20-minute Treadmill Intervals + Easy Ways to Step it Up

I love my treadmill. I know exactly how far I'm running, and I can stop whenever I want and not have to worry about getting back home. I can stop in the middle of a run for a bathroom break or a quick snack. Ok, ok- I don't stop for snacks, but I mean, it's a potential benefit of running on my at-home treadmill. Water, though, I do stop for if I run out. Snack... water... same kinda thing. Back to the treadmill...

It's important to keep your body guessing when it comes to any kind of workout. If you do the same workout day in and day out, your body will eventually plateau because it's used to the routine and energy required to complete the workout.

One of my favorite ways to do this is with intervals. Switching up the speed every minute or 2 keeps your body guessing and, honestly, it makes the workout go by much quicker because you have to really pay attention to switching your speed!

Here is an example of a 20-minute interval treadmill workout: 

0-1 min. 5.0

1-2 min. 5.5 

2-3 min. 6.0

3-4 min. 6.5

4-5 min. 7.0

5-6 min. 7.5

6-7 min. 8.0

7-8 min. 8.5

8-10 min. 5.5

11-12 min. 6.5

12-13 min. 7.0

13-14 min. 7.5

14-15 min. 8.0

15-16 min. 8.5 

16-17 min. 9.0

17-18 min. 5.5

18-20 min. 5.0 

3 ways to switch up this workout:

Increase your speed. Start out at 6.0 and move up in .5 increments from there. Or, start at 4.0 and vary your increments. As an example:

0-1 min. 4.5 

1-2 min. 5.5

2-3 min. 6.0

3-4 min. 7.0

4-5 min. 7.5

5-6 min. 8.0

6-7 min. 8.5

7-8 min. 9.0

8-10 min. 5.5 

Increase the incline. Increasing the treadmill incline, no matter how much, will have your body working harder and you'll burn a few more calories as a result. Try a 1.0 incline next time you do intervals! 

Increase the time between intervals. Instead of switching your speed every minute, try every 2 minutes!

Once you're ready for a challenge- increase all of these things during one interval run. Higher speed, longer interval time, and an incline? That'll get your body workin'!

Are you an outside runner or a treadmill lover? How do you switch up your runs? 

Happy running, friends!