Jogging

xxTAMxx
xxTAMxx Posts: 573 Member
edited September 27 in Fitness and Exercise
In my daily training I have been jogging on a treadmill for approx 20 mins or until I reach 200 calories gone. I have been inreasing my speed each time and am now doing 3km in the 20 minutes with a heart rate of about 180 . The problem is I have been told that over exerting yourself by running too fast and over breathing - causes you to use more oxygen and instead of burning your fat stores you are actually burning your lean muscle. Question is...is it better to run at a slower pace for longer within the confines of your recommended heart rate or to keep the time you run the same and increase your pace?

Replies

  • Elzecat
    Elzecat Posts: 2,916 Member
    BUMP cause I would love to know the answer to this one..>I run slower off the treadmill than on it...but not sure how it all works...I am usually going for time or distance, not calories burnt...
  • jeff261159
    jeff261159 Posts: 385
    it is definately better to run slower for longer as long as your heart is working at least double the rate it is at rest. There is a table which correlates between age, weight, rate at rest and the optium rate for weight loss. My age is 51, my height is 5'10", my heart rate at rest is 62. It says my heart rate optium for weight loss if 135 - 140. Also to go from standstill to sprint does the heart no good at all, better to build up and get it pumping. Hope this helps.
  • xxTAMxx
    xxTAMxx Posts: 573 Member
    Thanks Jeff, it gets very confusing at times and I just want to get the most out of any training I am doing.:smile:
  • juliang
    juliang Posts: 2 Member
    The body does burn a higher percentage of calories from fat in the 'fat burning zone' or at lower intensities. There is a good article on this link. Hope it helps. http://exercise.about.com/cs/cardioworkouts/l/aa022601a.htm I first learned about the 'fat burning zone' from a trainer at 24 hour fitness.
  • xxTAMxx
    xxTAMxx Posts: 573 Member
    Thanks heaps
  • BerryH
    BerryH Posts: 4,698 Member
    It's rubbish, weight loss is just a matter of burning more calories than you take in every day, simple as that. You'll just burn calories quicker if you go faster, and that's all good, right? :smile:

    The main thing is to keep it at a pace you can sustain, not one that has you gasping for breath.
  • charliebird
    charliebird Posts: 168 Member
    I don't think there has been enough HR studies personally carried out. Especially for the "non-atheletes"

    In my experience and how my body works - If I exercise at a higher heart rate - the weight comes off much faster. However if I work out too hard for too long - I have another side effect that me sleep is affected and then I am not so rested and I end up over eating the next day.

    I have in the past done a 3 month program were I exercised in the "optimum" fat burning zone and found I lost about 4llbs only across that period and the workouts were sooooo boring. So there is no way I am repeating that.

    I would encourage you to interval train - as I really think that is the answer to improving fitness and weight loss.

    My issue with HR training zones is that they are based on a theoretical max HR of 220bpm - Age. So take me 220bpm -41 = 179BPM - so when I peaked at 194bpm the other evening - I should be dead! (I am in no way suggesting anyone should work out at that level - and I had a really crap nights sleep) However it just proves that everyone is different and that we don't know what our HR max is and therefore cannot, without thorough tests, know what our true training zones are.

    My biggest piece of advice is - Listen to your body. If you can sustain your heart rate and it feels comfortable then great. However at any point you feel outside of that comfort zone - slow your pace, give your heart a chance to recover and then push up the pace.

    Hope this helps x
  • xxTAMxx
    xxTAMxx Posts: 573 Member
    Thanks I actually spoke to a trainer at the gym last night and he pretty much said that if you can keep running even though your heart rate is out of the fat burn zone, then keep running and over time your fitness will improve and heart rate will reduce - it is all about pushing yourself to get better results each time. I am going to start looking at it from an improved fitness point of view rather than a weight loss point of view because in the long run they go hand in hand. With that said I knocked out 8.3 km's on the treadmill in just under an hour and if the calorie counter on the machine is correct I lost 580 cals.
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