Treadmill: the curved treadmill

Treadmill technology has progressed slowly for many years. The display has been enhanced with touch screens and TV-like features. But the platform and the tape have remained the same. Until now, the curved treadmill represents a technological leap and they are still quite new.

This type of treadmill is not usually used by the majority of users who go to the gym to run. However, lovers of functional training, HIIT and CrossFit take advantage of its existence to introduce powerful cardio sessions. Is it really better than the normal treadmill?

What is?

They are called curves because of the shape of the cover. All models have a special curve that has been extensively researched to find the optimal shape. Because of the way they work, they need to have the curve. The treadmill is also usually different and not like normal treadmills.

The tape is usually made of “slats”. It can’t be like a normal tape that we find in the other types. There are very small spaces between each slat to allow the curve to rotate as we exercise. This belt has benefits because it behaves more like outdoor running than a motorized treadmill.

Basically on this treadmill your foot lands at the front of the machine so the downward force drives the treadmill because it’s on a slight incline. This happens with each foot strike, so the treadmill can speed up or slow down as we do so. It’s all very smart.

As the foot moves along the platform with the normal stride, it reaches the point where it needs to drive off the toes. The middle is at the bottom of the curve and the front and back have the top edges. The fact that we push off from the edge makes the movement very ergonomic.

Benefits

Using the curved treadmill can bring numerous benefits, beyond just trying out a new training machine.

Burn calories faster

According to its creators, we can burn 30% more calories on a curved treadmill. Scientists who measured the physiological intensity of a standard motorized treadmill compared to a non-motorized curved treadmill reported stronger results from the latter.

Thanks to this higher intensity, curved treadmills are perfect for high-intensity interval training (HIIT). We will raise the heart rate faster and maintain it, increasing the need for oxygen and helping to burn more calories than regular aerobic exercise.

Activate more muscle groups

Since we don’t have to push to propel ourselves forward, traditional treadmills don’t really engage the entire leg. Curved machines, on the other hand, force the legs to power them from the start, activating everything from the glutes to the hamstrings to get the machine going.

We also can’t just flip a switch up to control running speed; we can only increase the pace by training more.

It is less harmful to the joints

We don’t have to sacrifice running to save our knees. The rubberized surface of a curve helps absorb impact on joints and connective tissue, preventing injuries often associated with hitting the ground. Standard treadmills aren’t designed to absorb this impact, which means your joints are more likely to wear out over time.

Ideal for HIIT and Sprints

Curved treadmills allow us to accelerate super fast and reach a higher top speed almost instantly, so we can push ourselves harder. HIIT workouts and sprints also require you to slow down quickly. Slowing down on a curved treadmill is just as natural and quick as slowing down by running outdoors.

Regular treadmills are very bad because they slow down quickly. When we’re running at an insanely high speed, sometimes to exhaustion, we simply don’t have any air or energy left to wait for a motorized treadmill to slow down so quickly, let alone the coordination to press the speed deceleration button. on panel. The curved treadmill is the perfect cardio machine for doing a HIIT cardio workout at home. All of these factors work together to make curved treadmills a perfect storm for HIIT and sprints.

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Disadvantages

Curved treadmills are very basic machines. There are no fancy screens that display training stats in various colors with nice charts and graphs. There are no training programs like a weight loss routine with multiple levels to track progress like with regular treadmills. There’s also no fitness test button to see how healthy we are and there’s no incline.

Screens are worse than that. They are basic and only have speed, distance and time. This can be disappointing as they are made for elite runners who only need basic information.

On the other hand, if you like to do long, slow runs where you let your mind wander while your body does its thing, a curved treadmill may disappoint. Even walking is a bit more difficult on a curved treadmill than on a flat motorized one.

Differences with a normal tape

Curved treadmills are more like manual treadmills. They are not powered by electricity and there is no motor to turn the belt. The athlete has to push the belt by himself.

Aside from looks, the most obvious difference is speed . There is almost no limit to how fast we can go. We are not dictated by the speed of an engine, only by how fast we can propel ourselves.

It is also said that 30% more calories are burned on a curved treadmill. It simply means that it is 30% harder than a normal treadmill. However, you can make a normal treadmill 30% harder, run or walk 30% harder, go 30% faster, or use incline.

Another difference is that there is no incline and for that reason you cannot simulate a downhill section or a run. Inclines are great in other ways, they can turn a normal walk into an aerobic calorie-burning routine. This is great for older or overweight people who can’t run and want to improve their health and lose weight.