8 Treadmill Workouts Pro Runners Swear By for Better Performance

It’s tough to escape the treadmill when the weather starts to turn. And while cruising through an easy run with entertainment is one thing, locking into intense speed intervals while staring at the same console is another. Without fresh scenery or a crew of training partners to pull you along, speedwork on the belt can test your focus before it tests your fitness.Even professional runners know the feeling. When weather or logistics reroute a key workout indoors, they adapt and find ways to make the session productive, fast, and even fun.Here, eight pros share the treadmill workouts they rely on to turn indoor interval sessions into serious gains.1. Tempo Run With Incline PlayPro runner: Joe Klecker, 2020 Olympian in the 10,000 meters, who made his marathon debut at the 2025 New York City Marathon and went on to earn a PR at the 2026 Boston Marathon, finishing in 2:05:56 for 13th place.Joe Klecker got this workout from his mother, Janis Klecker, a fellow Olympian who competed in the marathon in the 1992 Barcelona Games.“My mom used to do this workout when she was training for the marathon in Minnesota,” Klecker tells Runner’s World. “The nice thing was, if I finished, say six miles, then the next time I did it, I’d move the pace faster, but if I was only able to get maybe five miles in, then I would know the next time I need to keep the pace there until I was in good enough shape to do the full six miles.”As for how to lock into the right effort: “I keep this one at marathon pace or somewhere between marathon and half-marathon pace because the incline makes it quite a bit harder,” Klecker says. “But this workout is fun because you could compare it over time throughout the winter to where you were, say, from December to February.”How to do it:2 mile easy warmup4-6 miles at marathon or half marathon pace, alternating the incline between 0% and 4% every 0.25 miles for the duration2 mile easy cooldown2. Descending FartlekPro runner: Amanda Vestri, who recently finished 15th among pro women at the 2026 Boston Marathon, recording a 2:24:49.Amanda Vestri’s build for her 26.2 debut at the 2025 New York City Marathon, where she ran a 2:25:40, included a decent amount of treadmill training with workouts created by her former coach, Pete Rea of the now-defunct ZAP Endurance Group, which was based in Blowing Rock, North Carolina. The course is notoriously challenging and hilly, which was hard to closely simulate outside in North Carolina.“If you live near flatter terrain, or you don’t have those rolling hills, treadmill workouts can be hugely beneficial for a race like New York,” Vestri tells Runner’s World. “I think it definitely prepared me for it.”For her favorite workout, Vestri alternates inclines and declines, while pushing the pace. “With this workout, you’re starting with a longer interval, and then in between, you’re not jogging but rather floating and running at a steady rhythm about 40 to 50 seconds slower, and you end up getting a good amount of mileage in,” Vestri says.How to do it:3-mile easy warmup with 6 to 8 strides toward the end8 minutes at marathon pace, alternating between 2.5% incline and -1.5% decline every 45 seconds4 min jog recovery, 0%7 minutes at 30 seconds faster than marathon pace, alternating between 2.5% incline and -1.5% decline every 45 seconds3:30 min jog recovery, 0%6 minutes at half marathon pace, alternating between 2.5% incline and -1.5% decline every 45 seconds3 min jog recovery, 0%5 minutes at 30 seconds faster than half marathon pace, alternating between 2.5% incline and -1.5% decline every 30 seconds2:30 min jog recovery, 0%4 minutes at 10K pace, 1% incline2 min jog recovery, 0%3 minutes at 15 seconds faster than 10K pace, 0.5% incline1:30 min jog recovery, 0%2 minutes at 5K pace, 0.5% incline1 min jog recovery, 0%1-minute snowball (increase the pace by 0.1 every 15 seconds) 30 sec jog recovery, 0%2-minute snowball (increase the pace by 0.1 every 30 seconds)Cool down for 5 to 12 minutes3. Marathon Pace Mile RepeatsPro runner: Maggie Montoya, a professional marathoner with a personal best of 2:27:04, who trains with the Roots Running Project in Boulder.Maggie Montoya used to loathe treadmill running, resorting to it only on the worst winter days when she was in college, when icy conditions or poor air quality would make training outside unsafe. She has since learned to embrace it now that she has a home treadmill and encounters those conditions more frequently.“When the treadmill feels a bit monotonous on an easy run, I will fluctuate the incline and speeds every few minutes to add a little more stimulus and give a task that goes by at shorter increments than a full run doing the same thing,” Montoya tells Runner’s World. “Workouts aren’t as bad because there are usually built-in fluctuations throughout it.”While Montoya typically does three miles for both her warmup and cooldown outdoors, she’ll usually do four and two miles, respectively, on the treadmill.“I’ve been able to still nail all my workouts on a treadmill in recent years and am able to lock into a more consistent pace rather than when I might get out too fast in a rep outside,” Montoya says. “It has allowed a more controlled progression of a workout too, when required, which I feel is valuable.”How to do it:4 mile easy warmup6-8 miles x 1 mile at marathon pace, with 400-meter jog recovery in between2 mile easy cooldown4. More-Than-a-Mile Threshold IntervalsPro runner: Emily Infeld, a 2025 U.S. Champion, 2016 Olympian, and 2015 World Championships bronze medalist, all in the 10,000 meters.Emily Infeld has trained in Portland, Oregon for much of the last decade, which has made her no stranger to hopping on the treadmill to escape cold and rainy conditions.“I have done quite a bit of work on the treadmill, I especially enjoy it for my double-threshold days for my morning session,” Infeld tells Runner’s World. “I’m not one for trying to make conditions ideal all the time, but sometimes it’s not feasible to go outside with snow and ice. It was pouring when I last did this, so it was nice to not have to deal with that on the road or track.”“I like this workout because I can listen to music and turn my brain off, and I can get it done quickly in the morning to optimize rest for my second session,” Infeld adds.How to do it:10-minute easy warmup4 x 1.25 miles at threshold pace, 1% incline, with 85-90 sec complete rest between10-minute easy cooldown5. Half-Marathon Pace Mile RepeatsPro runner: Reed Fischer, who holds personal bests of 2:09:47 and 1:00:54 in the marathon and half marathon, respectively, and represented the U.S. in the marathon at the 2025 World Championships Reed Fischer, who grew up in Minnesota and now trains with Tin Man Elite in Boulder, is very familiar with treadmill training.“After 15+ years of treadmill workouts, I’ve got my ‘ideal’ treadmill workout pretty dialed in,” Fischer tells Runner’s World. “Threshold work [or half marathon pace for Fischer] is the best (in my opinion) bang for your buck on the treadmill. Anything faster can feel a little chaotic, and the reps are usually shorter, which means more fiddling with the belt speed to speed up and slow down. Anything slower means the reps get long and the workout gets pretty mundane.”“For most people, threshold mile reps will probably fall somewhere between five to 10 minutes, which is a nice sweet spot for mental duration,” he adds.How to do it:3 mile easy warmup 6-8 x 1 mile at threshold or half-marathon pace, progressing pace by about 5 seconds each mile (or 0.1 mph), with 400-meter jog recovery in between3 mile easy cooldown6. Time-Based FartlekPro runner: Frank Lara, who holds personal bests of 2:09:53 and 1:01:00 in the marathon and half marathon, respectively.Like Montoya, Frank Lara also trains with the Roots Running Project in Boulder and is also well-acquainted with moving runs indoors for adverse weather conditions or poor air quality.“I’ve had the privilege of not having to use them too much early in my running career, but have acquired a great appreciation for them living in Colorado,” Lara tells Runner’s World. “On a treadmill, I don’t have to worry about planning a route, and time goes by fairly quickly if I’m watching the Big Bang Theory, or one of the Mission Impossible films.”Lara says he doesn’t dwell too much on the distance he covers or the actual paces, as treadmills may not be calibrated properly. “It can take a few seconds for the treadmill to get up to speed, so I’ll often start adjusting the speed a few seconds before the start of the next rep,” he adds.How to do it:20-minute easy warmup8-10 x 3 minutes starting at marathon pace and progressing down to half-marathon or 10K pace by final interval, with 2-minute float recovery between (slower than the faster interval but not a full-on jog)20-minute easy cooldown7. 45-Minute Uphill RunPro runner: Michael Wardian, ultramarathoner and three-time 50K U.S. Champion, who broke the record for a series of back-to-back 50K races on all seven continents with a total time of 26:40:16If you’ve gone beyond the marathon distance to train for an ultramarathon or mountain race, you know training isn’t only about mileage; you’ve got to consider the terrain and vertical climbing as well. Fortunately, simulating it can be much easier to do on the treadmill versus driving hours away from your home city every weekend in an effort to prepare.“Uphill running forces your heart and lungs to work harder than flat running at a lower impact, making it one of the best aerobic workouts you can do,” Mike Wardian tells Runner’s World. “You’ll also hit the glutes, hamstrings, calves, and hip flexors much more than on flat terrain—the same muscles you need for mountain races, technical trail climbs, ultramarathons and fast hill surges.”“A long treadmill climb teaches you to stay relaxed and controlled under sustained stress—perfect for ultras and long climbs,” Wardian adds. “For extra credit, I’ll add a 20-pound weight vest and slow the pace to 13:00 to 15:00.”How to do it:5 minute very easy warmup (around 15:00 pace) to get your legs movingRun for 45 minutes at 10:00 to 12:00 pace (5.0 to 6.0 mph) at 15% grade (or highest your treadmill goes)8. 10-Minute Threshold IntervalsPro runner: Zach Bitter, TrainingPeaks coach, ultramarathoner, and previous 100-mile world record holder, with a time of 11:19:13.Zach Bitter prefers the treadmill to track his progress as he builds toward 100-mile races.“I like it for the control it offers with respect to assessing training progress in an environment that is about as controlled as you can find, making comparing prior sessions to the current one easy,” Bitter tells Runner's World. “I prefer interval sessions on treadmills because they offer frequent changes, which breaks up the monotony of being in one spot and indoors.”To track his progress over time, Bitter monitors his pace changes, while maintaining the same heart rate and perceived effort.He also sometimes puts the incline between 6 and 10 percent to help build strength. Running uphill shortens your stride, shifts the foot strike toward the forefoot or midfoot, and reduces the vertical velocity of your body at landing, Bitter says.“The goal for a session like this is targeting lactate threshold intensity, so it will fill a spot in my training when focusing on improving my pace at threshold,” Bitter says. “For my 100-mile race targets, it is a great way to raise the ceiling on my fitness, so work at lower intensities can be done at a higher quality when I start peaking for race day.”How to do it:15-20 minutes easy warmupDrills (leg swings, A-skips, B-skips, high knees, butt kicks)4 x 20-second strides3 x 10 minutes at threshold pace with 5-minute recovery jog at an easy pace in between15-20 minutes easy cooldownEmilia Benton is a Houston-based freelance writer and editor. In addition to Runner's World, she has contributed health, fitness and wellness content to Women's Health, SELF, Prevention, Healthline, and the Houston Chronicle, among other publications. She is also an 11-time marathoner, a USATF Level 1-certified running coach, and an avid traveler.