Treadmill pace converter
Same formula as the Overload app
This treadmill pace converter turns a treadmill speed and incline into the equivalent flat outdoor speed and pace, using the same energy-cost model Overload applies to grade-adjusted pace. Enter your belt speed and incline percentage, and see what that effort translates to on level ground, plus a full table across 0 to 10 percent incline, handy for matching an indoor hill session to an outdoor effort target.
Equivalent flat speed
10.55km/h
Speed by incline
| Incline | Flat speed | Flat pace |
|---|---|---|
| 0 % | 10.00 | 6:00/km |
| 1 % | 10.55 | 5:41/km |
| 2 % | 11.13 | 5:23/km |
| 3 % | 11.74 | 5:07/km |
| 4 % | 12.36 | 4:51/km |
| 5 % | 13.01 | 4:37/km |
| 6 % | 13.69 | 4:23/km |
| 7 % | 14.38 | 4:10/km |
| 8 % | 15.09 | 3:59/km |
| 9 % | 15.83 | 3:47/km |
| 10 % | 16.58 | 3:37/km |
How it works
Running uphill costs more energy per metre than running on the flat, and Minetti's 2002 model quantifies exactly how much as a function of grade. The calculator converts your incline into that extra energy cost, then finds the flat-ground speed that would demand the same effort.
At 1 percent incline the ratio is close to 1.055, meaning the effort matches running about 5.5 percent faster on flat ground, and the gap grows quickly at steeper inclines, which is why a 10 km/h treadmill run at 8 percent feels far harder than the number alone suggests.
The table below applies the same conversion across a full range of inclines for your entered speed, useful for planning a hill-simulation treadmill session against outdoor effort targets.
Frequently asked questions
How do I convert treadmill speed to outdoor pace?
Treadmill speed at 0 percent incline already matches outdoor pace directly: km/h converts to pace the same way in both cases. The conversion only matters once you add incline, since climbing costs extra energy that a flat pace figure alone doesn't capture.
What incline makes a treadmill feel like running outside?
A commonly cited rule of thumb is 1 to 2 percent incline to offset the lack of air resistance and belt assistance indoors, though this calculator's table lets you check the actual effort ratio at any incline rather than relying on that generic figure.
Why does a small incline change the pace so much?
Energy cost rises non-linearly with grade: each additional percent of incline adds more cost than the one before it, so going from 5 to 8 percent costs noticeably more than the equivalent jump from 0 to 3 percent. That's why steep hill workouts feel disproportionately hard for the incline shown.
Related tools
- Pace calculatorSolve for running pace, time or distance from the other two, free, with instant km/h and mph conversions and a full race-distance time table.
- Pace converterConvert running speed between km/h, mph, min/km and min/mi instantly, free, with a reference table spanning 6 to 22 km/h for quick lookup.
- Race time predictorPredict your 5K, 10K, half and marathon time from a recent race using the Riegel formula, free, the same model the Overload app uses.
- VDOT calculatorCalculate your Daniels VDOT, VMA and VO2max from a race result, free, with training pace zones the same way the Overload app computes them.
Overload computes grade-adjusted pace on outdoor runs
Overload applies the same Minetti-based model to your outdoor runs, converting hilly terrain into a fair flat-ground pace automatically. Free on iOS and Android.