There’s no denying that cardio can be challenging at times. Minutes spent running on a treadmill can feel like hours, and I always find myself looking at the clock counting down the seconds until I can rest. The one thing that keeps me motivated to get in a good workout is an even better playlist, so naturally, when TikTok creator Allie Bennett (@benntheredonethat) — who’s known as the “CEO of the treadmill strut” — started popularizing her music-centered treadmill workouts, I was intrigued.
But what ultimately convinced me to try it was Bennett’s Taylor Swift treadmill strut workouts. Over the years, she’s created not just one or two TS treadmill struts, but several: a Swift workout with pre-2022 hits, a Swift treadmill strut dedicated to nearly every album, including the “Midnights” album and her latest “The Tortured Poets Department” album, a treadmill strut made up only of Taylor Swift’s vault tracks, a Harry Styles and Taylor Swift mash-up strut — the list goes on.
In case you missed the TikTok trend, which has been circulating since early 2022, treadmill struts are essentially treadmill workouts where you time your walking and/or running to music from a specific artist. As a result, it feels less like a workout and more like you’re striding down the street (à la a hot girl walk) during your own private concert/fashion show. It’s all about feeling yourself, having a good time, and enjoying music you love.
Most treadmill strut workouts, like those created by Bennett, work with a specific playlist and set of instructions. For example, in Bennett’s Swift treadmill strut below, you should find your natural walking speed to the beat of the first song, then increase the treadmill speed by .1 for each subsequent song.
Whether you’re a tried-and-true Swiftie, reliving your Eras tour experience (or heading to an upcoming concert), or just looking for workout motivation, cue up one of these three Swift treadmill strut workouts for your next cardio session, and you’re sure to enjoy every second.
Taylor Swift Greatest Hits Treadmill Strut Workout
You’ll want to find your pace to the beat of “The Man” and then add 0.1 mph each time the song changes. It’s important to remember not to put the playlist on shuffle because the songs build on one another as the workout increases intensity. You can customize the speeds in the workout to fit your needs and fitness level, but here are the instructions Bennett provided on TikTok:
- Walk to “The Man” at 3.4 mph.
- Walk to “How You Get the Girl” at 3.5 mph.
- Walk to “Message in a Bottle” at 3.6 mph.
- Walk to “Better Than Revenge” at 3.7 mph.
- Walk to “New Romantics” at 3.8 mph.
- Walk to “You Belong With Me” at 3.9 mph.
- Walk to “Look What You Made Me Do” at 4.0 mph.
- Continue fast walking, or run, to “Shake It Off” at 7.0 mph.
- Continue fast walking, or run, to “. . . Ready For It?” at 7.0 mph.
- Strut to “Style” at 3.0 mph to cool down.
Looks easy enough, right? I was doing well until I got to the running portion, which really pushed me. I don’t consider myself a runner by any means, so I set the treadmill to 6.2 mph and powered through, but I definitely broke a sweat in the process. Ending the workout with “Style” made me feel like a model strutting on the runway, and when the workout was over, I not only felt accomplished but also energized and ready to tackle the rest of my day.
The great thing about this workout is that it’s incredibly customizable. (I even contemplated playing with the elevation levels on the treadmill, and that’s something I’ll definitely try next time.) Plus, it’s only 36 minutes, so you can throw it into your workout after strength training, or do the treadmill workout alone for a quick cardio session.
You can find Bennett’s Spotify playlist for the workout below.
Taylor Swift “Midnights” Treadmill Strut Workout
First, find your pace to the beat of “Karma,” then add 0.1 mph for each song change — and remember not to shuffle the playlist! Here’s Bennett’s example from TikTok, though she notes that you may need to adjust your speed accordingly, depending on your treadmill or height, for example.
- Walk to “Karma” at 2.8 mph.
- Walk to “Anti-Hero” at 2.9 mph.
- Walk to “Lavender Haze” at 3.0 mph.
- Walk to “Paris” at 3.1 mph.
- Walk to “Question…?” at 3.2 mph.
- Walk to “Mastermind” at 3.3 mph.
- Continue fast walking, or run, to “The Great War” at 7.0 mph.
- Continue fast walking, or run, to “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve” at 7.0 mph.
- Strut to “Vigilante Sh*t” at 3.0 mph to cool down.
Here’s Bennett’s “Midnights” treadmill strut playlist, ready to go.
Taylor Swift “The Tortured Poets Department” Treadmill Strut Workout
This strut is a full hour long. To start, find your pace to the beat of “Guilty as Sin?” then add 0.1 mph for each song change. Again, we included Bennett’s speeds per TikTok, but feel free to adjust to your comfort level.
- Walk to “Guilty as Sin?” at 3.1 mph.
- Walk to “Fortnight” at 3.2 mph.
- Walk to “My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys” at 3.3 mph.
- Walk to “thanK you aIMee” at 3.4 mph.
- Walk to “The Tortured Poets Department” at 3.5 mph.
- Walk to “I Hate It Here” at 3.6 mph.
- Walk to “imgonnagetyouback” at 3.7 mph.
- Walk to “I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)” at 3.8 mph.
- Walk to “Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?” at 3.9 mph.
- Walk to “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart” at 4.0 mph.
- Walk to “So Long, London” at 4.1 mph.
- Continue fast walking, or run, to “Florida!!!”.
- Continue fast walking, or run to “The Albatross”.
- Continue fast walking, or run, to “Down Bad”.
- Slow it down to a walk and strut to “But Daddy I Love Him” as a cool down.
And here’s Bennett’s Spotify playlist, for you to take on the go.
— Additional reporting by Lauren Mazzo and Mirel Zaman
Toria Clarke is a freelance writer and POPSUGAR contributor.
Lauren Mazzo was the senior fitness editor at PS. She is a certified personal trainer and fitness nutrition specialist through the American Council on Exercise. Prior to joining PS, she worked for six years as a writer and editor for Shape Magazine covering health, fitness, nutrition, mental health, sex and relationships, beauty, and astrology.
Mirel Zaman is the health and fitness director at PS. She has 15 years of experience working in the health and wellness space, writing and editing articles about fitness, general health, mental health, relationships and sex, food and nutrition, astrology, spirituality, family and parenting, culture, and news.