I usually run on dirt/grass, with a small bit of asphalt mixed in. I ran on a treadmill at my gym this weekend for 1.5 hours because it was raining. I now have a lot of pain/ stiffness just above my achilles, but on the outside, and some major pain on the outside, lower portion of thighs - - kinda feels like early ITBS.
I think the treadmill was pretty good. I didn’t seem too stiff, nor did it appear to have too much bounce. Then again, I can count the number of time I’ve run on a treadmill on one hand, so I really don’t have anything to compare it with.
Does running on a treadmill - - other than the obvious mind numbing affects - - impact your body differently than running on grass/dirt?
In the rare instances that I run on a treadmill I never feel like I can run with my normal comfortable style because I am so focused on maintaining such an exact pace. This can cause the legs to tighten up just enough to make it a little harder on your body. I am sure with some practice I could relax a bit, but who wants to actually *practice *running on a treadmill?
I can’t comment on the pain/discomfort you are having specifically, but treadmill running is different. Your body figures it out pretty quickly, and realizes all you have to do is jump up in the air fast enough and it will tell you are doing 7:30 miles. In other words, your stride changes, because you don’t have to propel yourself forward. This could be enough of a change to cause some “repetitive motion” issues for you. If you did nothing but run on a treadmill for a month, when you go outside again you will wonder why you are not moving forward, and you will have to rebuild the muscle groups that do this.
It will help if you set the treadmill on an incline. At least 1.5-2%. They are great for hill repeats, because you don’t have to jam your knees coming down the other side.
Don’t go by me, but you may want to use this as a basis for further investigation.
Your pain is from too much too soon. A slow build up in time, and you most likely would not have had a problem. I do all my speed work on a treadmill because its so precise in repeating the effort.
Like Chuck stated, too much too soon. Its a different type of running, so just like a newbie you need to build up over a couple of workouts. Also, one can not toe off on a treadmill, because of the moving belt.