The middle of the winter is a good time to talk about treadmill running as an alternative to running outside when it's too cold out. But, of course, you can turn to the reliable treadmill when it's too hot, when you don't have the proper outdoor running clothes, when it's too dark, or when you're in a foreign city, etc. Even if you love running outdoors, you should learn how to properly run on a treadmill and how to get the most out of your time running in place.

First, try to keep your same running stride. Many people are too afraid to fall off the treadmill, that they run too close to the front panel, and therefore, alter their armswing. Don't be afraid to move slightly away from the front panel so that you can run with a full stride.

Second, adjust the treadmill to a 1.0% grade in order to better simulate running outdoors. This additional grade helps counterbalance the lack of wind resistance and the fact that the treadmill propels you a tiny bit.

Perhaps the best benefits to running on a treadmill (besides the possibility of looking at yourself run for about 45 minutes-more on this later) are the ability to do some hill training as well as precise pacing workouts.

You should download a treadmill pace chart like the one on this website: http://www.hillrunner.com /training/tmillchart.php . This will tell you, based on a combination of speed and incline, the pace you are running. Use this to guide your workouts. This is particularly helpful when performing one of the following workouts:

A building run-divide your run into three equal segments. Run the first part easy; the second part medium; and the third part hard. You can define these terms relative to your energy level on a given day. The idea is that the run gets progressively more difficult. You can adjust the speed, the incline, or both.

A tempo run-a steady run at a pace that this about your half marathon goal pace. This run is tougher than your typical fun run.

A fartlek run-a run that contains random bursts of faster running of varying speeds and durations. The important part of this workout isn't the specifics of the sprints, but focusing on the steady running, and maintaining that pace after each burst of speed.

Of course, you can always mimic an interval workout varying the speed and incline, using timed intervals rather than distance. For example, 3 minutes on, 1 minute off, to approximate an 800 meter interval.

And of course, you can create your own hilly course by randomly adjusting the incline or using the hill setting. My suggestion is that after you are accustomed to treadmill running, you use the hill setting, so that commit yourself to running hills.

Be sure to include a warm-up and a cool-down phase to your workouts, and some stretching afterwards.

As I mentioned earlier, another benefit is being able to look at yourself when you run. Grab a treadmill in front of a mirror and watch your form. Make sure your feet are pointing forward, not to the side; check your posture-your shoulders should be square and not swiveling; and check your alignment-you should have a slight forward lean, with your hips aligned with your shoulders.

And most importantly, do not get distracted by that hot guy or girl so that you fall off the treadmill!

Koach Kelsey

Note: If for some reason, you choose not to run on a treadmill, and you want to use an alternate form of exercise, a good rule of thumb is that 60 minutes on another machine is the equivalent to a 5 mile run. This is just an estimate, given the different machines and all of the variables, how hard you push, the resistance, the model of the machine, etc. Again, use it as a rule of thumb.