Best free treadmill cardio workouts

Get the best use from your home treadmill with these treadmill cardio workout plans including running, walking and intervals, plus find out what books and DVDs will help your treadmill workout.

Working out on treadmills is great for your health: you can burn lots of calories and even lose weight with the right cardio treadmill workout. These free workout plans are an excellent way to start using your new home treadmill.

The best treadmill workouts

Make sure to follow these tips to get the best workout, whether you’re running or walking:

• Work hard: if you’re moving slow enough that it’s easy to read the newspaper, you’re not burning enough calories. Walk or run faster and ditch the reading material in favour of TV or music.
  
  
• Change it up: Don’t always do the same workout on your treadmill. Your body will get used to it and will no longer get the same benefits. Always change something, whether it’s the speed, the incline or the number of minutes you spend on the treadmill that day.
  
  
• Make it a habit: You can’t get in a good workout on your treadmill if you don’t use it! Put your treadmill in a convenient spot in your home and schedule in your cardio workout times. (Keep this in mind when you're buying your treadmill as you may need to choose a compact or folding model.)
  
  
• Start a training log: Keep track of all your treadmill workouts so that you can see the progress you’ve made.
  
  
• Reward yourself: Promise that you’ll buy yourself a nice gift (a pedicure, a night at the movies) when you reach a certain goal: say, 25 hours spent on the treadmill, or 3 workouts a week for a month.

Treadmill walking workout

If you’re new to exercise, or just getting back into shape, you’ll want to start with a walking workout for treadmills. A good rule of thumb in general is to walk fast enough that you’re feeling warm and that you’re expending effort but you’re not working so hard that you can’t talk easily.

Try this 20- to 30-minute cardio walking workout for your home treadmill to get started. Choose times and speeds based on your personal fitness level, and increase them as you get stronger.

• Get on your treadmill and start walking at a moderate pace to warm up. Do this for 5-10 minutes.
  
  
• Increase the speed so that you are walking faster and starting to breathe hard. Do this for 10-20 minutes.
  
  
• Decrease the speed again so that you are walking at a moderate pace to cool down. Do this part of the workout for another 5 minutes.

Treadmill running workout

A running workout on the treadmill is similar to a walking workout except you are running, not walking. Try this 20- to 30-minute cardio running workout to get started:

• Get on the treadmill and walk briskly for 5-10 minutes to warm up. You can start slower and gradually increase the treadmill’s speed.
  
  
• Increase the speed so that you are running at a comfortable pace that you can sustain for at least 10 minutes. Run at this speed for 10-20 minutes.
  
  
• Lower the speed on your treadmill again so that you are walking briskly to cool down. Walk for another 5 minutes until your heart rate is back to normal.

Treadmill interval workout

Intervals—going back and forth between fast and slow pace—are an excellent, proven way to burn more fat and calories. They will also get your heart and lungs in shape. Try one of these interval workouts for running or walking on your treadmill:

• After warming up for 10 minutes, alternate 1 minute of very fast running or walking with 2 minutes of slower running or walking to recover. Repeat at least 5 times and then cool down for 5 minutes.
  
  
• For beginning runners: after warming up for 10 minutes, alternate 2 minutes of jogging with 2 minutes of walking. Change the times as you get stronger: for instance, run for 4 minutes and walk for 1 minute.
  
  
• Try an interval workout using the treadmill’s incline instead of speed: after warming up, walk or run at a brisk pace for 2 minutes, then increase the incline as if you’re going up a hill for a few minutes. Alternate at least 5 times before cooling down.

More home treadmill workouts: Books and DVDs

If you prefer to follow along as someone guides you through a treadmill workout, there are many DVDs available to help. Here are some of our favourite picks:

You can also buy books that will help you create the best treadmill workouts. Try these to get started: