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SICK PARADE - Surface issue
By LT Rob Orr
Edition 1171, July 26, 2007 |
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TREAD CAREFULLY: Treadmill running has its benefits, but experts recommend a balance of road and machine.
Photo by LS Yuri Ramsey |
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The cold of winter drives many indoors, off the roads and onto the treadmills. While both the treadmill and hard surface running (HSR) use similar mechanical patterns, there are several important differences that can impact on your training goals which need to be considered.
Differences
As many of the regular users may already feel, there is a big difference between running/walking on a treadmill and HSR.
Muscular differences
As the tread belt rolls backward, it drags the foot backwards for you, eliminating the need for the gluteals and hamstrings to pull the upper body forward; thus making the movement easier. However, the hip flexors (front of the thigh) now have to work harder to bring the foot, which is being dragged backward, forward.
Furthermore, with the belt moving backwards, the effectiveness of the calves to push off is decreased and the calves have to work harder to try and achieve an effective push-off (this is one of the reasons why you tend to power walk when you move off the treadmill back onto a hard surface – your calves have been activated more than usual for a hard surface locomotion).
Another difference is the potential for an increased pelvic rotation on a treadmill. If the hip flexor muscles of the thigh are tight, the pelvis must rotate to release the tension on the hip as the foot is dragged backwards. This increased pelvic rotation, which typically occurs with fatigue and at high speeds, places strain on the hips and lower back and has the potential to cause a number of injuries.
Skeletal differences
The skeletal (bone) impact can be considerably less on the stride machine as there is a flexible striding surface located underneath most stride belts absorbing the impact on heel strike.
Metabolic differences
Research has found that for the same given intensity there is no difference in metabolic profiles between treadmills and HSR.
This means that both are as effective as each other in fat loss and energy systems development.
Neurological differences
The machine sets the pace for you, which may be useful in establishing the movement patterns and timing (rhythm) for a faster land pace. When you HSR, however, you are required to alter your pace or movement patterns to turn, weave past a pothole or negotiate an incline/decline.
Also, the machine mentally keeps the pace, making it much easier to maintain. Running on a hard surface requires you to adjust your style and effort to maintain a set pace. The predictable treadmill surface means the brain and receptors in the body do not have to work as hard to stabilise the body, as every foot fall is predictable because of the unchanging nature of the treadmill surface. Every step on a HSR route has the foot landing in slightly different positions as the surface changes subtly.
A final point to appreciate is the concept of belt lag. As your foot hits the belt, your forward pressure causes the belt to move against its normal momentum created by the machine’s engine.
With these factors in mind, an effective way to train would be to utilise a combination of both, allowing a more thorough training effect.
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