Running (cont.)
What about running and losing weight?
To my knowledge, there are no studies to
show that runners lose more weight than individuals who do other types of
exercise. However, running certainly does burn lots of calories, and if you're
running regularly, you might decide not to eat as much figuring why do it if
you're putting all that energy into running. But even if you ran a marathon
every day, you wouldn't lose weight unless you consumed fewer calories than you
burned. The bottom line to losing weight is burning more calories than you
consume, no matter how much exercise you do.
What about running vs. walking for weight loss?
According to the laws of
physics, you should burn the same number of calories whether you walk or run the
same distance. However, there is recent research to show that running one mile
burns approximately 30% more calories than walking one mile, and it's true
whether you run outdoors or on a treadmill. The research is mixed, and so it's
hard to know for sure if you'll burn more calories running than walking. My take
on it is that it doesn't matter whether you walk or run during weight-loss
efforts because you'll lose weight as long as you reduce your calories enough to
burn more than you are consuming, no matter how much, or what type of exercise
you do. What is important is that you maintain some type of exercise once you
reach your goal weight, because it's generally accepted that exercise is the
single best predictor of keeping your weight off. Whether you walk or run won't
matter. The key is to do something.
What about running outdoors vs. a treadmill?
You'll get equally fit running on a
treadmill or outdoors. In fact, many distance-running athletes use the treadmill
to save their legs from the pounding of roadwork. But there is a slight
difference in energy expenditure (calories burned) between the two; outdoor
running burns slightly more calories than treadmill running at the same speed
due to lack of air resistance on the treadmill. Researchers studying this
phenomenon found that setting the treadmill at 1% elevation equals things out. I
advise all of my clients to set the treadmill at 1% so that treadmill walking or
running mimics outdoor exercise.
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Running: Related Topics