Why treadmills aren't that great

As the most popular form of exercise on the planet, running is something that most of us have at least tried at some point. And as great as it can be, running must be respected and understood to what is being demanded of the body.

With gym machinery becoming more and more exploited as an industry that provides great and quick solutions for the consumer, the treadmill is now a household recognised term that offer an alternative to running outdoors. What many people don’t realise is that moving on a treadmill is worlds apart biomechanically from running outdoors. Notice that I didn’t use the term running but moving. Firstly, one point to note is that running, typically applies around 2 tonnes of pressure through the joints over just one mile. Therefore, it stands to reason that focussing on stability, strength and function would be a good idea prior to even considering running as an activity.
However, lets get back to treadmills and why they may not be that great. The reason I felt so compelled to write this is because, I don’t actually go into gyms that often yet on one of my last visits, I saw a queue of people waiting patiently behind 5 ‘in use’ treadmills. My gosh! So, you pay however much monthly to put your gym kit on and wait in a warmish place for a machine that doesn’t do your body many favours…insanity but maybe a little unfair as unknowingly, treadmills appear to be good. So let’s look at the differences. Treadmills have a belt that you can manually control to speed it up, slow it down and also, if you have a fancy treadmill, change the holding position of the ramp. This belt gets fed from the front, underneath the user to the back requiring the user to lift one foothold and then replace it down in the same actual place in space but a more forward point on the belt. There is no requirement to actually drive the body forwards but just lift your feet alternately and then place them back down.

We are all aware that the human body is an incredible device. It’s natural ability to adapt to situations and environments has maintained our survival over thousands and thousands of years. It does this by being efficient, streamlining it’s own need to expend energy and perform. In the above situation, this habit can encourage the body to distort the intended running pattern into merely kicking heels behind the body as the belt zips through. Without having to drive the body forwards, there is no real need for hip flexion which is an essential part of the running pattern.

So, what does this mean in bigger terms? Well, as modern lifestyle sees many people spend hours seated daily, slumped over a computer, there are many very common physiological imbalances stemming from this which lead to certain areas of the body becoming dominant leaving neglect in other areas. Treadmills don’t encourage the dormant areas to become active which can allow this compensation to just continue. These improper musculoskeletal relationships distort posture, movement even further and can lead to pain and chronic injuries. The most common areas of disaffect are:

• knee instability problems
• weak lower abdominals
• weak hip flexors
• tight and restrictive lower back extensors
• immobility in the thoracic spine (upper back)
• tightened chest and shoulder muscles

To add insult to injury, when muscles are being worked but don’t have optimal range or flexibility then they will not fully benefit. Running further or more or harder is not going to make the difference. The key is to get everything working properly. When your car starts making rattling noises or needs the tyres inflating, the car will not be working to it’s full potential and the body is no different.

My intention is not to fully slate treadmills as I believe they do have a place. In rehabilitation, they offer a very controllable environment to monitor and gradually progress variables to safely bring individuals back from injury, but when it comes to free moving and efficient bodies, they may not be the greatest solution.