Running to slim down while overweight: Best tips for great results

Running to slim down while overweight produces the best results if you can speed up your metabolism.

Muscle is functional, which means that it helps you perform in your daily needs.

For example, strong muscles can help you run faster and slow down the nasty impacts of aging. If you’ve ever moved some heavy furniture for heavy people, you’ll know just how important muscles are.

But: Strength training has actually been significantly oversold as a metabolism-enhancing calorie burner.

It’s time for a truth check.

So if you wish to increase your metabolism to lose more weight, run (or walk) as much as you can. And don’t focus on strength training!

Running to slim down while overweight: Introduction

Do you want to slim down and shed your extra pounds? But does the thought of hitting the gym or starting a new workout routine makes you cringe?!

Then running could be the ultimate solution if you want to lose weight, improve your overall health and fitness, and achieve your ideal body weight.

However, running while overweight can be mentally challenging and intimidating, especially if you don’t know where and how to start.

That’s why I decided to list the best tips for running to slim down in this blog post.

Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced runner, these hands-on tips can help you optimize your efforts, overcome any obstacles, and achieve your weight loss goals.

So, put on your running shoes, take a deep breath, and get ready to transform your body and mind with running. 🙂

Here are some interesting tips for maximizing the amount of weight you can lose with your (treadmill) running efforts:

Faster running to slim down while overweight

Speedwork is a terrific calorie burner because you can cover more distance in the same period.

Idea to burn more fat:

• Run for 10 minutes at a leisurely pace.
• Then alternate running hard for one minute with a slower pace for five times (or 10 minutes overall).

Increase the time of your more strenuous run. Or increase that to two minutes with one-minute jogs in between.

Follow your run immediately with alternate exercise

After you’ve completed your run, immediately move on to some different exercises, such as core or strength training.

You mustn’t let your heart rate go back to normal, so no stopping for a quick chat with your training buddy.

This way, you’ll burn more calories quicker, simply because you’re extending the period that you’re working with an elevated heart rate.

Run for longer

A longer run automatically means that you burn more calories. If you’re not used to it, add an extended run to your routine every other week.

Novices ought to build up their endurance by adding five minutes to their base run.

More advanced runners, who regularly log hour-long runs, can work up to 50 to 100 percent longer than their regular weekday run.

Develop gradually, so your total weekly mileage doesn’t jump by more than 10 percent in a single week.

Scale up slowly to avoid annoying overexertion symptoms and injuries.

Uphill running to slim down while overweight

Running uphill takes more effort, which naturally burns more calories.

Choose paths with 3 or 4 noticeable hills once a week, or fix your treadmill setting to reflect a run with more inclines.

Do you recognize the benefits of a treadmill with incline options for your home? Then check out our shortlist of treadmills with more than 300 pounds weight capacity.

After every five minutes of flat running, do a two-minute hill at the three-percent slope.

As you increase your fitness, increase the incline (maximum 5% grade for beginners) or the hill period.

Tip: Read our related article Exercising on a treadmill burns fat and benefits your health.

Include unsaturated fats in your diet

Not all fats are bad.

In fact, unsaturated fats such as olive and nut oils, avocados and animal fat are necessary for a runner’s diet.

Here are some reasons why:

They lower the risk of heart disease

Unlike trans-fats, monounsaturated fats found in veggie oils (such as olive and canola) and avocados reduce your risk of heart disease and actually have the added power to help lower LDL.

Unsaturated fats reduce joint aches

Omega-3 fatty acids are polyunsaturated fats discovered in fish (particularly in salmon), walnuts, and ground flaxseed.

They possess anti-inflammatory properties that can assist the knee and back, and reduce joint aches and discomforts that afflict many (plus-size) runners.

Simply put: You’ll be better protected against injury and run more.

They lower the risk of feeling hungry

Unsaturated fats promote satiety, lower appetite and minimally affect blood sugar.

That’s essential because if your blood glucose dips too low, you might experience food yearnings, brain fog and low energy, making it hard to lose weight.

If you don’t include enough unsaturated fats in your diet, you’ll only end up overindulging, sabotaging all your hard work.

Unsaturated fats reduce the risk of injury

Unsaturated fats can help stave off injuries like stress fractures.

A 2008 study by the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition discovered that female runners on low-fat diet plans are at increased threat of injury.

Remember: A sidelined (female) runner can’t burn as many calories.

An interesting tip for women who are wondering how to reduce (and accept) cellulite with exercise: Read how to get thin thighs on a treadmill for a few practical, achievable tips.

Create an everyday calorie deficit

Are you obese or overweight and determined to shed those extra pounds?

Rule number one: Stop exaggerating and start eating less!

The experts from the American Dietetic Association and the American College of Sports Medicine all advise a 500- to 1000-calorie-a-day reduction.

Without a proper diet, few people succeed in their weight-loss efforts.

Weight loss works best when you consume less food.

Tip: Include regular training sessions to increase your daily calorie deficit and keep exercising to keep the pounds off.

The more you work out, the better

The National Weight Control Registry has followed more than 5,000 individuals who, for at least 6 years, have maintained a 30-pound weight loss.

Their secret? They burn almost 400 calories a day in workouts, primarily by walking.

This takes an hour or more a day, but you can cut that time practically in half by running.

Spend a few minutes on strength-training exercises when you’re done.

Strength training is essential to build muscle, boost your metabolism and avoid saggy skin.

It adds variety to your workouts, hardly ever causes injuries, and can develop extra muscle to go with the boosted physical fitness that comes from continuous exercise.

Running to slim down while overweight: Conclusion

Jogging and running are excellent ways to lose weight, improve your overall health, and boost your confidence and self-esteem.

Running is a challenging but rewarding physical activity that can absolutely transform both your body and mind.

By following the tips I’ve provided, you can achieve great fitness and weight loss results.

However, running is not just about losing weight and fighting your belly fat rolls… Running is also about challenging yourself, pushing your limits, and discovering what you’re truly capable of.

It’s about enjoying the process, not just the end goal. And most importantly, running is also about self-acceptance, no matter your size, weight, body or shape.

Always try to embrace the journey and appreciate your progress. And you should never forget that you are truly capable of achieving anything you set your mind to with enough perseverance and patience. 😉