The treadmill is a dangerous place! 5 must-read safety tips

careful! Treadmills may contain hidden dangers! According to statistics, as many as 24,000 people were injured from treadmill exercise in the United States last year. Recently, Dave Goldberg, the husband of Facebook CEO Sheryl Sandberg, even fell off a treadmill and died from a severe head injury. Domestic fitness coaches teach you 5 treadmill safety tips, allowing you to exercise with peace of mind and achieve weight loss results.

When exercising on a treadmill, it is important to maintain correct running posture. For people with poor physical fitness, it is recommended that they just hold the handrails and walk fast when running without forcing themselves (left picture). When running, you must keep your head and chest up, and keep your head and feet in a straight line as much as possible (picture on the right).

Treadmills are very common exercise equipment, but accidents caused by improper use or lack of concentration are often heard. According to statistics from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), in 2014, more than 24,000 Americans were sent to the hospital for injuries caused by treadmill use. Common conditions included fractures and abrasions. Between 2003 and 2012, there were 30 fatal accidents involving treadmill use. The danger should not be underestimated.

More than 60% of Americans' injuries from sports equipment are related to treadmills

The Washington Post also reported that a statistical report from 2007 to 2011 showed that 66% of injuries caused by the use of sports equipment were related to treadmills. In addition, the report also analyzed that the popularity of smartphones and other mobile devices makes it easy for people to be distracted by using these electronic products while running, which leads to accidents.

Mi Xiangwei, a fitness coach at Uni-President Fitness Club, said that many people like to listen to music while running on a treadmill. Some people are used to playing with their mobile phones while running, and often stare at the TV in front of them while running. Be careful to avoid falls. Mi Xiangwei personally demonstrated the five major treadmill safety tips and taught the public to remember to take safety precautions at all times when using a treadmill to ensure their own safety.

[Five safety tips for using a treadmill]

Tip 1: Clip the safety buckle first

Before starting the treadmill, you must first clip the safety buckle connected to the treadmill on your clothes or trouser waist. If the runner cannot keep up with the speed of the treadmill and the safety buckle falls off, the treadmill will automatically stop for safety reasons.

There is a safety buckle under the treadmill screen. Just clip the safety buckle on your clothes and let the safety buckle line connect the treadmill and the runner. When the runner cannot keep up with the speed of the treadmill and falls behind, the safety buckle will fall off the clothes and the treadmill will stop automatically to prevent the runner from falling on the track due to "weak legs" or falling from the back of the track.

In addition to the safety buckle that can stop the treadmill in an emergency, the user can also press the red button in the middle below the treadmill screen in an emergency to make the machine "STOP" immediately! However, coach Mi Xiangwei reminded that if the user cannot keep up with the speed of the treadmill and the body is too far away from the button, he or she will not be able to press it in time, and it is very likely that the face will hit downwards after pressing the button, which is even more dangerous. Therefore, Coach Mi Xiangwei suggested, "It is safest to just clip on the safety buckle!"

Tip 2: Set your own running speed and time

When using a treadmill, be sure to set the appropriate running speed and time according to your own load capacity (picture on the right). In addition, you can use the formula to calculate your target heart rate and refer to the chart next to the screen to understand your exercise intensity (left).

Coach Mi Xiangwei said that running is an aerobic exercise, and it is recommended that people should reach a heart rate intensity of 50% to 60% when using a treadmill for better exercise effects. Coach Mi Xiangwei pointed out that since everyone's physical condition is different, people can use "age" and "resting heart rate" when not exercising to calculate the "reserved heart rate", and then enter the desired heart rate intensity (generally people recommend calculating at 60%) to further derive the "target heart rate". The answer is the degree to which aerobic exercise effects can be achieved.

After knowing their target heart rate, runners only need to hold the handles on both sides of the treadmill with both hands. The handles will be able to detect the runner's heart rate and display it on the treadmill screen, allowing the runner to know whether his or her heart rate has achieved the exercise effect.

Target heartbeat calculation formula

Step 1: 220-age-quiet heartbeat = preserved heartbeat

Step 2: Retained heartbeat x 60% + quiet heartbeat = target heartbeat (plus or minus error 11)

Strategy 3: After starting the tracks, keep up with your feet

Before starting the treadmill, do not put your feet on the track first, so as to avoid falling due to not being able to keep up with the speed (left picture). The correct action should be to step your feet on the outside of the treadmill first, wait until the treadmill starts running, and then step on the track to keep up with the speed (picture on the right).

Once the user has clipped on the safety buckle and set the running speed and time that suits him/her, do not rush to start the track and start running. Coach Mi Xiangwei said that before starting the treadmill, the runner's feet should first be placed on the side of the machine outside the track, and then the treadmill should be turned on. Once the tracks start moving, the runner should step on them and first keep up with the speed of the tracks by brisk walking. After making sure that you can keep up, you can gradually increase the speed.

If the user steps on the track at the beginning and starts the treadmill directly, the track speed may be too fast and the user may not be able to react in time and keep up, causing a fall and injury.

Tip 4/Correct running posture: Keep your head and feet in a straight line

When exercising on a treadmill, it is important to maintain correct running posture. For people with poor physical fitness, it is recommended that they just hold the handrails and walk fast when running without forcing themselves (left picture). When running, you must keep your head and chest up, and keep your head and feet in a straight line as much as possible (picture on the right).

In addition to using the treadmill safely, correct running posture is also important. Coach Mi Xiangwei emphasized that when running, one should keep the back straight, the center of gravity slightly forward, and keep the front of the head and the soles of the feet approximately in the same straight line. The head and feet should move forward together when running to avoid spinal injuries or even herniated disc problems. When running, people can take a quick look at the position of their head and feet to ensure that their posture is correct.

Tip 5/Uphill running: Don’t lean back or hunch your back

Many people adjust the treadmill to an uphill position and then hold the handles with both hands and shift their center of gravity backwards. This will increase waist strength and make it easier to get injured (left picture). For some others, their center of gravity shifts too far forward, which results in a hunched posture, which is also a wrong movement (picture on the right).

Many people like to switch to the climbing mode when using a treadmill, believing that the exercise effect is better. However, coach Mi Xiangwei pointed out that many users hold the handrails on both sides at this time, and lean their backs back while walking fast. This will greatly increase the pressure on the waist and make it easy to get injured. In addition, some people shift their center of gravity too far forward, causing them to hunch over, which is also a wrong action. People are reminded to keep their backs straight and their head and feet in a straight line when running to protect their spine.

[Warm-up exercise is essential before using the treadmill]

Coach Mi Xiangwei said that warm-up is necessary before doing any exercise, even using a treadmill is no exception. When warming up, focus on moving the joints of the whole body, rotate the neck joints, shoulder joints, swing the back, circle the waist, draw circles with the knees, and draw circles with the wrists and ankles. Finally, don't forget to stretch the muscles and bones of the legs.

When warming up, straighten and stretch out your arms, and use the strength of your arms to rotate your shoulder joints.

Move your arms downward in a circular motion to fully mobilize your shoulder joints.

In addition to rotating your shoulders forward, don't forget to rotate them backward in the opposite direction to fully warm up your shoulder joints.

After moving your neck and shoulder joints, raise your hands naturally and parallel, and swing your back left and right.

After completing the back swinging movement, the next step is to exercise the waist. Put your hands on your waist and rotate your waist 360 degrees in a circular motion.

Before running, you must strengthen the warm-up exercises for your knees. You should squat, gently support your knees with both hands, and rotate your knees in a circular motion. Special reminder: People with arthritis are not suitable for running and should not do this warm-up exercise to avoid aggravating their condition.

After moving your trunk joints, don't forget your wrists and ankles. For the wrists, interlace your fingers together and for the ankles, touch the ground with your toes, and rotate both in circles.

In addition to the above safety rules, Coach Mi Xiangwei said that many people now watch TV, listen to music, or even use mobile phones and tablets while using treadmills, and inattention during exercise is a major cause of accidents. Coach Mi Xiangwei suggested that if you want to listen to music, you can use sports Bluetooth headphones, which are safer.

Moderate exercise is beneficial to physical and mental health, and the treadmill is an exercise partner that is not restricted by weather or space. As long as you adjust your running speed according to your physical fitness, don't try to overdo it, and follow the above treadmill safety rules, you can run healthily without worrying about it!