Today, running is one of the most popular ways to combat excess weight. It really helps burn off excess fat, tightens the skin and at the same time promotes health. But in reality, not everyone gets the results they want. And the point here is not that running is ineffective, but that a person does not know how to run correctly to lose weight. Let's try to figure it out.
The benefits of running for weight loss and more
Running to burn fat is a simple and effective way to get rid of excess weight. It’s not for nothing that this sport has gained immense popularity all over the world. He has a numberbenefits, including the following:
- Running is accessible, it does not require financial investment or special equipment, so anyone can do it.
- This is a safe sport, and if you follow the basic rules, it will only bring benefits.
- Regular exercise really helps you lose weight, as it provides a powerful cardio workout. On average, an hour of running burns 500-700 kcal.
- Running gives a person comprehensive benefits, and this concerns not only the figure, but also health. It helps fight stress, strengthens the nervous system, trains the heart and blood vessels, improving their functioning.
- Jogging normalizes the functioning of the digestive system and speeds up metabolism.
- Running perfectly strengthens muscles and keeps them toned.
- This type of activity stimulates the removal of harmful waste, toxins, and excess fluid from the body.
Even though running will help everyone lose weight, you need to take it into accountcontraindications, and they are as follows:
- serious disturbances in the functioning of the heart and blood vessels (heart defects, heart failure, blood pressure problems);
- phlebeurysm;
- bronchial asthma;
- endocrine system disorders;
- serious vision problems;
- inflammatory processes in the body;
- infectious diseases;
- problems of the musculoskeletal system.
Very overweight people should consult a specialist before starting jogging, as they may cause harm to themselves. In their case, brisk walking or jogging may be more appropriate.
To lose weight through running, it is recommended to study different options and choose the best one. It is also very important to know how to run correctly to burn fat, to study all the rules and recommendations.
Why running is good for weight loss
So, does running help you lose weight? Let's figure it out.
Problems with excess weight are usually typical for people leading a sedentary lifestyle. Moreover, now a good half of the population has personal vehicles. Thanks to cars, we stop not only running, but actually walking. As a result, the body accumulates fat, and the muscles atrophy due to uselessness.
To avoid obesity and unpleasant consequences for your appearance and health, you need to pull yourself together and go for a run. This is the simplest type of physical activity that is available to everyone. And let it be just a brisk walk at first. As soon as your body adapts, start running.
Let's take a closer look at how running burns fat?
Running makes your heart pump faster, which is why it is classified as cardio. With an accelerated heart rate, more blood passes through the heart per unit of time than in a calm state. The lungs also begin to work harder, and your blood is actively enriched with oxygen. Oxygen saturation occurs in all cells of the body, from the tips of the toes to the brain. Metabolic processes begin to proceed faster.
Running requires energy. To ensure its constant influx, the body uses up its internal reserves. First, the glycogen stored in the liver is consumed, then the fatty deposits of our body are used. Therefore, running and excess weight are incompatible concepts. If you move actively and burn more calories than you consume from food, your excess weight will disappear. Running and losing weight are interconnected things.
- For jogging (7-9 kilometers per hour), fat burning begins after 20-30 minutes of continuous running.
- With interval training, the process of fat breakdown begins much earlier; you do not need to run for an hour to start fat catabolism. But interval running is quite a heavy load and this type of cardio is not suitable for everyone.
When talking about whether running helps you lose weight, it is important to clarify its type and duration. If we mean classic jogging at an easy pace, the duration of the workout should be at least thirty minutes.
How to Run to Burn Fat: Basic Rules
We already know that the answer to the question of whether running helps you lose weight will be positive. However, there are a number of nuances that need to be taken into account for jogging to really produce results. Let's take a closer look at them.
Run duration
Please note that the duration of your run will depend on the intensity of your workout. You also need to take into account the level of physical fitness and choose the load that will be optimal. It is recommended to start with not too long runs and gradually increase their duration, as well as the running distance.
Running is recommendedat least 40 minutes, because only after this time has passed does the body begin to consume not calories, but directly the hated fats. Many experts recommend interval running - it increases endurance and is great for weight loss.
Preparing and finishing your workout
Proper running to burn fat should not start and end just like that. Certain rules must be followed.Before training, consider the following:
- It is recommended to eat at least two hours before training in order to burn fat;
- It is useful to take a contrast shower beforehand, which will help tone the muscles and blood vessels, so it will be easier for the body to bear the load;
- Before the main part of the lesson, do a short warm-up - it will help prevent injuries and muscle pain, as the body will be ready for stress.
Between workouts you need to control your diet. Naturally, it is not recommended to eat sweets, fatty foods and other foods that are enemies of your figure. Limit salt intake, as it tends to retain fluid in the body, and this increases body volume. It's also important to drink enough water, and you can do this during your workout too.
After a run, the following recommendations will be useful:
- Stop gradually, not abruptly. Transition from running to walking and gradually slow down. This will help restore breathing and heart rate, and force the body to burn even more calories.
- After your run, take a warm shower, which will help calm your muscles and nervous system.
- Avoid hypothermia. During running, the body warms up, and a light breeze or draft can negatively affect your health.
Selecting the intensity of the workout
An important point in how to run to burn fat is the intensity of running, which determines the speed of weight loss and the final results. It is important to remember that it is important not only to lose weight, but also not to harm your health.
The more intense the workout, the faster energy is consumed. Calm and relaxed running is safe for your health, but it is more suitable for keeping fit rather than for losing weight. And overly intense training can lead to exhaustion of the body, and as a result, it can begin to lose not only fat, but also muscle, and the cardiovascular system can suffer from excessive stress.
That's whyloads must be increased gradually and consistently.If you are new to running, start with minimal ones and increase them over time. You can determine the intensity of your workout yourself by monitoring your heart rate. Typically, a good fat burning effect gives a pulse of more than 130 beats per minute. However, if this figure exceeds 150, then the load may be too intense. At the correct intensity, the heart rate should return to its usual levels no more than half an hour after the end of the run.
Clothes and shoes
Proper equipment also plays a significant role in running performance. Shoes and running suits for weight loss should be as comfortable as possible and not restrict movement.
Clothing should be chosen from natural, breathable materials.Canuse a special suit for weight loss, providing concentration on some problem area. For example, you can buy breeches and shorts that speed up the weight loss process.
You should choose shoes that are comfortable, lightweight, and fit perfectly. It will help reduce stress on the joints and minimize the risk of injury.
Often, those who want to reduce abdominal volume are recommended to usebelt for running and weight loss or cling film. In principle, this is useful, but do not expect a miracle to happen and you will lose weight in three workouts. These items help speed up the process of removing excess fluid, which also has a beneficial effect on the weight loss process. There are also belts with a massage effect.
Regularity of training
How often and for how long should you run to burn fat? Regularity is the most important key to success. The best option is to run 3-5 times a week. To speed up the achievement of results, you can alternate running with other types of activity, for example, strength training or swimming. It is recommended that men combine running for weight loss with weight training.
Don't expect quick results. Explicitchanges for the better will be noticeable after 6-8 weeksregular workouts.
Knowing how to run correctly to lose weight, you can improve your appearance without harming your health. Additionally, it is recommended to adhere to the following recommendations:
- While running, be sure tocontrol your physical condition.Pain and dizziness are not acceptable. Breathing should remain even.
- You can run both on a treadmill and in open areas.The first option is good because it is available in any weather. The second allows you to enjoy the beauty of nature and breathe fresh air, but due to weather conditions it will not always be available. It is recommended to run not on asphalt, but on the ground - this has a beneficial effect on the level of endurance and will allow you to correctly distribute the load.
- Make sure your running technique is correct.
- Posturewhile runningshould be smooth.Breathe evenly. Changes of pace should be smooth.
If you want to burn fat in a specific area through running,You can adhere to the following technical recommendations:
- To lose weight in your legs, it is recommended to use a technique with high hip lifts, include running with an additional step in your training, and alternate running with jumping (with or without a jump rope).
- To lose weight in your stomach, additionally use stress on your abdominal muscles and always control their tone.
If you follow all the rules and there are no contraindications, you can safely start running, and you will soon notice clear changes for the better. Also remember about proper nutrition and other types of exercise - in combination you will get an effective program that will help you achieve an ideal figure. As a bonus, running will help you improve your health and forget about stress and depression.
How to Build Strength, Endurance, and Burn Fat with Running
People often underestimate running or view it one-sidedly. Like, if you want to lose weight, go run. If you want to train your heart, run too. Some people see it as an opportunity to set a personal record and prove to themselves that you can run 10 km without stopping. For some, running is a way to relax the brain after an intellectually or nervously stressful day at work. It also happens the other way around - a great exercise in the morning to gain strength, energy and complete the planned work plan in record time.
A universal but insidious discipline
On the one hand, everything is so. On the other hand, running power is in many cases overestimated or not taken into account at all.
Thus, running increases the effectiveness of strength training - it increases working weights and the intensity of training. It is an important aid in getting rid of excess fat. This is if everything is done correctly, which we will discuss below. There are also opposite cases.
For example, a person decided to lose weight - it doesn’t matter whether it’s a guy or a girl - and let’s run furiously. After all, he had heard out of the corner of his ear that running allows you to lose excess weight. The comrade sheds seven sweats, red as a lobster, his heart jumps out of his chest, his legs give way, there is not enough air, but he continues to move his legs that have become weak - he needs to run these 3-4 km.
I ran for a month three times a week, suffered a lot, got on the scales, but there was no result. The reflection in the mirror hasn't changed much either. This is the best case scenario. At worst, he began to look bad, his health was also not great, his knees hurt, he became emaciated (there are fewer muscles, the fat has not gone anywhere), and the pitiful 2-3 kg lost out of a hundredweight of total body weight are not at all pleasing.
The fact is that you need to run correctly and build the training process wisely, while not forgetting about nutrition and a number of other factors. Let's talk about everything in more detail.
Suitable for everyone
The running training system, which I will discuss below, is universal. It is suitable for both a completely untrained, overweight person who has decided to get his body in order, and an advanced athlete who has been training with weights for years, but ignores running for various reasons.
For example, your knees hurt, you have shortness of breath, your muscles "burn" (do not burn). I can safely classify myself as the latter, and I have previously approached the issue of running more than once, but only now have I found truly effective methods of using it.
About ten years ago I conducted an experiment - I wanted to run 10 km at a time. I achieved results, but it was difficult and took more than three months. The hope of eating tasty treats while losing fat through long running did not materialize. And I ran 10 km with difficulty, which is called "I can’t". Then I more or less accustomed myself to running (I used to hate it at all), but these are flowers compared to the results of a reasonable approach to training.
Where to begin
There is no need for any preparation or lengthy preparations. We ate normally, an hour and a half later we put on old sneakers, walked to the nearest stadium with rubber running tracks, set the timer on the watch or smartphone toone hourand ran at an easy pace. Only a few points are important:
- Don't run on asphalt.A stadium with a rubber surface is ok, a treadmill in the gym is ok, dirt with grass is ok. Asphalt is not ok, but an excessive load on joints and ligaments. High-quality sneakers, selected individually (how to do this is written here), will partially solve the problem of hard surfaces, but this is not a panacea and not everyone has such an opportunity. But you can run on the surfaces described above in any, even the most anonymous Chinese sneakers (be prepared for calluses from such shoes).
- Work within your aerobic threshold.I described the theory in detail inthis article(section "Aerobic training"), I will not repeat myself, but I will briefly summarize. If you have a heart rate monitor (any kind - optical, chest-mounted) - then work within the heart rate range of 120–150 beats/min. The main thing is not to choke - there must be enough oxygen. Without a heart rate monitor, use your breathing as a guide. As soon as you start to choke, it becomes difficult - go to a quick walk until your breathing is restored, then run again lightly. And you work like this for an hour. Even if you walk most of the time.
- After 60 minutes, note how much distance you covered during this time. Next time, try to run and walk more.Let it be 100 meters, 200, but more. If you do everything correctly, you won’t have to strain yourself. The body itself adapts to any reasonable load with a reserve. In this case, we focus on breathing and heart rate, do not overload the body, and it will respond by adapting with compensation. I rested for a day, came back to the stadium, ran/walked for an hour - looked at my smartphone (if it can count steps), activity tracker or counted laps, and you see, you covered more distance, but at the same time you didn’t suffer or get out of breath while running. I speak from my own experience.
Working according to this system, in 2–3 months an untrained person will learn to run for an hour without a break and at a good pace, without being out of breath or exhausted. General well-being will improve, endurance will increase, and weight will decrease, provided that the citizen does not start eating more, compensating for the increased energy consumption.
Butthe devil is in the details. Yes - this is a working system that I tested on myself personally. You can take it and use it right now without going into details.
If you want to get the most effective result, be it fat burning, improving strength results in the gym, or all together, then read the next part of this series of articles, in which I will talk about how to run without knee pain, why you should run strictly60 minutes, plus how to burn fat and maintain muscle.
This is real - I checked it on myself. People often underestimate running or view it one-sidedly. Like, if you want to lose weight, go run. If you want to train your heart, run too. Some people see it as an opportunity to set a personal record and prove to themselves that you can run 10 km without stopping. For some, running is a way to relax the brain after being mentally or nervously.
Running for weight loss: how to burn more calories?
Running is one of the most effective and fastest ways to train for weight loss. An increased heart rate when running contributes to the consumption of large amounts of oxygen, increasing energy expenditure, which leads to fat burning. For quick and desired results, it is important to get the right load when running, train at the right time and in the right mode.
How to properly run to lose weight
One of the important factors in the influence of running on weight loss is the high consumption of oxygen - the main fat burner. It’s not for nothing that running is called aerobic exercise, since it is performed with oxygen available.
An important condition for training aimed at losing weight is a well-ventilated room, or fresh street air, and proper breathing while running.
It is important!Correct breathing when running should be accompanied by a quick and sharp inhalation, and exhalation should be, on the contrary, gradual and smooth. You need to inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth.
Another important factor for losing weight is your heart rate zone.Heart rate plays a crucial role in weight loss.
- Lower heart rate threshold, at which fat burning is maintained, is 120 beats per minute.
- Upper threshold, which preserves the burning of fat, not muscle, and the heart muscle does not receive excessive stress, is 160 beats per minute.
These are averages. But for everyone, you can calculate an individual heart rate zone, depending on age.
We subtract your age from the maximum heart rate of 220 beats per minute. Let's take 30 years of age as an example.
- 220 - 30 = 190 beats per minute - we get our maximum heart rate.
- We multiply our maximum by 0. 6 to calculate 60% of our own maximum.
190 * 0. 6 = 114 beats per minute - the lower limit of the pulse. We calculate the upper limit of the heart rate, 80% of the maximum.
190*0. 8=152 beats per minute.
Therefore, for the age of thirty, the permissible heart rate zone is 114 – 152 beats per minute.
How many calories are burned when running?
In an hour of running, on average, you can lose up to 700-800 kcal. Indicators depend on the degree of load, age, weight and physical fitness.
How much should you run to lose weight?
The duration of the workout also plays an important role.To achieve your goals, you should not exceed 60 minutes of running.Training for more than an hour will not only overwork the body as a whole, which, on the contrary, will slow down weight loss, but also begin to burn muscle fibers.
But alsoLess than 20 minutes makes no sense to train at all.
To run effectively, it is important to take less rest without lowering your heart rate, but it is not necessary to run at the same pace. Interval jogging is also suitable for fat burning, in which you spend more time running and a little less time walking.
You can run both outside and on a treadmill in the gym. Special simulators are adapted to set the angle of inclination - to simulate climbing uphill. This method is perfect for interval training; instead of resting while walking, climb uphill. By increasing the load, you can burn more calories, and also put more stress on your buttocks and hamstrings.
When is the best time to run for weight loss?
For each person, depending on the rhythm of life, the best time for training will be different.
Research has shown that for most people, effective training takes place in the afternoon, especially in the evening.
One of the popular ways to lose weight is running on an empty stomach in the morning. After sleep, glycogen stores are depleted, so the body uses its own fats to obtain energy. Such a workout should not be long, 30 minutes is enough, otherwise, in addition to fat, there is a risk of losing muscle mass.
There can be two such half-hour workouts a day - in the morning and in the evening.
3-4 workouts per week are enough.Rest from aerobic exercise is no less important than from strength training. The body needs time to recuperate; without this, further fat burning process will be impossible.
It doesn’t matter what time of day you exercise, if your body is rested after the night and full of energy, then a morning run will bring no less benefits than an evening run. It is important to feel your own body here.
Running program for weight loss in tables
The training scheme is designed for several levels of difficulty, both for running outdoors and on a treadmill. It may take 2 to 4 weeks of training to adapt to the program. If running becomes easier, move on to an advanced level.
Outdoor running for beginners
interval time
| Run | 2 minutes |
| Fast walk | 2 minutes |
The first workouts are designed for 30-40 minutes. Every week you need to increase the duration of the session and the duration of the run.
Outdoor running for those who are fit
interval time
| Run | 5 minutes |
| Walking | 2 minutes |
Training should be40 to 60 minutes maximum.
Training in the gym on a treadmill for beginners
interval time
| Run | 2 minutes |
| Walking at an incline | 2 minutes |
Treadmill running for advanced
interval time
| Run | 5-10 minutes |
| Walking at an incline | 2-3 minutes |
Don't start running right away on cold muscles. After exercise, it is advisable to stretch the muscles.
If necessary, the load can be increased by increasing the speed and reducing the rest time. Thus, you can switch from interval training to continuous jogging for an hour.
Conclusion
Indeed, running is a quick and easy way to lose weight. An important condition for training is proper breathing, pulse, load-rest ratio. Remember, to lose weight it is important not just to run, your calorie expenditure must exceed your calorie intake. Accordingly, it is necessary to monitor your diet, do not overeat, and limit the intake of simple carbohydrates.