Exercises and Workouts – Running Is Not Always Ideal For Fat Loss

It is true; exercise is good for you. Physical activity will lower your blood sugar and is beneficial to your heart. But what do you think is the best way to lose body fat? Is it to go for a long run? Many people hold this notion. Moreover, it is quite understandable considering many realize to lose weight; you have to burn more calories. What better way to burn calories than to go for a run?

However, there are some factors you may be overlooking that could be preventing you from seeing the results you are hoping for. Let us look at what these are so you can see why it may be time for you to rethink the benefits of a long run…

1. Running and Muscle Mass Loss. The first point to note is this: running is not especially great at preserving lean muscle mass tissue. Because there is no resistance at play, this is going to mean your body sees no reason to maintain lean muscle and therefore, you are going to burn a combination of fat and muscle.

While if your primary goal is to become lighter and thinner, this may seem like a good thing. However, think again. The problem here is when you lose lean muscle mass tissue, your resting metabolic rate will slow down and lead to difficulties sustaining any fat loss in the future.

The slower your metabolic rate is, the less food you can eat on a daily basis and maintain or lose weight. If you like to eat, this is an unworkable situation.

2. Running and the Metabolic Rate. Another problem with running is it does not do much to boost your resting metabolic rate. With high-intensity interval training or weight lifting, for instance, your metabolism will be higher for hours after the completion of your workout. You will find fat continues to burn long after your workout is finished.

With running, however, when you stop running, you stop burning calories. Then you are back to square one. You will only continue to lose fat if you keep up the running.

3. Running And Food Consumption. Last but not least, running tends to make people hungry. It is not abnormal to find people feasting on bagels, pasta, or other carb-dense foods after a run because they cannot control themselves and feel like they have “earned” it. If you do that you are going to be facing weight gain, not weight loss.

You do not want to devote a lot of your time to running and then wipe out all the benefits it gave you. Keep these tips in mind and rethink the long run. There are far better ways to burn fat.