Running Outside vs. Using a Treadmill in Your Neighborhood

Do you remember when you were a kid and had almost endless energy? Perhaps you recall sprinting across the playground or completing laps of the school gym. Kids naturally don’t always understand that running is an aerobic activity; prior to that, running was a form of transportation or a game. It is a method for people to maintain a healthy weight, increase muscle mass, and enhance their health, nevertheless.

Running has a number of health benefits. It’s an excellent strategy for achieving or maintaining a healthy weight. When jogging, a 140-lb person normally burns 445 calories per hour. At an eight-minute mile pace, the same runner can boost that amount of calories per hour to 751. In addition to helping with weight loss, running is good for the heart and can enhance mental wellness.

If you’re willing to commit to running as a hobby and a form of physical activity, you may be weighing your options, such as whether to run outside or on a treadmill indoors. Some people who run do both. Here, we’ll compare the advantages and disadvantages of using an indoor treadmill versus running outside.

Is Running on a Treadmill Better?

There are various advantages to utilizing elliptical machines and treadmills as indoor exercise equipment. The largest benefit of a treadmill is perhaps the fact that you can utilize it in the comfort of your own home. Runners may still get their workout done on the treadmill and burn just as many calories as they would outside, rain, sleet, or snow included.

A treadmill has the following benefits in addition to being convenient for use indoors:

Consistent Surface

A treadmill has a stable surface. Unlike on the sidewalk or the street, where there can be bumps, cracks, or potholes that could cause a slip or fall, there aren’t any here. Since the surface is continuous, runners may concentrate on choosing between music and an audiobook. You can even go as far as setting up a treadmill workstation in your home office or home gym to enable you to work from home.

User Control

On a treadmill, a number of settings can be used to change the speed, incline, and cool-down rate. Some versions even allow you to design unique workout schedules that support your personal fitness goals.

Fitness Tracking

Today’s treadmills are equipped with a lot of fitness tracking features so you can keep an eye on your progress. In addition to distance tracking features, some treadmills also have step counting and heart rate monitoring capabilities.

What Are the Cons of Running on a Treadmill?

Naturally, not all serious runners utilize a treadmill consistently. One disadvantage of treadmills can be their price. According to Consumer Reports, the best treadmills can cost more than $4,000 each. However, it usually costs around $600. The higher-end versions come with a greater range of capabilities, including specialist fitness tracking programs. Therefore, we suggest contacting them to find out about your best options. An additional disadvantage of utilizing a treadmill is that:

Space and Weight

Most treadmills require space, and once set up, they may be challenging to move. Some manufacturers provide fold-up models on wheels that are easy to stow away when not in use, but you still need space for a folded-up treadmill. If you live in an apartment or another small place, it could be difficult to find room for a treadmill when you need one.

Maintenance

A treadmill maintenance expert is often needed when something goes wrong with one. You might reside in a place where people with these skills are hard to come by, which would make repairing your treadmill challenging.

Same Routine

Running inside might get boring if you get sick of staring at your own walls the entire time. For this reason, a lot of indoor runners choose to have a television or music playing in their home gym. Just in case, these are things to consider before building your home gym.

Treadmill Running Benefits

Many treadmill users agree that the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages. A treadmill run is a convenient indoor exercise that can be done at any time. Once you start using a treadmill, you can expect to experience a number of benefits, which may include:

Physical Activity

Running on a treadmill is equally as heart-healthy as running outside on a track or a trail. Running on a treadmill can help you lose weight, build physical endurance over time, add muscle to your legs, and enhance your heart health. Running can also increase metabolism.

Stress Reduction

After a challenging or long day, many people use their treadmill to decompress and release tension. You can put your thoughts on hold while running so that you can focus only on your physical activity.

Improved Mood

Treadmill running can release the endorphins that give us a happy feeling. These endorphins work in the brain to target sore muscles and speed up recovery in addition to promoting positive feelings.

Improved Sleep

Running on the treadmill might help you develop healthy sleeping patterns. Running can help you fall asleep more quickly and may even improve the quality of your sleep.

Psychological Well-Being

By using a treadmill regimen, you can raise your self-esteem and confidence. The goals you set and work toward can give you a positive focus, which can promote your psychological well-being much like jogging can improve your physical health.

Is Running Outdoors Better?

Due to the fluctuating temperatures and unpredictable weather, some people prefer to run outside. Running is a great sport to engage in with your pet, if you have one, even if some people like a chilly wind while doing it since they feel like they get in a more intense workout. Whether running outside is preferable to running on a treadmill is entirely up to you. Running outside, however, has some advantages, such as:

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Inexpensive

Contrary to treadmills, which are expensive, running outside is essentially free as long as you invest in a nice pair of running shoes, some running gear, and training clothing.

Dynamic Terrain / Location

People enjoy running outside since the view varies depending on the route they take. The landscape can have a variety of surfaces and inclinations, making it even more dynamic. Jogging outside can therefore occasionally feel more thrilling than running inside.

Run When Traveling

Everywhere they travel, everybody who likes to run outside can continue their sport. It can be difficult to store a treadmill efficiently.

Recently Relocated

If you’ve recently moved, this is a great opportunity to meet people in your new neighborhood. This is a great method to get to know your area if you recently moved there but still don’t know much about it.

What Are the Cons of Running Outdoors?

It can be advantageous when the conditions are right for outdoor jogging, but it can be discouraging when it’s too cold or there is precipitation, such as rain or snow. Fans of treadmills will benefit from this. Other drawbacks of exercising outside include:

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Risk for Injury

Because of the uneven terrain, bumps, fractures, curbs, and debris, outdoor landscapes provide greater risks for harm to runners than a treadmill with its predictable surface and programmable inclines.

Security

Running outside could potentially be risky, depending on the conditions. According to a CNN research, 54% of women acknowledged that they occasionally worry about their safety before or while running, despite the fact that anyone might become the victim of harassment or even a crime while running.

The Benefits of Running Outdoors

Running outside has a number of benefits for both physical and emotional health, much to what treadmill runners experience. These could include:

Physical Activity

Running outside is associated with increased calorie burning. This is possibly because outdoor runs have more challenging terrain and wind resistance.

Reduced Stress

Many people discover that merely enjoying the weather outside makes them feel less stressed than remaining within.

Better Mood

The sun and exercise can have a significant positive impact on outdoor runners’ morale. People who run can turn off their minds by concentrating on the sights and sounds around them.

Improved Sleep

A person’s sleep can be significantly improved by an outdoor workout’s intensity and the surrounding fresh air.

Improved Psychological Well-being

Running outdoors gives you the opportunity to leave your indoor surroundings, which is undoubtedly useful for individuals who spend their workweek cooped up indoors. The advantages of going outside could increase feelings of wellbeing.

Deciding What Is Best for You

Before selecting whether to run outside or on a treadmill, consider your area. How safe is it to run in your town or city? Exist any areas designed specifically for running, such as outdoor tracks or paths? Are these features monitored by security? Of course, after weighing the advantages and disadvantages of each, you must also consider your preferences. It is also straightforward to say that combining the two may be the greatest move. So you may take use of all the advantages and stay away from the drawbacks when they arise!

Running Tips

You should check with your doctor to make sure it’s okay for you to exercise before you go running. Running may be challenging. You might find it beneficial to meet with your doctor in private before beginning your running regimen.

Always give yourself plenty of time to warm up before running. A stretching regimen that you can employ before jogging must be found or created. If you adopt these practices, you can prevent injury. Additionally, keep in mind to hydrate yourself while running. You might want to purchase a carry-on water bottle while you shop for your running accessories. Here, you may find a lot more advice before you start running.

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Suiting Up

Before you begin jogging, you must get running shoes designed exclusively for runners. These shoes will provide you with the optimum support you need whether you’re running outside or on a treadmill. Additionally, you might want to get jogging shorts, sweatbands, t-shirts, and sunhats. If you plan to run outside, don’t forget to purchase sunglasses to protect your eyes. This would be a terrific excuse to reward yourself—or your running partner, if you decide to go out together—a little.

Look Good and Feel Good

Running has several benefits, whether you do it indoors, outdoors, or both. It’s a very wholesome way of living. As your skill level rises and you start to enjoy the aforementioned benefits, your self-esteem is likely to soar. Running helps you feel good and improves your appearance. Keep in mind that your health should always come first because, at the end of the day, you are the most important person.

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