Tips and Tricks to avoid getting strung out this Spring!
As temperatures are getting warmer, I am sure that many of you are starting to transition from indoor running to outdoor running. We here at Bett On Us want to help you to do this without causing injury to your body. Well treadmill running is beneficial, and sometimes necessary, there are still a few key differences that runners need to be aware of.
1. When running outdoors you typically rely on your hamstrings to finish the stride cycle and lift your leg behind you, whereas on a treadmill you use your quads to push off.
2. The terrain outdoors is constantly changing, which increases you risk of an injury from even a minor misstep because the small muscles, tendons, and ligaments of your ankle haven't been forced to get used to a variety of landings.
3. Wind resistance causes your pace outdoors to be a bit harder than indoor.
You need to transition gradually in order to avoid a resulting injury. So start with one or two of your easy, shorter runs per week outside and build from there. You can also try to split your runs up, where you complete some miles on the treadmill and the rest outside. To safeguard your ankles work on balance and mobility drills such as balancing on one leg a Bosu ball and pillow. After you can hold there, test your balance further by moving your arms or reaching down with your opposite arm towards the foot you are balancing on. To help you prepare for the wind resistance you can put the treadmill incline up to 1.5%. 
