And thirdly, I actually went for a run!

Let me tell you guys, there is a big difference between running on a treadmill and running on the road! I really felt invincible at the gym. I finish 4km in 20 minutes! I mean… I am really great! (You have to give yourself some credit, sometimes!). But just an hour on the road nearly killed me today! Plus, the fact that Jeni took me out to Hout Bay where there is simply no flat terrain, didn’t help much. I guess I have my work cut out for me for the next two months…

And, BTW, my eating today was spot on!
Oats, free range fat free plain yoghurt and a small apple for breakfast… and organic coffee.
Snack was a slice of toast with 3 egg whites and half a disc of cheese (low fat).
For lunch I had roast turkey (about the size of a chicken breast) with salad and the same thing for dinner.
Mid-afternoon I just had a peach, cause I gave in to a nap and missed my meal time 

Now it’s time for me to get mentally prepared for tomorrow. It is apparently sprints day.

Have a great week!
Melissa

Jeni:
I am so proud of you Mel! I really am!
3.6kgs in one month is quite an achievement! I know that in comparison to what you see on The Biggest Looser it might appear insignificant, but for a person who is not morbidly obese, who works full time (and more) and has a number of other commitments, your results are truly remarkable. Well done and keep it up!

The subject of tread mill vs. road running is quite a curious one. As anyone who has tried it will tell you, the two are completely different. They are simply miles apart (excuse the pun).

In my experience, the treadmill is great for interval training (what Melissa calls sprints). You can measure your exact speed and exact time with ease. But don’t be fooled by the speed you reach on the treadmill. Chances are, you are much slower on the road. Part of it is obviously the resistance of air or wind when you are running outside. But the movement of the body is also quite different if you look at it physiologically. I am not going to give you a lecture now in biokinetics, but basically your hamstrings do a lot more work on the tread mill, whereas the quads and knees absorb the load on the road.

Road running, on the other side, has a therapeutic effect. No, I am not crazy! It is a documented phenomenon. Google it if you don’t believe me! And with all the great weather we have here in the cape, I don’t see why would anyone close themselves in a room full of sweaty people and recycled air to run!

To make a long story short, both road running and indoor running have their pros and cons and mixing the two is probably your best bet. At the end of the day, what matters is that you stick with your program. Wherever it is that you feel comfortable.

For those of you who also want to work towards a specific race but are not ready for half a marathon yet, visit www.runsa.co.za for a complete list of running and walking events throughout SA.

Still a walker? Nothing wrong with that – best exercise in the world, in fact! Go to the archive of this blog and see the post on running vs. walking if that interests you. It’s quite a debatable subject, actually, so may be we can chat about it again sometime. What are your views on it?

Ciao!

Jeni