Does running actually work ?

I turned to running last spring and lost around 30 lbs due to it and felt myself feeling better. Then during the summer some personal problems happened and I quit, which was the dumbest thing ever but we all make mistakes and obviously there was a good reason because I am doing the learn to run program I used last year and now my brother is running with me. I really love it.... I wouldn't mind having some running buddies on here that I can encourage and also to help critique and encourage me to keep moving forward.... Thanks :-)

Running ABSOLUTELY works! I lost 83lbs running(55lbs of it in 7 months). What started out as an activity has changed my life. I was surprised (& happy) to see that running helped change my body to be lean muscle, instead of getting bulky. Make sure you still eat within your calories and you WILL see results (and it makes you feel great too!)

From what previous trainers told me:
Too much cardio will burn muscle.
Limit to 20 minutes of running.
Once it burns your fat, if you do too much cardio, and no strength training it will burn your muscle.
More muscle burns fat.
Therefore, strength training is ultimately important.
Regular combination of both will assist in appropriate weight loss.
Such as warm up, strength training, then cool down.
Even up to 40 minutes of cardio per day with strength training, is good.
When I was an athlete, we ran for warm up only.
I remember the long distance runners had a hard time putting on muscle and weight, so they burned a lot of
fat, and were forced to do strength building ,but were not as strong as the short distance 100 m runners, who
did more strength training than running.
If that makes sense, when you think of body physique.

Yes!
It's telling that body builders can get ripped and shredded while running only 20 minutes a workout. The weight lifting is a huge fat burner. But a interval style 20 minutes of running can burn a lot also. I head just to be careful with longer running because the body begins tapping into muscle mass for energy at that point.

Any type of cardio works



here is what ive learned

females no less than 1200 cals a day
males no less than 1800 cals a day

why?

if you eat less your body goes into starvation mode which causes it to store which causes weight gain

3500 burned cals = loss on 1lb of fat
3500 cals = 1lb of fat put on

low carb is key my dietitian says 150 or less per day is a pretty good amount

Don't call it a diet just be wise on what you put into your body and treat yourself when you meet your goals

lean meats, red meat and taters 3-4 times in a 2 week period, whole grains keep you fuller longer, heavier meals in the morning, sodium no more than 2400mg a day, fresh fruit and veggies, don't drink you calories, 8+ glasses of water a day, stay away from junk food/fast food/processed food, treat it when you meet your goals, don't eat the samethings daily or do the same workouts or your body will plateau

you can do it! promise!

trust me ive gained 195lbs when I quit smoking 12yrs ago at high school grad i was 135lbs with the quitting smoking I got up to 330lbs replacing food with the smoking habit
March 09 i got off my butt and did something about it
19 months dropped 156lbs
buying/selling houses came gained some back
this year is MY year to lose the rest

we got this!

I am at an interesting place right now. I love running/jogging. It is easiest for me to have motivation to do and its something I want to continue doing. It burns great calories. And I know for some they lose weight. But I was thinking this same thing today. Previously in my history of weight loss efforts Ive done one program and stuck to it and even if I dont do it every day within a couple mths Ive seen results. I have been running for about 4/5 mths now and have made good changes in my diet etc but I havent lost one lb or any inches. Are my legs stronger, probably. But thats just me. As you can see from above it works for some.

Running burns calories. Calorie deficits are what result in weight loss.

However, strength training helps you retain muscle mass whilst losing fat, so your metabolism doesn't slow down as much

I lost 40lbs with running and diet! I've just started adding in strength training to access different muscle groups!

It does but you need to change up your exercise routines to actually lose weight cause if you do the same thing everyday your body is going to stay that way at least that is what I am told and heard

As long as you don't use it as license to eat, then you can lose weight. Then again, I managed to gain weight while running 50+ miles per week. It is just math, burn more than you eat and you will drop pounds.

Totally agree - I lost my weight from running - but I had to watch the diet b/c the extra activity can make you *really* hungry. Just try to eat clean and you should be ok! :flowerforyou:

From what previous trainers told me:
Too much cardio will burn muscle.
Limit to 20 minutes of running.
Once it burns your fat, if you do too much cardio, and no strength training it will burn your muscle.
More muscle burns fat.
Therefore, strength training is ultimately important.
Regular combination of both will assist in appropriate weight loss.
Such as warm up, strength training, then cool down.
Even up to 40 minutes of cardio per day with strength training, is good.
When I was an athlete, we ran for warm up only.
I remember the long distance runners had a hard time putting on muscle and weight, so they burned a lot of
fat, and were forced to do strength building ,but were not as strong as the short distance 100 m runners, who
did more strength training than running.
If that makes sense, when you think of body physique.

I was coming in here to say something of the sort.
I'm also going to add, that running is an endurance exercise. That means the more you do it the better your muscles get at it. That means they don't have to work as hard and you burn less calories. You then have to work harder to burn the same amount of calories.
Please add some form of strength training into your routine.