How to Calculate Treadmill Conversion to Simulate Running Outdoors

The treadmill conversion remains a contentious topic among the most demanding runners. Most feel that using a machine with or without an incline cannot simulate the exertion and results of a good outdoor run. Having said that, it is not always possible to go out and run whenever you want.

Many issues can arise that would make a treadmill better suited to that moment. The weather for one is at the top of the list when it comes to canceling your career, but there are also personal, family, work, time commitments, etc. When these problems occur, it is up to each individual whether it is better to go their own way or not run at all. My preference, of course, is to jump on the indoor track and do some cardio.

The treadmill conversion is basically setting up the incline of the track to potentially match the resistance and effort of running outdoors. Now the argument that most runners give for why using conversions is not up to par with outdoor running is that you can’t simulate the environment such as wind resistance, hills, uneven terrain or even the hardness of the ground. It also appears that your speed when running on an indoor track with no incline or 0% incline is actually slower than when running on a flat road or track surface since most teams have a cushioned track shock absorber that absorbs your impact but seems to slow you down.

For many, it even seems to be a bit more difficult and time consuming to run on a machine at 0% incline than to run the same amount of time outdoors. This is probably a mental adjustment that runners have to make because when you run outdoors you can look at the scenery and not think about the weather, but when you are training, in most cases, you are most likely just looking at the screen time. machine making it look longer.

My personal opinion is that the effort of running on a treadmill at 0% incline is less than running on a flat road at the same pace due to the lack of wind resistance while running on a machine.

In:

http://www.hillrunner.com/training/tmillchart.php

This site helps conversion of your treadmill, treadmill MPH settings, pace per mile, and incline equivalent paces.

Finding the exact conversion is quite difficult due to differences in treadmills and how each of our bodies reacts to different running scenarios. If you’re looking for the quick, no-fuss answer to treadmill conversion and you take the averages of the above two and the average of what the pros say, it breaks down to about 3% incline which is the equivalent of one outdoor run on a flat surface. . It may not be perfect, but it’s the foundation for most runners.

Machine training may not exactly simulate running outdoors, but it certainly gives you a great workout and can be much more convenient for most. But if you really want to get as close to an outdoor run as possible, look at your treadmill conversion to help you simulate your exertion, it works pretty well in a pinch.