Treadmill Running and Road Running Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Treadmill Running and Road Running - Essay Example Treadmill running is indoor running whereas road running is outdoor running. A huge difference is made because of the running being indoor or outdoor. When the running is indoor, the force exerted by the muscles to run on the treadmill is lesser than that needed to push the ground outdoor because of the fact that the base of the treadmill is moving also whereas outside, the ground is static. When the base is moving and that too at a constant speed, the muscles of the legs adjust to it so that the runner develops resilience. However, when the base is static as in the road running, the muscles of the body have to exert more because it is only the body that is moving and not the ground. In addition to that, the base of the treadmill remains the same all the time; there are no digs or humps in the base whereas on a road, the runner keeps coming across humps and digs, muddy paths and concrete bases. Accordingly, the muscles keep adjusting automatically to the varying bases. In effect, thi s makes road running better as compared to running on a treadmill because the muscles exert more in the former as compared to latter. Road running is more engaging and interesting than treadmill running. In the road running, an individual has numerous paths of running to choose from. There is so much variety that the individual may choose a different path for running everyday if he/she wants. Choosing different paths makes running interesting as the runner gets to see new things. This diverts his/her attention from the running so that he/she does not get exhausted by running while the body’s muscles keep doing their work. Running everyday in the same pattern makes the body develop resilience and the workout is not as effective as running on different paths. On the other hand, in the treadmill running, the runner does not have any choice. He/she has to run on the treadmill all the time with the same static surroundings. This may make treadmill running really boring and reduce the efficiency of the runner. A runner who can easily run for thirty minutes on a road may become extremely exhausted by running just for fifteen minutes on a treadmill because nothing in the surroundings changes all this while. Therefore, people who use the treadmill for running are strongly recommended to have some other things of interest around them like music so that they keep engaged in their work. Again, road running is better than treadmill running because of the constant change of surroundings. Road running is more cost effect than the treadmill running. When an individual wants to run on the road, he/she does not have to pay for it. All it takes to run is fetch the tracksuit, although running can be done in any kind of casual trousers available in the home. The individual has to buy a pair of joggers as well but that is require for treadmill running too, so the cost is balanced out. There is no cost of running on the road unlike the treadmill running, in which the individu al first has to pay the cost of treadmill. Treadmills have different costs depending upon the size of the machine and the quality of materials used in it. Whatever the cost, it is more than that incurred in road running. So road running costs lesser than treadmill running.