Everything you wanted to ask about running...
Will running help me lose weight?
There is absolutely no doubt that running boosts our health in a large number of ways including physically, mentally, emotionally and socially, and it can also help people to lose weight but only if certain other conditions are right.
A bit about energy balance
First of all, we need to explain a bit about energy balance. We measure energy in kilocalories which is normally abbreviated to calories. We expend/burn energy through automatic bodily processes that keep us alive, such digesting our food, pumping our hearts, breathing etc. We also burn energy by carrying out any activity that is part of our daily lives whether that’s cooking, working, commuting, looking after pets and family, dancing etc. And of course, we burn energy through any forms of exercise that we do.
Also, bear in mind that we lose body mass when we go to the toilet, sweat and breathe out moisture but we then take energy back onboard through the food and drink that we eat.
In order to lose body weight, we need to be in an energy deficit, meaning that we are expending more energy than we are consuming. If we consume the same amount as we expend, our bodyweight will stay the same. If we expend less energy than we burn then we will be in an energy surplus and therefore will gain weight. All this means that, if someone is trying to lose weight, running can help them to do that, but only if they are eating and drinking fewer calories than they are burning. If running means you eat and drink more, there’s every chance that you will not be in an energy deficit and therefore will not lose weight.
The body gets used to the effort
Another thing it is important to understand is that our bodies get more efficient at an activity the more they do it. This means that an activity ‘costs’ us less the more we do it. As an example, imagine that when you’re new to running, a 5K run would result in a 400-calorie expenditure.
A few months down the line, when you have been regularly running 5K, your body is much more efficient at running, and the same run may only see your body burn 300 calories. And if, during that time, your dietary intake and other forms of expenditure have stayed the same, you are most likely to experience a little bit of a weight-loss plateau or even weight gain. The way to increase the amount of calories burned during your run at this stage is either by increasing the distance you cover, or by taking the intensity up a notch. This can be done by increasing the pace, running on a more challenging terrain or by introducing some speed, hill or fartlek sessions to your training programme.
You may find that you lose weight when you first take up running but then, as your body becomes more efficient at doing it, your weight loss tails off
Getting out with your run buddies can be the highlight of a runner’s week
While all of this explains how running might help someone to lose weight if that’s what they want to do, it doesn’t touch on all the other benefits that running offers.
Running as a wholebody benefit
Running helps to keep the whole body healthy, from your lungs, to your muscles, to your bones, heart, lungs and brain. It boosts longevity partly by helping to prevent diseases such as Type 2 Diabetes, cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis and certain cancers, but it also helps to keep blood pressure at a healthy level and can help us sleep better, which in turn improves our wellbeing in myriad ways.
What’s good for body is good for brain too
As with our physical health, regularly doing things to enhance our mental wellbeing is an important way to live a long, happy and healthy life.