Treadmills - Real speed!

Reyman

Anyone know how to convert the speed of the Gym treadmill to actual running speed?

I do know that 13Km/hr flat on a treadmill is far easier than the same speed on grass outside!
I'm getting conflicting advice of setting the machine at different inclines to compensate for the lack of wind resistance.

tunney

2 degrees of inclination is similar to outside running.

Better still run outside not on threadmills.

Reyman

Yes! I've heard that figure 2 degrees but it can't be that simple. The faster you go the more wind resistance there is. So maybe at 15 km /hr you need 3 degrees and at 10 km/hr perhaps 1 degree? Complex I'd say

I stay off the grass at this time of the year. It's like a bog around here ---no way can you run!

Genghis

Generally speaking, running at an incline on a treadmill could lead to injury, so you might be best just leaving it level, and just bear in mind that treadmill running and outside running are different things.

As you hinted yourself, there are many factors that make any simple 'conversion' implausible - wind strength (can be positive, or negative), wind direction (positive, negative), conditions (rain / dry, cool / warm, bright / dark), road / track conditions (wet, dry, gravelly, bumpy), incline / decline.

As well as that there are artificial conditions associated with treadmill running - overheating is more likely, boredom becomes a factor, as is the decision-making process as regards speed - outside you tend to run according to conditions, how you feel, etc, and this is more natural than treadmill running, where you may be following a set programme, or at the very least you have to decise what pace you are going to run at for intervals, etc.

The final point is that if you take your running seriously, then you will be doing a few races a year - none of these will be on the treadmill!