Carla S. - January 10, 2020
Can You Really Lose Weight On A Treadmill?
Many people reading this will be surprised that getting on a treadmill and running a couple of miles daily does not result in significant weight loss.
For others, this is actually very relatable as they’ve been there, tried it and got a t-shirt.
The effort they’re putting in on their treadmills is not commensurate with the results they’re getting.
It feels like it’s taking forever to shed off a significant chunk of weight. It is, however, a fact that cardiovascular exercises are a must for weight loss.
For this reason, treadmills are a necessity for weight loss and all you need to do is learn how to use them to make the best out of them.
In order to burn fat, one needs to get their heart rate into the fat-burning zone.
This zone is in the 75%-90% range of your heart rate.
Jogging or running on a treadmill helps raise your heart rate and for any fat to be shed off, you need to spend at least 30 minutes on a treadmill to get to your target heart rate.
This should be 60%-90% of your maximum heart rate. The maximum heart rate is calculated using the following formula.
- Maximum heart rate for men = 220 – age
- Maximum heart rate for women = 220 – age
This can also be calculated automatically on your treadmill when you input your age and weight information.
Make sure you choose the best treadmill for your home that can calculate this information for you.
A lot of people complain about running outside and not seeing any difference because they’re unable to track their heart rate which will help them know whether they have attained their fat-burning zone.
Once you have a good treadmill, your journey to weight loss is 70% taken care of.
Take advantage of the following tips to maximize your weight loss journey.
Tips for Weight Loss on a Treadmill
1. You must warm up
Many people make the mistake of hitting hard a sprint on the treadmill before they warm up.
Your body needs to be in good form to prepare it for the sprint and intervals you’ll be doing while on the treadmill.
Remember you also need to increase your heart rate gradually so that you don’t shock your system.
Otherwise, doing a 30-minute run will feel like a 2-hour work out with very little results in the end.
2. Change it up
Running at the same speed and incline every time you hit the treadmill is counter-effective.
First of all, you’ll get bored and secondly you won’t lose the weight faster.
Run 20-30 minutes faster on some days and slower on other days. Even better yet, try out these 5 unique treadmill workouts you’ve never tried before.
3. Use intervals
This is one of the best ways to cut time off your workout by having little bouts of sprints mixed in with jogging throughout your workout.
You’ll notice that you’re done in no time and have shed off significant weight in the process.
A good treadmill also keeps track of how many calories you’ve burnt in the process.
4. Select the correct speed
If you’re a beginner at working out or run very little, your starting speed should be between 4.0 to 5.0 miles per hour.
If you run often and consider yourself an intermediate runner your speed should be between 5.0 to 6.0 miles per hour.
An experienced runner, on the other hand, should start with a speed of between 6.0 to 8.0 miles per hour.
5. Up your incline
As you increase your incline, you’re also burning more calories.
Escalate your incline between 2 and 4 percent within 2 minutes and increase your speed by 0.1 or 0.2 then reduce it back down for the same time and repeat.
6. Do other workouts apart from treadmills only
If you feel you’re in a rut or reaching a plateau, you can try out full-body workouts easily with resistance bands for example.
You could interchange your treadmill workouts with any of these 5 resistance band workouts at home.
D
o you find these tips helpful? Share your weight loss journey with us and we promise to help where we can.