Thursday, August 16, 2012

Treadmills!!!!!

Okay, so I'm a big workout-aholic person. I absolutely love running! But, I'm also a skeptic when it comes to using different machines. I've always been against treadmills, for example, because it has been proven that you run for twice as long and get half the results. However, yesterday I had my first encounter with using one. And I must say it wasn't all that bad. There are definitely some pros and cons to using one. So if you are a skeptic like me, here are my thoughts on treadmills. Like I mentioned before, treadmills are not the same as running outside or on a track. You have to run longer to get the same results that you would for a regular run. However, treadmills are good in the sense of weather. Yesterday, I didn't go for my usual run outside because it was so gosh darn humid, it felt like I was swimming through the air. I guess that's what I get for living in Florida. In situations like that, it is dangerous to run outside because the risk of becoming dehydrated becomes greater. When running on a treadmill, there is a handy-dandy cup holder for water and also there is a control on the weather. It could be boiling outside, and yet, you can still safely run inside without risking getting dehydrated or overheated. Also, with treadmills, you can run at any part of the day. Living in Florida makes it difficult to run outside during the day in the summer because of scorching temperatures, or afternoon showers. By the time it cools down, though, it is often too dark to be safe to run outside alone. Yes, you could run with a partner, but, like me, my friends and I are all on different schedules. Treadmills allow you to run in the heat of the day while staying safe. The biggest pro for me, however, was the effect it had on my knees. I unfortunately found out last summer that I have runner's knee, also known as osteoarthritis. It's extremely painful and sometimes difficult to run because the pain is so great. For those of you who may not know what osteoarthritis is, I'll give you a quick run-down. I don't have any cartilage in my knees to pad my joints; so instead, when my knees move, my bones are grating together. Gross, right? So you can imagine that impact on my knees has a lot to do with the pain. Treadmills offer a softer surface than concrete or asphalt and therefore, make my knees happy. I have to say that despite my prior thoughts about treadmills, I think I'm more okay with them. So, if you are a skeptic like me, give it a try sometime. You may be surprised. Happy running!

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