Hi there, and welcome back to the Mohsin Salya blog
A lot of people decide to start jogging, in the hope of shifting a few extra pounds. But have you ever stepped on the scales and wondered whether running is actually working for you? Can running help you lose weight? To find out, just keep reading.
How it works
There’s no denying that running is really good for you, as it allows you to reap a lot of health benefits. It’s a common known fact that running improves your heart health, decreasing the likelihood of cardiovascular disease. Even better, a recent study showed that long-distance running can help you improve your cognitive health, enhancing everything from your multi-tasking to attentional switching capabilities.
And yes, running burns calories, so of course it can help you lose weight. According to Runner’s World, it’s actually one of the most effective weight-loss techniques there is. This is because high-intensity exercising such as jogging stimulates an “afterburn” in your body, so you keep burning the calories even when you rest. It’s also time-efficient, convenient and gives you a high, so you’re more likely to enjoy running over other weight-loss methods, making you want to do it again and again.
Doing it wrong?
So you’re running regularly, but not losing weight – why? An article on Pop Sugar basically explains that in these circumstances, you’re doing it wrong somehow. This could be for a multitude of reasons – from eating too much after you run, to not adopting realistic expectations.
Food management is important. Yes, you burn calories when you run but this can make you feel really hungry, as your body will want to replace these calories. But if you eat anything which has more than 150 calories for your after-run snack, you could cancel out any progress you made before. You also may not be running enough to see real results. Experts say that you need to burn 500 calories a day, to lose one pound a week, so just doing a few 20 minute runs every week isn’t going to cut it.
It’s also good idea to understand what you can reasonably expect from your body. If you’re a 150 pound woman, for example, you’ll need to run for 45 minutes, at a pace of 10-minutes-per-mile, to lose 495 calories. Also, it’s worth bearing in mind that your muscles will adapt when you run the same circuit regularly, so it’s good to mix it up once in a while. Running also tones up muscles, as well as burning calories, so it’s good for getting more body definition too.
Plan, plan, plan
Yes, running can help you along the path to a slimmer you, but it needs to be a combination of efforts. Like anything else, running requires an investment of time and effort. Planning is also required, for both your runs and your diet, so you can get the maximum weight-loss advantages.
Until the next time,
Mohsin Salya 