Running the Fast Track to Fat
We’ve all seen them. Men and women spending countless hours running mindlessly o
n the treadmill like a hamster on a wheel or hitting the streets for mile after mile of pounding the pavement. All those people running their hearts out hour after hour, day after day, year after year, because they’re convinced it’s the key to that strong, lean, toned body they so desperately covet. Those people who’s bodies never really change over the years, or worse yet, who get fatter and/or softer. I’m on a mission to save them. Why? Because I was one of them.
I was the cliché ‘got-fat-after-baby’ mom who decided several years ago to lose weight. I just wanted to feel comfortable living in my own skin again. So, what does one do when they want to lose weight? Why, stop eating so much and start running, of course! And if running a little is good, then running more is better, right? I was putting in a ridiculous amount of miles every week. Initially, it worked wonders. I dropped about 40lbs and dropped it fast. Yay! Right? WRONG. After awhile, the scale stopped moving and I still had a thick, fat stomach--even at a tiny 107lbs.
All that work and sacrifice and I still wasn’t happy in my skin! This is where most people would have given up entirely, or decided it was “good enough”, assumed they were just cursed with crummy genetics and kept doing what they were doing, because running IS the answer after all, right? Wrong. And thankfully for me, I’m not most people. I set out on a mission to change the things I still didn’t like and in the process, I learned why running/endurance training made me flabby.
Here’s the s
imple answer: Running or basically any endurance event, will eventually put your body in fat storage mode.
Now don‘t get me wrong, running is a phenomenal cardiovascular activity and can play an important role in a weight loss program. But under the right circumstances. When you begin a running program for the first time you will burn an incredible amount of calories and it will help dramatically with weight loss because it’s not something your body is good at, yet. Our bodies are incredibly adaptive machines and quickly become very efficient at doing things we ask of them on a regular basis. So, if you’re going out day after day and doing the same hour of running, along the same route and basically the same pace your body learns how to adjust to compensate for the excess expenditure and eventually becomes less effective.
No matter how evolved we get, our bodies function with one simple goal. Survival. That means conserving as much fat as possible. Basically, a complex process begins with the ultimate goal being to hold on to fat and it becomes very difficult to burn it off at all. The result is a body that never changes, or worse yet over time just slowly gets fatter and/or softer and ultimately potentially even unhealthier.
Repeated endurance activities like running for long durations put the body into a state that not only forces metabolism to slow but energy expenditures from body fat stores will even drop considerably. What does that mean? Metabolism slowing down means you’re not burning as many calories and when the energy being used reverts away from fat stores it means the calories you are burning are coming from sources other than that stubborn fat you’re trying so hard to get rid of--sources like our ever so precious muscle!
So what? I don’t want big, “bulky” muscles anyway, you may be thinking. Well, with muscle loss you get flab, it doesn’t matter how “skinny” you get, you will stay soft and squishy. And if that’s not bad enough, with muscle loss you get loss of strength and yes, even bone density--all factors that are indicators of good health! The more muscle you have, the “tighter” your body will be, the less of an impact gravity will have as you age and the higher your metabolism will be! That means you’ll burn more calories--even at rest!
Now, I have no ridiculous notions that any of this will chang
e the minds of die hard runners and make them run out to start a lifting program in lieu of running. I get it. Running, when you’ve been doing it awhile, becomes not only easy but a huge thrill. Few things in life can replicate the “runners high”. And I know you’re thinking, I LOVE running, I don’t want to give it up! The good news is there can be a place for it if you make a few changes. Begin a solid nutrition plan that includes enough protein to support muscle growth. Cut back on the amount of distance running and begin challenging your body with intervals, hill sprints, added weight, etc. Change things up! And if you’re looking for a tight, toned physique, you absolutely NEED to add resistance training and get into a weight room a few times a week, as well.
Sources
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