Baby It (Can Be) Cold Outside

Ahhhh Winter. The snuggly sweaters, the boots, the hot chocolate...what's not to love?! If only I could actually pull off that outfit...

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When I dream about my Winter Wonderland fantasy there is always cold, crisp air and sun. And there is NEVER snow. Ever. Quite honestly, I can't stand the stuff. Which is sort of funny since I'm from the Midwest and now live on the East Coast. But I digress. I'm clumsy enough on a good day. Add snow and it's a recipe for disaster.

Now, I'll do just about anything to run outside, but some days (i.e. when it is snowing at a rate of 3 inches an hour) it is just too dangerous to run outdoors and I find myself on the treadmill (or dreadmill...whatever).

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Like most people I have a love/hate relationship with the treadmill. 

I thought I would share some of my workouts that help pass the time so if you ever find yourself on the treadmill this winter you won't fall asleep from mind numbing boredom. 

1. Musical Fartlek 

I love fartleks during regular training. They become difficult to do when running on a stationary object. So I thought, why not take my playlist and use it to my advantage? 

The workout: 

• 1 mile warm-up easy (for me that means 5.0-5.2)
• 2-4 miles of musical fartlek: alternating fast and easy efforts when the song changes
• I increase the speed .5 mph for the fast intervals and then drop it back down 
• 1 mile cool down

It's super simple, but it's a great work out! And I've found that I spend my time thinking about the songs rather than how bored I am. 

2. "I Spy" 

Part of the fun of running outside is the changing scenery. You most likely don't get that in a gym. I'm lucky enough that the treadmills in my gym face the windows so I will occasionally play an "I spy" type game. What does that mean, you might ask? Well, great question! Let me explain. 

I'll start off at an easy pace and decide what I want the target of my game to be (i.e. blue cars). When 5 blue cars drive past the windows in the parking lot I increase the speed or incline by .5. It's that simple! 

3. Hills For Days

I can't take credit for this last one. That belongs to RunFarGirl.Com. But let me tell you, this workout is AMAZING! And it most definitely passes the time. As Sarah recommends, keep the pace for this one on the slower side (toward a recovery run pace) and try to be consistent. 

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So there you go. My go to treadmill workouts for days when I just can't get outside. 

-How do you pass the time on the treadmill? 

-Happy Running!