yahoo says running is best way to lose weight

The article starts out by saying that, “Any exercise is good exercise, but when it comes to losing weight, it’s hard to beat running. After all, running is one of the most efficient ways to burn calories and get fit without having to restrict your diet.”  This entire statement is false.  The truth is, there is a great deal of exercise that is not good.   For example, although we have far too many folks here in America who are sedentary, there is also a large number of regular exercisers who are — believe it or not — overdoing it (the technical word for this is ‘over-training‘).  Furthermore, the reason you workout is NEVER so that you can, “get fit without having to restrict your diet“.  If you are EATING PROPERLY, there are always things that should you should be restricting from your diet — no matter what your weight is.  We could start with SUGAR, JUNK FOOD, and TRANS FATS, and move from there to things like MSG, and ASPARTAME).  I want you to understand that both diet and the kind / amount of exercise you do are critical for WEIGHT LOSS.   Today, I am specifically going to show you that when it comes to the STRENGTH TRAINING -vs- CARDIO debate, Strength Training is a runaway winner. 

Yahoo says that, “running works even when you’re at rest“.  They then go on to tell you that running burns more calories at rest (after you have exercised) than does walking.  I will buy this, but be aware that you are not being told the whole truth.  Sprints are better than running for weight loss, and guess what is even better than sprints?  That’s right —- Strength Training.  And it’s not even close.  Runners increase their metabolism for about four hours post-workout.  That goes up to well over 30 hours for those who engage in Resistance Training.  Case in point (HERE).   You can also click on the last link in the previous paragraph for more information on the subject.

The next point that Yahoo wants you to swallow is that, “running is time efficient“.  This begs the question of exactly what running is more time efficient than?  Again, they compare it to walking.  This is certainly true, as you will undoubtedly burn more calories running a mile than walking a mile.  They also compare it to “The 7 Minute Workout“.  When it comes to working out, the scientific literature on the subject says that High Intensity / Short Duration is best.  But 7 minutes?  That might be a wee bit short.  The secret to using your workout to lose weight is not the number of calories you are burning while you are working out —- it is the number of calories you burn at rest (the amount by which you are able to increase your metabolism).  For a review of this, please re-read the preceding paragraph.

The third on their list is, “running is convenient“.  I can buy this.  According to the article, running is double convenient because you don’t even need shoes (they tout barefoot running).  However, is it really more ‘convenient’ to run than to do simple workouts like THIS?  I say not!  Click on the link because it defeats one of those old WORKOUT MYTHS I recently dealt with —- you don’t have to go to the gym to get a good workout.

And as for their last point, “the runner’s high“, are we to believe that running is the only form of exercise that releases “endorphins and morphine-like brain chemicals“?  Not on your life!  In fact, the authors themselves answer this question by saying that the link to the “runner’s high” is not specifically with running, but with any form of, “moderate to intense exercise“.   All four of their points are busted!

The thing is, look at the source.  The article originally appeared in Runner’s World, and was actually written by their editors.  This is not science.  It is feel-good fluffiness.  If you want more articles on this topic, you will find them HERE.  Oh, and one more thing.  For those of you who absolutely love to run — great.  I don’t have a problem with it.  Just make sure you don’t go overboard, and add some simple Strength Training to your regimen.  All it takes is 15-20 minutes, two or three times per week.