Treadmill Workouts for Beginners: 4 Options + Training Tips

Treadmills are touted as a beginner-friendly piece of exercise equipment. While that’s more true than false, it’s perfectly normal to feel a little intimidated by the treadmill, especially if you aren’t used to using one at home — nevermind in a crowded gym.

But having the right treadmill workout plan in your pocket can make all the difference and help you take your first steps toward achieving your health and fitness goals. A beginner cardio workout doesn’t need to be stressful; it should be fresh, fun, and help you form the habits you need to succeed long-term. Here are four beginner treadmill workouts you can do today. 

Are Treadmills Safe for Beginners?

There’s no doubt about it! Treadmills are, in many ways, the best type of cardio for beginners due to their accessibility and wide-ranging health benefits. 

In fact, a 2020 study on older sedentary adults who walked on treadmills twice per week showed that treadmill workouts created “significant improvement” in balance and postural control. (1) Another study from 2019 observed improvements in cardiovascular health markers in stroke patients who exercised on treadmills. (2)

[Related: Best Treadmills for Beginners]

In short, treadmills are an accessible, safe option for just about any beginner exerciser to start working on their health and fitness. And the best part is you don’t need fancy equipment or a personal trainer to work out on a treadmill. 

4 Treadmill Workouts for Beginners

Treadmill workouts can be as simple as “press start and go” or as intricate as a HIIT interval workout or sport-specific training session. Here are a few different treadmill-based (note, you may need other equipment as well) workouts you can do depending on your current fitness level and goals: 

30-Minute Treadmill Workout

Try this 30-minute treadmill workout if you want to burn a whole pile of calories while also improving your muscular endurance and strength. 

Equipment Needed: Treadmill, weight vest (optional)

[Read More: The Best Portable Treadmills]

How Often To Do This Workout: 1-3 times per week 

• 5 Minutes: 2.5 speed, 0 incline, then 
• 10 Minutes: 5.5 – 6.5 speed, 0 – 2.0 incline, then 
• 10 Minutes: 3.0 speed, 5.0 – 8.0 incline, then
• 5 Minutes (Backward): 1.5 speed, 2.0 incline

Modifications

• Make It Easier: Lower the incline during Stage 3 down to 3.0 – 4.0.
• Make It Harder: Don a weight vest for Stage 3 to increase your caloric expenditure. 

20-Minute Treadmill Workout

You don’t need an hour to get a good treadmill workout. A 20-minute workout on the treadmill is more than enough if you dip your toes into interval running workout. Try this workout to improve your cardiovascular capacity: 

Equipment Needed: Treadmill

[Read More: Expert Tested: The 8 Best Treadmills for Running]

How Often To Do This Workout: 1-2 times per week 

• For 2 Minutes: 7.0 – 9.0 speed, 0 incline
• For 1 Minute: 5.0 – 6.0 speed, 3.0 incline
• For 1 Minute: 2.5 – 3.0 speed, 0 incline

Repeat this sequence five times. 

Modifications

• Make It Easier: Perform the entire workout on a 0 incline, or lower your speed during Stage 1. 
• Make It Harder: Merge Stages 1 and 2, running at a 6.0 – 8.0 speed for 4 minutes. 

12-3-30 Treadmill Workout

The 12-3-30 workout on the treadmill is all the rage right now, and for good reason; it’s straightforward, but deceptively challenging. This treadmill protocol simulates a steep hike and is guaranteed to have you pouring sweat by the end of it.

Equipment Needed: Treadmill

How Often To This Workout: 1-2 times per week 

• 2 Minutes: 2.5 – 3.0 speed, 0 incline
• 2 Minutes: 3.0 speed, 6.0 incline
• 30 Minutes: 3.0 speed, 12.0 incline
• 5 Minutes: 2.5 speed, 0 incline

Modifications

• Make It Easier: Start with as many minutes at 12.0 incline as you can handle, then lower the grade down to 8.0 or lower if necessary. Gradually work up to the full 30 minutes. 
• Make It Harder: Try adjusting the incline to 15.0, or wear a weighted vest for a portion of the workout. 

Treadmill Workout for Recovery

Studies show that “active recovery” can help you bounce back from hard training, but only if you do it at the right times and at an appropriate intensity. (3) Try out this treadmill workout for active recovery: 

Equipment Needed: Treadmill

[Read More: The Best Treadmills for Seniors]

How Often To Do This Workout: 2-3 times per week directly after your lower-body workouts or on off days 

• 1 Minute: 5.5 – 7.0 speed, 0 incline
• 3 Minutes: 2.0 – 2.5 speed, 0 incline
• 5 Minutes (Backward): 1.5 – 2.0 speed, 2.0 incline

Repeat Stages 1 & 2 three times before moving on to Stage 3.

Modifications:

• Make It Easier: You can increase the incline and do steep walking instead of jogging during Stage 2.
• Make It Harder: There’s no need to increase the difficulty of a treadmill workout aimed at recovery. 

Treadmill Training Tips

The treadmill may be a straightforward piece of equipment, but you should still learn to master it to get the most value out of your treadmill cardio workouts. Keep these tips in mind: 

Learn the Interface

Not all treadmills are created equal. Modern treadmill machines are robust pieces of technology with a wide array of settings and presets. Before you speed up the belt, take a few minutes to familiarize yourself with the interface.

[Read More: The Best Treadmills with Screens]

This is especially important if you’re doing a sprint workout on the treadmill, or doing intervals — anything that involves adjusting the speed or incline of the treadmill quickly will require a level of familiarity with the controls. 

Bring Music

It’s easy to feel like a hamster spinning its wheel on the treadmill. To help stay in the zone during your treadmill workouts, consider bringing along your favorite tunes. Rhythmic or motivational music has been linked to improving endurance and focus during workouts, and can likely improve the efficiency of your treadmill exercise as well. (4) 

Try Backwards Walking

If you use the treadmill for your warm-up, consider flipping the script and doing some backwards walking on the treadmill. It may feel silly at first, but backwards treadmill walks actually have some compelling benefits.

[Read More: The Best Treadmills for Walking]

Many athletes report that backwards treadmill walking workouts help alleviate knee or hip pain, particularly if you set the treadmill to a low incline. Further, some studies also show that backwards treadmill walking leads to more muscle activation than forward walking, and reduces the amount of compressive force applied to your joints. (5) 

How Treadmill Workouts Help You Lose Fat

The treadmill is a versatile piece of cardio equipment. You can use it during your warm-up before a strength training session, or stick to it for an entire cardio workout. But can treadmill workouts help you lose fat?

Well, sort of. You can perform what’s called Zone 2 cardio on the treadmill — a level of exertion wherein your body primarily oxidizes, or burns, fat for energy. Zone 2 occurs for most folks between 60 and 80% of maximal heart rate. (6) 

[Read More: The Best Tried and Tested Non-Folding Treadmills]

However, burning fat for energy isn’t the same thing as losing fat weight in the long run. Exercising on the treadmill burns calories, but if you aren’t in a calorie deficit overall, the fat you burn off on the treadmill will simply be replaced with the energy you consume from food. 

If you’re dieting properly and maintaining a calorie deficit, you can use the treadmill as a comfortable and accessible way of increasing your physical activity levels. But treadmills aren’t a magical fat-burning machine on their own. 

FAQs

References

1. Pereira NM, Araya MJPM, Scheicher ME. Effectiveness of a Treadmill Training Programme in Improving the Postural Balance on Institutionalized Older Adults. J Aging Res. 2020 Jan 30;2020:4980618. doi: 10.1155/2020/4980618. PMID: 32148960; PMCID: PMC7013321.
2. da Silva RS, da Silva ST, de Souza JM, de Figueiredo MCC, Mendes TAS, de Sena Nunes MC, de Oliveira SKR, Cardoso DCR, da Câmara Silva RG, de Oliveira DC, Ribeiro TS. Effects of inclined treadmill training on functional and cardiovascular parameters of stroke patients: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial. Trials. 2019 May 2;20(1):252. doi: 10.1186/s13063-019-3298-3. PMID: 31046812; PMCID: PMC6498604.
3. Mika A, Oleksy Ł, Kielnar R, Wodka-Natkaniec E, Twardowska M, Kamiński K, Małek Z. Comparison of Two Different Modes of Active Recovery on Muscles Performance after Fatiguing Exercise in Mountain Canoeist and Football Players. PLoS One. 2016 Oct 5;11(10):e0164216. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0164216. PMID: 27706260; PMCID: PMC5051742.
4. Patania VM, Padulo J, Iuliano E, Ardigò LP, Čular D, Miletić A, De Giorgio A. The Psychophysiological Effects of Different Tempo Music on Endurance Versus High-Intensity Performances. Front Psychol. 2020 Feb 5;11:74. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00074. PMID: 32116903; PMCID: PMC7013107.
5. Chang KW, Lin CM, Yen CW, Yang CC, Tanaka T, Guo LY. The Effect of Walking Backward on a Treadmill on Balance, Speed of Walking and Cardiopulmonary Fitness for Patients with Chronic Stroke: A Pilot Study. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Mar 1;18(5):2376. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18052376. PMID: 33804374; PMCID: PMC7967772.

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