Today I’m sharing a treadmill walking workout – perfect for if you have a treadmill at home or want to get some cardio in at the gym.
For this treadmill walking workout you’ll need a treadmill, so it’ll be a gym workout unless you happen to have one at home. Realistically this workout could be done on any piece of cardio equipment from the bike to an elliptical as long as you can change the tension/incline/resistance.
I typically don’t share a lot of cardio workouts on GFF. I’d rather be doing strength training, so that that’s the kind of workouts that I usually create. I thoguht I’d change it up a bit today though and do a cardio one instead of my usual. You can find all of the workouts that I’ve shared on the blog here. All of the workouts are categorized on that page so that it’s really easy to find exactly the workout that you want.
You’ll start off with an incline of 1 on the treadmill for your warm up, and gradually increase it over the course of the workout. At minutes 13 to 15 you should be working at your hardest. After that you’ll gradually decrease it until you start your cool down beginning at minute 25.
The rate of perceived exertion (RPE) is a way of measuring how hard you’re working. If you’re walking at a slow pace, you’re probably at a 2, but if you’re sprinting, you’re most likely at a 9 or 10. Use the chart below to gauge the incline to use on the treadmill to get to the appropriate RPE.
| Rating | Intensity |
| 1 | Very light |
| 2 | light |
| 3 | |
| 4 | Moderate |
| 5 | |
| 6 | Somewhat hard |
| 7 | |
| 8 | Very hard |
| 9 | Extremely hard |
| 10 | Maximal exertion |
People’s RPE may be different. Someone who is just starting out on their fitness journey may rate the same exercise that a fitness pro is doing very differently.
What’s your favorite piece of cardio equipment to use at the gym? My favorite is definitely the elliptical, followed by the treadmill and finally the bike.
As always, talk to your doctor before beginning to workout. Honor your body and modify this workout as needed for you.