There’s no denying it, losing weight is tough. Often, the simplest option seems to be just to lace up your sneakers and run. But what if we told you that there is a more effective way to lose weight than simply pounding the pavement for hours on end? Forget what you thought you knew - interval running and bodyweight training are the most lethal weight loss combination out there.
The basics
Weight loss is strongly associated with how many calories are burned during exercise; the more calories you burn, the more weight you lose. In short, combining running and bodyweight training means you’ll burn the same amount of calories in a shorter period of time, meaning that you’re more likely to reach your weight loss goals.
There are two reasons why bodyweight and running are a dream combination when it comes to weight loss:
1.
The body uses different sources of energy depending on the intensity and duration of the exercise. The longer you exercise, the higher the proportion of energy drawn from burning fats. In contrast, the more intense a training session is, the more energy is drawn from carbohydrates.
Does this mean that high intensity training like interval running and bodyweight training burns less fat than endurance running? Wrong, and here’s why.
High intensity training uses a lot more energy than endurance training. So, while the proportion of fat burned is smaller, the total amount is actually a lot more. Only around 20% of the energy your body uses during high intensity training comes from fat. But because your body uses so much more energy during this type of training, this 20% works out as a lot more than the amount of fat burned during low intensity, endurance running.
Therefore, the combination of interval running and bodyweight HIIT training is a more time-efficient way to lose weight.
2.
Interval running and bodyweight training promotes the afterburn effect.
What’s this? Well, when we train at high intensity, or anaerobically, our bodies don’t have time to replenish the oxygen and glycogen lost as we train. Therefore, when we finish a HIIT session, many of our body’s systems still require large amounts of energy to regulate them back to their normal levels. This means that the body continues to burn calories even after we finish training.
On top of this, bodyweight training recruits more muscles than just running. This means that more muscles need to be repaired after training which means even more calories are burnt.
Let’s recap:
If your goal is to lose weight, choosing a combination of interval running and bodyweight training over low intensity endurance running could be the perfect training method for you. Not only is this combination proven to be more efficient and effective, but the variety means that you’re far less likely to become bored or unmotivated.
