Here is the truth truth about running or any aerobic activity: It is great for the heart, respiratory system, bones, muscles and mind. But it is not great at burning fat.

Someone recommended a great book to me called The Abs Diet by David Zinczenko. Basically the book touts two concepts to weight loss: a high protein diet and anaerobic exercise (weight training or body weight exercise). Weight loss is consistent and natural. To understand this, we must look at how this works.

The body goes through a natural process called thermogenesis. This is the process where calories are burned simply to break down the food you eat. It is estimated that ten percent of calories from food are burned just through digestion. Wouldn’t it be great if we could raise that percentage? We could eat more and burn more calories. That’s where anaerobic exercise comes in. Picking up that barbell or doing those push ups in the morning are helping more than you think.

When you do lift weights, you create microscopic tears in the muscles. These tears take time and energy to repair (24 to 48 hours). This is why it is not recommended to workout the same muscle group two days in a row. The muscles need time to recover or one could face injury. During the recovery process, scar tissue grows the tear making the muscle bigger (this is where the term “ripped” when talking about a muscle bound person comes from). Protein is the main nutrient used by the body to repair muscles. It is estimated that up to a third of the calories from protein are used through the thermic process to repair the damaged muscles.In other words, you are burning calories by resting. In fact, most calories are burned for muscle repair while sleeping.

So why don’t aerobic workouts like running do the same thing? There is damage to the muscles during aerobic workouts but, as you get in shape, your muscles become more efficient and the damage is less severe. That is why distance runners appear so thin. The muscles become so efficient that only the used portion of the muscle is used.

So it sounds like I am saying that running and biking are not the best ways to lose weight. And I am saying that. Aerobic work has huge benefits. But burning fat is not one of them. One will lose 130-150 calories a mile. That is not a lot. Ten miles of running can be smashed by a simple Big Mac.

With that said, the next post will go over the type of exercise and programs that can be done.

Photos courtesy of:
Active.com
Greatist
newleaneryou.com