Gone is the Treadmill

For 16 years I lived in Prince George, BC which is "located" in Northern British Columbia (in fact it is in the middle of the province). Being northern, Prince George experiences winter from the end of October to April with temperatures in January dipping to -35°C (-31°F) and on average has 85 inches of snow fall per year. You have two options for being a runner in this climate: outside or inside.

For many years I ventured out into the frigged temperatures to get my runs in.  At that time I wore a minimal number of layers as I enjoyed the freedom of moment as opposed to having a bulky winter jacket on.  Winter by winter this approach worked, but was not ideal and not enjoyable.  Enter the treadmill.  The treadmill changed my life. No longer was I running in the extreme cold, but rather I was running long distances (inside) and enjoying the fact that it was 20°C.  The challenge is that many people complain about the intolerable level of repetition and boredom that sets in on a treadmill, but I came up with an acceptable solution.  To counter this, I configured my space so that I could listen to music, audiobooks or watch training videos as I ran.  It worked well and for the 9 years I ran on treadmill in the winter and streets in the summer.

In September 2011 I moved to Victoria, BC.  Victoria has a temperate climate with mild, rainy winters and cool, dry and sunny summers.  During the winter, the average daily high and low temperatures are 8 and 4 °C (46.4 and 39.2 °F), respectively. The summer months are equally mild, with an average high temperature of 20 °C (68 °F) and low of 11 °C (51.8 °F), although inland areas often experience warmer daytime highs. The average rainfall is 583.1mm per year with November, December and January being the rainiest.  Combine this with ocean views, an abundance of provincial parks and greenery to make this a runners paradise.

So with a drastic change in climate, I have now been running outdoors for an entire year and enjoying every moment of it.  On Friday I really needed to go for a run but was unable to go outside as I was a single parent for the night.  So I decided to put on my gear and head for the treadmill (which has been collecting dust, literally).  I ran for about 5 minutes and it was a long 5 minutes.  I struggled physically and mentally trying to adjust to running on the spot with no scenery, no forward movement , no freedom and a roof above my head. It didn't happen, I stopped. The experience was almost a 180° from running outside leaving nothing to be desired or to want to be repeated.  The outstanding issue was the fact that I still wanted to run.

I am not sure that I will run on a treadmill again. I would rather do a 60 minute P90X session (which I enjoy) before going back to an experience what does not feel comfortable or natural.  The freedom and feeling of running outdoors year round has changed my state, my physical and my life. Not sure if this comparable with your experience?  If you are not getting outside, you should - rain, shine, or snow it is so much better in so many ways.

Long live the outdoors. Gone is the treadmill.