Curved Treadmills: Advantages and Disadvantages

Treadmills, whether your team has curved or flat ones, aren’t replacements for running outdoors. But they are useful as a way to complement land running. 

Not every team has a curved treadmill in gyms and training centers. Players may have access to these if they go to private gyms, or have them in a home gym. 

As with every piece of sports technology, there are advantages and disadvantages. And curved treadmills, in particular, can alter running mechanics, which is why coaches need to consider the advantages and disadvantages. 

 

What are curved treadmills? 

Unlike flat treadmills, a curved treadmill is a concave running device that can help athletes explore vertical and horizontal running surfaces. Most curved treadmills remove the need for an electric motor, with each foot strike pulling the belt down and back from the walking or running stride. 

A number of manufacturers offer these, including WOODWAY, TrueForm, Technogym, and Assault. All of them promise to improve workouts, as they create a comfortable running or walking experience that exploits a curvilinear leg stroke. 

Not that any treadmill should replace running or walking outside. Athletes in most sports train outside, at least part of the time, in preparation for matches and games on various pitch surfaces that are outdoors. Even if that isn’t the case for your sport, there’s no substitute for running and jogging outside as a fitness activity. 

Treadmills are designed to complement, not replace, running outdoors, whatever the weather.  

 

How curved treadmills work? 

Generally speaking, flat treadmills (including those that have a range of gradient options) use a motor. Athletes using them can change the gradient and speed with a series of controls. 

However, with curved treadmills, they work with a combination of friction, gravity, and the effect a runner has on the surface of the treadmill. The faster you run, the quicker a curved treadmill will go. Because the equipment is curved, when a runners foot strikes the surface, the belt is pulled downwards and under. 

This makes the point of contact ahead of the center mass of a runner. Making it a completely different experience from running on flat treadmills, or outdoors. 

 

Pros and Cons of Curved Treadmills 

Research is proving that three forces — lateral, horizontal, and vertical — are essential for sprinting success. So for athletes training using curved treadmills, this experience is described as “very similar to overground running, but it’s far from interchangeable.” 

As curved treadmills use gravity and friction, they are great when an athlete needs to run at a constant speed. But accelerating is difficult. Sure, you can run faster. But you can’t get the same burst of speed you’d get running on a motorised treadmill, or naturally, outside. 

In other words, a curved treadmill is not as good as running outside. 

 

Should athletes use curved treadmills? 

Yes, providing this isn’t the only treadmill an athlete uses, and providing coaches ensure they are running outside as part of their exercise/fitness regime. 

Curved treadmills also have fewer moving parts, so are easier to repair. Keeping them in-service more frequently. Making them better for the environment. 

The running experience is more natural. Unlike motorised treadmills, which generally provide a more artificial running experience. Unfortunately, coaches wanting to work on speed, starts, and first step quickness will find curved treadmills a poor choice as a speed tool. 

 

Key Takeaways 

Although there are a number of peer-reviewed studies on this topic, most of them fail to address the key question: “What is the difference between running on a curved treadmill and on the flat earth?” 

Which means coaches need to rely on their own research and experience with these solutions. If you haven’t got one in a team gym or training center, contact a supplier and see if you can have a trial for a couple of weeks. Providing a curved treadmill is used alongside outdoor running and motorised treadmill running (especially for speed), then it should prove a useful addition to any training and fitness program.