Treadmill Walking
Treadmill walking is a fundamental cardiovascular exercise that simulates natural gait mechanics on a moving belt. It primarily targets the legs and heart while offering a controlled environment to build stamina and burn calories.
Since this app integrates with HealthKit and tracks your HRV and recovery, it can intelligently prescribe the duration and intensity of your walk to keep you in an optimal aerobic zone (Zone 2) without hindering recovery. By monitoring your resting heart rate and sleep quality, the AI determines if you need a restorative low-intensity walk or if you are primed for a higher-intensity session. It also tracks cumulative volume to help prevent overuse injuries common in repetitive impact exercises.
Form Cues
- Keep your head up and gaze forward
- Engage your core slightly to stabilize the spine
- Swing your arms naturally at your sides
- Land mid-foot and roll through to your toes
- Stay centered on the belt comfortably
- Don't grip the handrails for support
- Don't look down at the console or your feet
- Don't lean backward or slouch forward
- Don't overstride by reaching too far with your heel
Common Mistakes
- Holding onto the handrails
- Looking down at a phone
- Hunching the shoulders
- Walking too close to the front console
- Taking excessively long strides
Muscles Worked
This exercise primarily engages the quadriceps and calves to manage the rhythmic stepping motion and propulsion. Secondary engagement occurs in the glutes for hip extension and the core muscles, which work isometrically to maintain upright posture and balance on the moving surface.
Primary
Secondary
Get Personalized Coaching for Treadmill Walking
Don't guess your way through weights or workouts. Download Iridium for automatic, AI-powered coaching that adapts to your recovery and goals.