Treadmill Power

A DIEHARD OUTDOOR RUNNER FINDS THAT NEW APPS AND MACHINES MAKE POUNDING THE SLABS MORE FUN AND EFFECTIVE (FINALLY).

- Matt Gross

NOT LONG AGO, I stepped onto a treadmill at an urban gym, and decided that a workout called ‘Beast Mode’ – a pre- recorded, 30-minute endurance session on the iOS app Studio – was the class for me. Never mind that I was supposed to be tapering for a half marathon, or that I hadn’t set foot on a treadmill in years, let alone run with headphones. This was an app. For treadmill running. How challenging could it be?

The dance music crescendoed, and instructor Justin Koodish counted down – 5, 4, 3, 2, 1! – and I was moving. Hard: 6:30 pace. My threshold. For three kays straight. The treadmill shook. Self- consciousness gripped me. Where do my feet go? Why does the air taste weird? Look out the window. Street vendors. Taxis. Runners! Runners running in the sunlit streets, untethered and free. Why am I not out there? Or, as Shine down – one of the energetic bands on Justin’s playlist – sang in my ears, “Why you always running in place?”

But between Shine down, Sum 41, and Lit Lords, there was also coach Justin’s voice:

“Keep your footfall right underneath the hip.”

“Shorter strides, higher cadence.” 3

“Chin up, chin up! Where’s that breathing? Gotta use that diaphragm.”

“Three minutes to go – keep pushing!”

Weirdly, it worked. Hearing his advice (taped and impersonal though it was), seeing other runners on the app’s leader board, and knowing that the speed and incline were all ultimately under my control kept me going. And not just through those three kays, but also the pounding intervals that followed.