Running on the treadmill during Winter Season

For Valentine's day I completed the Black Girls Run virtual 2 mile race on the treadmill at my local YMCA.I wasnt looking forward to this challenge because I hate running indoors. Its mentally decapitating for me. I am an avid outdoor runner.

So, to endure the task, I decided to set the treadmill on a sprint interval training mode. This is better than running at zero percent incline because it doesn't accurately reflect outdoor terrain for completing races. Since my body requires 1 mile of running to "warm" up, the first 30 mins where just running at a 2% incline.

After warm up, my 45 minutes workout consisted of 2 minutes speed work at a speed of 5mph at 5% incline followed by a 2 mins slow pace at 3.5 mph with 3 % incline. Interval incline training not only takes the boredom out of running indoors but can greatly improve your speed. The next time you run a treadmill, resist the urge to leave it at a zero incline and challenge yourself to a higher level. 

Here is a picture of the bling I will be receiving.