Exercising on a regular basis is fundamental to our health. 30 minutes of moderate aerobic activity each day is mandatory if we care about our health and wellbeing. Of course, exercising doesn’t necessarily have to imply stepping out of our homes. We don’t really have to go run in the park or hit the gym in order to stay fit. We can do it right at home, with the aid of proper fitness equipment.
One of the most popular fitness equipment you can use at home is the treadmill. Walking or running on the treadmill is a great way to get in shape and stay that way through consistent exercise. If you’re determined to stay fit, but feel more comfortable exercising in your own environment, keep on reading. Working out on the treadmill comes with a multitude of benefits. Here they are:
Efficient Weight Loss
One of the truly important benefits of treadmill workouts revolves around weight loss. Yes, running on the treadmill can help you get rid of that belly fat and lose weight in an efficient manner. For example, running on a treadmill for 30 minutes at a speed of 6 mph (9.6 km/h) will allow a 175-pound (79 kg) adult to burn as much as 405 calories.
The treadmill enables you to take things further and be even more efficient when it comes to calorie burn, by taking advantage of the machine’s incline. Running at the same 6 mph speed, but adding a 5% incline will help you torch 484 calories. Resorting to the incline is an effective method to get more from your workouts without spending more time on the machine or increasing the speed.
Great Cardio Workout
Exercising on a regular basis is essential to reduce the risk of heart disease. Running or walking on the treadmill is the type of aerobic workout that can do wonders for your cardiovascular health. If done periodically, it can improve the blood circulation in your body and strengthen your heart.
Medical studies have shown that aerobic exercise, carried out for 30 minutes on most days of the week, has the power to lower the blood pressure and hence prevent heart disease. Moreover, according to another research, running can help us improve our High-density Lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol level, which is considered the good cholesterol.
Strengthen your Muscles
Working out on the treadmill is great for the heart and for dropping those unwanted pounds, but it’s also an effective training to tone up your muscles. Findings suggest that a treadmill workout can be used a complementary exercise to help inactive people maintain leg lean mass, strength and endurance.
Going for a treadmill run will help you not only get rid of the excess body fat, but also strengthen your calves, glutes, hamstrings and arm muscles. For optimal results try adding interval training or increasing the incline while sprinting to make your legs work even harder.
Build Bone Density
In addition to building muscles, using the treadmill will help you improve your bone density, which represents the amount of minerals present in bone tissue. Exercising constantly will increase the number of minerals in your bones. The more minerals you have, the stronger your bones will become over time. This will help you fight off painful diseases like osteoporosis. A 2016-study indicates that treadmill walking can improve the bone mineral density of the lumbar spine and the radius.
Less Stress on your Body
One of the essential benefits of using a treadmill is the reduced impact on your body. Running on a constant basis outside on concrete, one of the hardest surfaces, can have long-term negative consequences since it will put a lot of pressure on your joints, bones and muscles.
On the other hand, treadmills come with a padded, considerably softer surface that is less stressful to the body. At the same time running on the treadmill means you’ll be running on an even surface. This means there’s a reduced risk of tripping and falling down. Running outside instead can be an activity dotted with dangers. There are rocks, pot holes, uneven sections of the track that can cause serious injuries.
Keep Diabetes Under Control
Engaging in aerobic exercise like walking or running on the treadmill at least five days per week can help you keep your type 2 diabetes under control. According to a research conducted by The American College of Sports Medicine and the American Diabetes Association, exercise can effectively help you regulate your blood sugar levels.
Every time you work out your muscle tissues, they draw the available glucose from your bloodstream for energy, keeping the blood sugar level in balance. Scientists have also shown that constant exercise can lead to an improvement in insulin sensitivity in adults, a positive effect which can persist up to 72 hours after you’ve finished your workout session.
Improve your Balance
Training on the treadmill can additionally aid you improve your balance function. And this is not just in theory. It has been scientifically proven.
Researchers analyzed the impact of treadmill training on balance control in adults over 60 years of age. According to their results, a mix of forward and backward walking on the machine can lead to noticeable improvements in balance and gait performance in elderly people. A more recent study showed that moderate-intensity treadmill training can improve the balance function in young and healthy, but sedentary males.
Improve your Mental Wellbeing
So far we’ve listed a multitude of benefits the treadmill can bring to our body. But it’s important to know that exercising on the treadmill comes with mental benefits as well.
Aerobic exercise has the power to trigger the release of endorphins in a higher number than usual. Endorphins, often called “feel-good chemicals”, are chemicals produced by our own bodies to help us better deal with pain and improve our emotional state. The more you exercise, the more endorphins you’ll be able to release. The more endorphins you’ll release, the happier you’ll feel.
At the same time, moderate running will enable you to reduce the level of stress hormones in your body, such as cortisol and adrenaline.
Easy to Use and Store
Nobody wants a complex machine that requires time to understand how it properly functions. The treadmill ticks this box, because it is a type of fitness equipment that is simple to use. All you have to do is adjust some basic settings, such as the desired speed or warm up period for instance, and then simply walk or run on the belt. That’s it.
Many people are reluctant to the idea of home equipment because it can take up a lot of space, space that many of us don’t have. Enter the folding treadmill. Today you can find a large variety of such machines that can be easily folded and put away when you’re not working out. Because it has wheels, it’s also easy to move it around to and from the place you stored it.
Tip: Track your Treadmill Training
Exercising on a regular basis is great for both your physical and mental health. In order to truly reap the benefits it’s also important to keep track of your activity. This way you’ll be able to hold yourself accountable, to stay updated with the progress made along the way and take delight in your fitness accomplishments.
You can monitor your physical activity simply using your phone. There’s no need to purchase an additional gadget as long as can accurately track your progress through your iPhone or Android device. All you have to do is download a pedometer app like our own ActivityTracker. The app will automatically record your movement on the treadmill and keep you updated with your step count, distance walked or ran, amount of calories burned or active time.
