How To Lose Weight By Running
If you are looking to running as a way to lose weight, you’re on the right track. But what most people overlook in their process is that it doesn’t matter how much you run, if you are still eating too many calories for your body to hold onto.
For example, if you jog or run lightly for 30 minutes a day, you will burn around 300 calories at least. Although if you continue to consume 2,000 calories each day, then you should only expect to lose approximately half a pound per week.
"The bottom line in achieving weight loss is that you need to burn more calories than you take in," explained ACE-certified personal trainer Sabrina Correia of My House Fitness.
In addition, if you add in other activities to your day besides running, such as riding your bike, dancing, lifting weights, then you will increase the speed at which you lose weight as well.
Should I Eat Before Or After Running?
Whenever you decide to eat, you need to make sure you’ve left “recovery” time before or after your meal.
We recommend that while planning your run in the day, you should wait at least 3-4 hours after eating a big meal. If you have only had a snack, you should be fine after 30 minutes of digesting, although 1-2 hours is most optimal before running. You don’t want to take your body away from digesting and then throwing it right into movement.
If you don’t run before eating, you might feel sick and weaker than normal. Especially if you plan on working out for more than an hour or two. Empty stomach? Not a good idea!
Even if you cannot force yourself to eat early in the morning before your run, try a nutritious drink before taking off. And afterwards when you can’t even consider stuffing your face, just be sure to replenish with water, and let your body relax for a few hours. Then you probably won’t feel hungry, and know that you’re feeling dehydration rather than actual hunger pains.
Long Distance Running > Sprinting Short Distances?
Running longer distances rather than covering shorter distances at a faster pace is what we’ve found to work best for weight loss via running.If you’re curious to learn more about running, check out our other blogs here.
