Have you ever wondered whether running is useful for burning fat ? How about whether low intensity, long duration (ie. exercising in your fat burning zone) running (or cardio) is better than higher intensity interval running (ie. your cardio zone)?
let’s go ahead and answer those questions .
RUNNING TO BURN FAT
Depending on the duration and intensity of your run, your body will rely on carbohydrates (stored as glycogen in the muscles and liver) and fat for its fuel.
Your body chooses different fuels during different situations . Because fats yield more calories and are slower burning as they are metabolized, they tend to be used over longer durations when compared to carbohydrates.
However, your body’s first priority is to conserve its blood glucose and glycogen stores . As you become fitter your body will become more efficient at using fats for fuel while sparing your vital carbohydrate reserves.
Someone who is totally unfit will obviously fatigue sooner , one of the reasons being that their carbohydrate stores are more quickly dissolved and utilized. Fitter individuals can run for much longer because they have developed the power to use the slow burning fats as fuel, and therefore conserve their energy better.
As the intensity of exercise increases, there is more reliance on carbohydrates for fuel . Typically, intensities greater than 70% of VO2 max (or maximal heart rate for our purposes) will use carbohydrates as the dominant fuel source.
However, this doesn’t mean that working at high intensities doesn’t burn fat.
This is where most people get confused. Many people conceive that, for instance, since running at a lower intensity implies more reliance on fat as fuel, they feel the need to run at this low-intensity to burn fat! Nothing could be further from the truth!
A study in the New England Journal of Medicine demonstrated that, compared with a control group 8 months of either low amount/moderate intensity, low amount/high intensity or high amount/high intensity exercise all led to positive changes in overall lipoprotein (one type of blood fat) profile in overweight subjects. The latter group (high amount/high intensity) also gained the best training, fat loss, and blood lipid effect!
The longer you run, the greater the reliance on fat as a fuel is the other part of the fat burning question . Once again, this feeds the myth that running (or doing cardio) for long periods of time is necessary to burn fat. I call this the “marathoner mentality”.
The first thing that is critical to understand is this :
A calorie is a calorie and 1 pound of fat is equivalent to 3500 calories.
Since burning fat ultimately boils down to creating a negative energy balance (ie. more calories expended than consumed) the goal is choose a method of running training that will elicit the maximum number of calories expended – not just during the activity but afterwards as well !
Working at higher intensities promotes a greater total calorie loss (even after you’re finished exercising) and that’s what really matters if you’re looking to lose weight and burn fat .
Fat is the major contributor to muscle energy during low-intensity exercise as we’ve already discussed . Therefore, most people intuitively believe that low intensity training must therefore induce an increased muscle fat burning effect (known as lipolytic activity).
The enzyme, HSL (hormone sensitive lipase), is required to catalyze the hydrolysis (breakdown) of stored triglycerides (fats) in skeletal muscle as it does in adipose (fat) tissue. Furthermore, several studies have indicated that HSL is probably the main lipase responsible for triglyceride hydrolysis during exercise.
However, a remarkable study investigating the effects of exercise of extreme duration at low-intensity on body fat profile had subjects complete a 32-day crossing of the Greenland ice cap on cross-country skis. After this incredible crossing, the researchers discovered that HSL activity was NOT influenced by the prolonged low-intensity physical activity in either arm or leg muscle. This is consistent with results from similar investigations .
So, if you have time to run for 2 to 3 hours at a low intensity then be my guest . You will achieve some degree of fat loss but studies have shown that you will need to execute a tremendous amount of exercise to gain the benefits you desire.
Furthermore, several studies have demonstrated that your aerobic endurance will either decline or remain unchanged by exercising at low intensities for long periods of time!
So why not save time, dramatically ameliorate your aerobic fitness, and burn more fat by upping the intensity of your running workouts? The choice is yours!
Filed under Healthy Eating by on Mar 21st, 2011. Comment. 
Trying to burn off your belly fat is probably the most common reason for dieting. Next is trying to lose excess weight from one’s arms and legs, if you want to lose weight and get a trimmer body. Diet alone does not work well enough to get a flat abdomen, and many people are searching non stop for new techniques to try to complement their diet.
Sometimes the battle you have to fight takes years, while in more fortunate circumstances, you’ll be able to burn belly off fat in a few months. The time period necessary for such an achievement varies according to a of personal factors: first of all it depends on how big the fat deposit is around your waist.
Then, your age, your health and certain other personal things influence the rate of weight loss significantly. You can burn belly fat at a more rapid rate if you stick to a training regimen consisting of a series of well-determined exercises that include not only body crunches but also full body work.
Twists for example, have a good repute for the toning of the abdominal muscles and the development of a slimmer waistline. While you can keep your calorie intake under control by carefully monitoring your diet, you can only burn your current deposits of fat with physical exercise.
Nutritional supplements can help you burn your belly fat off without having to suffer the consequences of a crash diet. Some of the most valued treatments for boosting the metabolism include green tea extract, Garcinia Cambodia, pineapple extract, seaweed and other herbs with a stimulating impact on the digestive tract.
Be very cautious with appetite suppressants because they do not burn belly fat like the rest of the supplements do, but rather they engender a sensation of satiation which tells your body that there is no requirement for it to long for food. However, if such a situation gets out of control, the user of these weight loss supplements could develop anemia because of poor nourishment.
Do not try to burn your belly fat within a severe, predetermined time frame. Setting seven or ten-day goals could put a lot of stress on the body, and besides a flatter stomach you may end up with serious health problems. Every body has its own way of adapting to diets. For example, one’s level of activity alters with programs meant to speed up the metabolism.
If things are not done slowly but surely, the body could respond aggressively to the new stimuli, creating all sorts of discomforts such as diarrhea, exhaustion, anxiety, poor concentration and the so forth. Therefore, choose those ways to burn belly fat off that best suit your condition, age and physical structure.
Owen Jones, the author of this article, writes on many topics, but is currently involved with our blog why can’t I lose weight. If you have an interest in losing weight, please go over to our website now at Why Can’t I Lose Weight?
Filed under Uncategorized by on Nov 2nd, 2010. Comment.
When it comes to living a long and healthy life, there are two necessary ingredients: diet and fitness. While some believe that they are inseparable, nothing could be further from the truth. It is quite possible to have a perfectly healthy diet with deplorable fitness habits. It is equally possible to be physically fit with less than perfect eating habits.
There’s a smart little line in the Jimmy Buffet song “Fruitcakes” when his ‘lady’ is complaining: “I treat my body like a temple, You treat yours like a tent”
I can’t help thinking about this line whenever I think about all the people around the world who are on these garbage in, garbage out diet plans hoping to achieve the weight loss success of those who are endorsing the items.
To be totally honest, it is possible to lose pounds through dieting alone. It is difficult but possible. It is also possible to be physically fit and still have a few extra pounds. To a large part, we are what we eat. If we follow a high fat low fibre diet our bodies are going to lack the fuel needed to burn the fat. At the same time if we are not providing our bodies with the tools it needs to create muscle it does not matter how many weights we lift.
When it comes to diet and fitness, the best results are achieved when they are combined together rather. Use your fitness routine to burn surplus calories and use your diet in order to provide your body with the nutrients and fuel it requires to build muscle.
A pound of muscle takes up less space on the body than a pound of fat. Pound for pound, I would much prefer mine be built of muscle than fat. Dieting on its own does not build muscle and that is something you would do well to remember.
You should also realize that as you are building muscle you may be shedding inches while not showing a great deal of progress on the scale. It is very important that you bear this in mind throughout the weight loss process. Do not measure your progress by the scales alone or you will observe misleading results.
The problem is that far too many people do just this, get discouraged and give up when they are in point of fact making progress. Do not allow yourself to be a victim of the scales. Look in the mirror, try on your tight slacks, and measure your waistline. Measure your success by how you feel after climbing a flight of stairs not by the scales.
By incorporating exercise into your diet routine you are also enabling your body to burn off any extra calories you may have consumed during the day. This means that if you want to have a small ‘cheat’ during your day, you can make up for it by burning a few more calories than usual in the evening. This is not something that should happen often but an infrequent occurrence is not going to make or break your diet.
You should also regard dieting and exercise as a hand and glove type of relationship. They fit together. Diet and exercise when combined can achieve incredible weight loss results for those who take them both sincerely.
The thing to remember is that neither works well alone and neither will work unless you are willing to do the work. You must make this a priority in your life in order to achieve the best possible results.
Owen Jones, the author of this piece, writes on many topics, but is currently involved with why can’t I lose weight. If you have an interest in losing weight, please go over to our website now at Why Can’t I Lose Weight?
Filed under Uncategorized by on Aug 23rd, 2010. Comment.