What say you? True or not?
RP
Running on a treadmill is usually easier than running in the real world.
The 1% rule has some use.
Obviously, wind resistance is more of a factor the faster you go.
This table is more precise.
https://www.hillrunner.com/calculators/treadmill-pace-conversions/
The flip side of this - is that without wind, one gets hot much faster.
Many gyms have treadmills that are not sufficiently ventilated for hard running.
Running on a treadmill is usually easier than running in the real world.
The 1% rule has some use.
Obviously, wind resistance is more of a factor the faster you go.
This table is more precise.
https://www.hillrunner.com/...ll-pace-conversions/
The flip side of this - is that without wind, one gets hot much faster.
Many gyms have treadmills that are not sufficiently ventilated for hard running.
To the part in bold, DON’T WALK IN KONA…too hot…run like Patrick Lange (more cooling). Half serious, but I remember standing around in T2 putting my running shoes on and thinking I would die (as my engine was still hot from working on the bike), but as soon as I started jogging out of T2 I was actually OK.
I have heard that for ages, but for me it is the opposite. Running on treadmill at 0% is a tiny bit slower than the road for me. If I go to 1%, then a lot slower. Not sure why that is, just been a thing my whole running career. And as mentioned, it could be the cooling effect, I get hot and run hot quickly…Plus I just love uneven surfaces, run almost exclusively off road in training…
I have no idea what the 1% rule is but I do know that my calculated speed/distance on the treadmill or elliptical is about 20-25% faster than my actual OTR speed/distance.
I’ve had a treadmill for years but I use it sparingly, sometimes only using it a handful of times a year. Due to some scheduling changes (and some adverse weather) I’ve been running on it more since Christmas. The last two weeks have been exclusively treadmill runs. I typically put it on 1 percent but I have seen some discussion about that. I don’t really know how my paces on the treadmill compare to those on the road. Everything seems pretty close but I know there are variables that could affect that. As much as I hate to admit it, the treadmill is growing on me.
RP
My n=1 is that it’s about right. As others have mentioned there are other factors at play (pace, accuracy of the 'mill, ventilation, etc.). An easy way to see what works for you (and on your setup) is to see what %grade on the treadmill is needed to get you the same HR as outside for your typical training pace.
And I wonder how accurately treadmill speed is calibrated anyway? It’s hard to imagine your average gym treadmills being better than +/-5%, so that has to affect effort at 1% gradient vs flat.
Same here. I’ve done 5k for time on my woodway using Runn NPE (no incline) so it’s accurate and I’m about 5 sec per mi faster on the roads/flat course. The 1% is not a thing for me. Could be I push harder outside…
Fiction.
Of the 40+ treadmills I’ve checked, the speed on 2 of them was accurate.
Changing the incline of 1% will only make a treadmill feel more difficult. If it’s a slow one it may line up with your perceived exertion.
Rule #7: For every PT/MD/STer who says there is absolutely one single and perfect way to do anything , there is *another *PT/MD/STer who will say that way of doing whatever it may be, is completely and absolutely bullshit
If the treadmill you’re using isn’t calibrated properly , 1% or 0% incline doesn’t make much difference
Bottom line, to *me *anyway = do whatever works for you, as there may or may not be any science to support it either way
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I run much faster outside than on my own treadmill (Woodway), at least for speeds <10mph. I was traveling earlier in the month and ran on three different hotel treadmills, all of which I could run significantly faster than outside. I’d say you can’t take much comfort from using the 1% and assuming you can just run that pace outside, could be slower or faster in real life.
Scientific Triathlon said that the literature doesn’t support setting your treadmill to 1%. 1 study of 20 said to do that. The other 19 said you don’t have to.
As others have said I have no clue. I change from 0-1% and usually have it at 1% just because I forget to change it. My treadmill is faster than it says by about .3-5 MPH depending on speed (based on my accurate Stryd). But I know when I get on the treadmill I have to adjust. 10MPH feels way harder than 10MPH outside. For workouts, which I rarely do, I adjust my Stryd weight by 5-10% to get a close match for my outside effort to power balance.
As others have said I have no clue. I change from 0-1% and usually have it at 1% just because I forget to change it. My treadmill is faster than it says by about .3-5 MPH depending on speed (based on my accurate Stryd). But I know when I get on the treadmill I have to adjust. 10MPH feels way harder than 10MPH outside. For workouts, which I rarely do, I adjust my Stryd weight by 5-10% to get a close match for my outside effort to power balance.
I’ve wondered about getting a Stryd for exactly this reason, to better compare my treadmill to outside running. One question I had is, is it easy to swap between different pairs of shoes? If, for example, you have trainers and racers for each of treadmill and outdoors. Can you elaborate why you have to change your weight to make the outdoor and treadmill power more comparable?
For me, the 1% is almost dead-on. BUT - there are 3 main catches:
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The treadmill actually has to be at the correct pace. I have a well-regarded Sole F80, and with a Runn TM sensor, I’ve found, that it does eventually hit the indicated TM pace, but there’s a key IF - it’s very slow to get to that pace. Like if you set it to 7:30/mile, it’ll take 1 minute to get to 7:45-50, and an entire 2nd minute to get to 7:30. So if you’re doing any short intervals, it’s gonna be too slow unless you set that TM to like 7:00, let it get to 7:20, and then back it down to 7:30 again. I suspect a lot of TMs in the $1500-$1800 range have similar pace problems. (But to its credit, once it gets to speed, it’s dead-on, at least per my Runn sensor.)
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Even with the 1% penalty, TMs tend to be softer than road, so the longer you go, the more problems you’ll have with road impact adaptation, which will show up if you’re doing very little or zero road training. You can get around this by adding road training, but you do have to keep it in mind, esp if you’re a pure runner or pure marathon runner, coming from all-TM work in the winter.
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Elevation matters. Outdoors, you get more rolling hills than on the TM, which will generally slow your pace compared to a true dead flat like you get on a TM.
I actually train at 3% on my TM, since I like the leg emphasis, but have been surprised at how near dead-on the 1% rule is for on my Sole F80/Runn once it gets to speed.
On my treadmill (which unfortunately just went haywire and quit) it always seemed the pace was much harder than the same pace outdoors. If I kicked it up to just 1% I could certainly feel it.
I tended to just run by feel and time and ignored the supposed pace on the display.
Im guessing it was calibrated wrong.
I have a Woodway Desmo that I practically stole off Marketplace.
According to my Stryd pod it is very accurate, within 5s/mi until around 6:30/mi pace where it goes up to ~10s off (slower).
The 1% rule doe not seem to bear out in my experience, but I also have a massive blower fan and the air resistance at the lower speeds is way out of proportion to running speed.
I have a Landice L8 treadmill with an orthopedic belt. I live in Minnesota, so I do a lot of training indoors during the winter and early spring. I train with a heart band and stryd footpod for all of my runs indoors and outdoors. I put my treadmill at 1% grade and it is pretty accurate when comparing my HR/Power/Pace/Effort indoors vs outdoors, with a few caveats. When I am running at greater than 10 mph, which I do for my threshold workouts, I encounter much greater wind resistance outdoors. I don’t change the grade on the treadmill to account for this, but if I was trying to perfectly match effort I would probably have to run at 2% grade. I have optimal cooling in my training room, with a massive fan and open windows if necessary. So if the outdoor temp is above 65, my outdoor pace is going to be slower. Obviously on a treadmill there are no turns, hilly terrain etc. So if I am doing a run on rolling terrain, outdoors will be slower. Finally, when it is really cold out, I am wearing up to 4-5 lbs of warm clothing, which will slow me down. As an aside, the treadmill is perfect for threshold training. It is very easy to control pace, effort, heart rate etc.
I have heard that for ages, but for me it is the opposite. Running on treadmill at 0% is a tiny bit slower than the road for me. If I go to 1%, then a lot slower. Not sure why that is, just been a thing my whole running career. And as mentioned, it could be the cooling effect, I get hot and run hot quickly…Plus I just love uneven surfaces, run almost exclusively off road in training…
Glad you said this, it’s the same for me.
I did a lab test recently and they put it at 1.5%
My 10k prediction came out at 42:45 having run a 39:50 three weeks before.
0% works out about the same effort as outdoors.