Try this treadmill workout to improve your top-end speed this winter

Winter might not be your favourite time of the year for triathlon training, but it is a great stretch of months that can be used to improve on anything you might be lacking as a triathlete. With no races that you’re preparing for on the horizon, you can dedicate serious time to making big gains in areas that will help you when you toe the line at your first event of the year.

Here is a treadmill workout that will help you work on your speed. Treadmill running isn’t the most fun, but it can be extremely effective, and if you incorporate this workout into your training schedule throughout the winter, you’ll be sure to see faster times come spring and summer.

Warmup

For the warmup, the minimum you should do is 15 minutes of light, easy running. If you feel like adding some stretching into the mix before even hopping on the treadmill, feel free to do so. You can also add some activation movements, which might be best to do off of the treadmill. Standing in one spot, do 30 seconds of butt-kicks, 30 seconds of high-knees, and some squats.

No matter where you’re working out—the track, the treadmill, on the road, or anywhere else—doing a warmup is imperative. You might get away with skipping your warmup for a while, but if you make it a habit, you will eventually get injured. You need to give your body time to wake up and prepare itself for the hard effort.

Main set

Before you start your workout, you are going to have to determine how fast you want to run on the treadmill. Your machine might show you your pace, but running on a treadmill is much different than running on the track. The pace the treadmill shows is a good place to start, but be sure to test it out beforehand and see if it really does line up with the speed you’re used to running outdoors.

For this workout, you will want to run at 5K and 3K pace. You likely know your 5K pace, but if you don’t, aim for a high Zone 4 effort (80 to 90 per cent of your max heart rate). To determine your 3K pace, slash 12 seconds off of your 5K speed and aim for that. Now that you have your pacing down, the workout is as follows:

• 10 to 15 x 1 minute at 5K pace
• 30 seconds active recovery (jogging or walking) between each rep
• 10 to 15 x 30 seconds at 3K pace
• 30 seconds active recovery between each rep

Cool down

Just like the warmup, the very least you need to do for a proper cool down is 10 or 15 minutes of easy running. Once again, you can add some stretches into the cool down, or perhaps you would like to use a foam roller to smooth out any muscles that are nagging you. Regardless of what you choose to do, be sure to properly cool down after every workout.