What Are You Running For?
Perfecting timing for New Years!!
In the quest for fat-loss, likely the number one exercise selection most people make is… RUNNING.
Granted, most people start out with a combination of jogging and walking, and eventually progress to running. And also granted… running WORKS for WEIGHT loss. Virtually anything, for a limited time, that creates a significant caloric deficit (when the body is burning more calories than it is taking in) will result in weight loss. In short, running works…
SORT OF.
What do I mean by “sort of”?
Well here’s the deal…
Any long-duration / low intensity exercise (walking, jogging, running, cycling, swimming, etc.) you do will burn calories. The calories you burn will be directly in proportion to your intensity (pace/heart rate) and duration. That excess calorie burn will result in a shift in the intake/output balance, and typically result in weight loss. The problem is… “weight loss” is in-discriminant. By this, I mean you are losing fat (good), AND also muscle (bad).
The longer you run, and the better you get at running (good)… but the FEWER and fewer calories you burn (BAD). As you get more experienced, you get more efficient. The body starts to adapt to running. These adaptations not only include a reduction in fat weight, but also a reduction in muscle weight. The loss of muscle is due to the body attempting to optimize itself for running. Very little strength (almost NO upper body strength) is required for distance running, and the excess weight/load/calorie requirements of the muscle are not “needed”, so your body makes changes, hormonally, physically, etc, to reduce muscle mass. And… to make things worse, your body’s primary fuel while running is… fat. So it has a tendency to hold onto fat reserves for running. Also… as you run longer distances, and with more frequency, your heart and lungs adapt, your body produces more capillaries to move more blood. More blood is good for your endurance, and even your general health… but makes your body more and more efficient using the calories you eat. You burn fewer and few calories per mile, and fewer and fewer calories at higher paces. This is GREAT if you’re looking to become a stronger, faster, more efficient runner… but if you’re still FAT, and your primary goal is FAT-LOSS… that efficiency is hurting your primary goal!
Many people who are “over-fat”, start a running program in order to lose the excess fat. After a year of running, their body has lost a small amount of fat, a large amount of muscle… they become a much better runner… but their fat loss goals STOP after the first few pounds. Congratulations… you’re now a very fit over-fat runner!
So what’s the alternative? How do you keep the body burning fat if fat-loss is the primary goal?
First, of course, you MUST strength train! Any form of long-duration cardio will crush your muscle mass. Integrating strength training in, 2-3 days per week, will force your body to not only burn MORE fat, but will force your body to maintain the muscle you currently have. You won’t build much muscle if you’re doing high volume cardio, but you CAN hold on to what you have by lifting… and lifting HEAVY. Will it make you run slower? Initially, likely yes… Sore legs don’t move very fast! But in the long run , you will adapt to the load, soreness will decrease, and your running will be stronger and faster. I have DOZENS of former and current "runner" clients who have PROVEN this. Every runner I’ve ever worked with has become FASTER through strength training.
CYCLE your cardio! By that I don’t mean ride a bike… I mean change up your cardio “mode”. Run for a few weeks, then swim for a few weeks, then cycle for a few weeks, etc… In this routine, your body will never get a chance to get “good at” any one mode. Your general fitness will sky-rocket, and your body fat will drop. Each switch away from one mode to the next will be like starting over! It’ll suck… But it’s that stress to your system that keeps you changing, keeps you dropping fat, and keeps you progressing.
Same goes for the strength training! Cycle your strength workouts! Never fall into a single strength routine of the same exercises week after week… the same adaptation… none… happens. My clients get a NEW routine every month. About the time their current workout gets “easier”… it gets switched!
So you have to decide… WHY ARE YOU RUNNING??? Are you running to become a better runner, or are you running to burn excess fat?
Come see Lisa and I here at BURN for a complete program with constant custom monitoring and adjustment…
Remember:
Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity… Don’t drive yourself crazy working out and seeing no results! Come see a pro to get on track!
Perfecting timing for New Years!!
In the quest for fat-loss, likely the number one exercise selection most people make is… RUNNING.
Granted, most people start out with a combination of jogging and walking, and eventually progress to running. And also granted… running WORKS for WEIGHT loss. Virtually anything, for a limited time, that creates a significant caloric deficit (when the body is burning more calories than it is taking in) will result in weight loss. In short, running works…
SORT OF.
What do I mean by “sort of”?
Well here’s the deal…
Any long-duration / low intensity exercise (walking, jogging, running, cycling, swimming, etc.) you do will burn calories. The calories you burn will be directly in proportion to your intensity (pace/heart rate) and duration. That excess calorie burn will result in a shift in the intake/output balance, and typically result in weight loss. The problem is… “weight loss” is in-discriminant. By this, I mean you are losing fat (good), AND also muscle (bad).
The longer you run, and the better you get at running (good)… but the FEWER and fewer calories you burn (BAD). As you get more experienced, you get more efficient. The body starts to adapt to running. These adaptations not only include a reduction in fat weight, but also a reduction in muscle weight. The loss of muscle is due to the body attempting to optimize itself for running. Very little strength (almost NO upper body strength) is required for distance running, and the excess weight/load/calorie requirements of the muscle are not “needed”, so your body makes changes, hormonally, physically, etc, to reduce muscle mass. And… to make things worse, your body’s primary fuel while running is… fat. So it has a tendency to hold onto fat reserves for running. Also… as you run longer distances, and with more frequency, your heart and lungs adapt, your body produces more capillaries to move more blood. More blood is good for your endurance, and even your general health… but makes your body more and more efficient using the calories you eat. You burn fewer and few calories per mile, and fewer and fewer calories at higher paces. This is GREAT if you’re looking to become a stronger, faster, more efficient runner… but if you’re still FAT, and your primary goal is FAT-LOSS… that efficiency is hurting your primary goal!
Many people who are “over-fat”, start a running program in order to lose the excess fat. After a year of running, their body has lost a small amount of fat, a large amount of muscle… they become a much better runner… but their fat loss goals STOP after the first few pounds. Congratulations… you’re now a very fit over-fat runner!
So what’s the alternative? How do you keep the body burning fat if fat-loss is the primary goal?
First, of course, you MUST strength train! Any form of long-duration cardio will crush your muscle mass. Integrating strength training in, 2-3 days per week, will force your body to not only burn MORE fat, but will force your body to maintain the muscle you currently have. You won’t build much muscle if you’re doing high volume cardio, but you CAN hold on to what you have by lifting… and lifting HEAVY. Will it make you run slower? Initially, likely yes… Sore legs don’t move very fast! But in the long run , you will adapt to the load, soreness will decrease, and your running will be stronger and faster. I have DOZENS of former and current "runner" clients who have PROVEN this. Every runner I’ve ever worked with has become FASTER through strength training.
CYCLE your cardio! By that I don’t mean ride a bike… I mean change up your cardio “mode”. Run for a few weeks, then swim for a few weeks, then cycle for a few weeks, etc… In this routine, your body will never get a chance to get “good at” any one mode. Your general fitness will sky-rocket, and your body fat will drop. Each switch away from one mode to the next will be like starting over! It’ll suck… But it’s that stress to your system that keeps you changing, keeps you dropping fat, and keeps you progressing.
Same goes for the strength training! Cycle your strength workouts! Never fall into a single strength routine of the same exercises week after week… the same adaptation… none… happens. My clients get a NEW routine every month. About the time their current workout gets “easier”… it gets switched!
So you have to decide… WHY ARE YOU RUNNING??? Are you running to become a better runner, or are you running to burn excess fat?
Come see Lisa and I here at BURN for a complete program with constant custom monitoring and adjustment…
Remember:
Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity… Don’t drive yourself crazy working out and seeing no results! Come see a pro to get on track!