Ledford had previously lost weight running, and said she was surprised to find that extra miles meant extra pounds. She now chalks it up to becoming a more efficient runner, meaning her body had to make less of an effort when running — therefore burning fewer calories. “If you’re used to your mile burning 100 calories, and then it burns 90, you’ll run into problems,†she says.
Favorite part. lol
Running on pure fat
Two snippets of advice for runners who are getting fat.
1. Clean up your diet. Cut out the sports drinks, pizza, beer, sugar, etc. Eat clean.
2. Do interval training. I talk to a lot of body builders/physique guys and they do some sprinting or incline step machine intervals. Sprints cause a large metabolic response resulting in increased calorie expenditure and an increase in the circulating levels of hGH and testosterone. These effects have a huge positive influence on reducing body fat.
Runners can do 12x200 with 30 second jogs or do some hill repeats.
Bernie Madoff wrote:
"But sometimes, eating too little can also help pack on the pounds. Elbaz attributes her double-digit weight gain to consuming too few calories"
Just WOW. How can you be that stupid? How is that possible?
It's not possible. You cant pack on the pounds during caloric deficit. Really dumb article anout fat people who didn't train hard then rewarded themselves for a "hard" days work by eating a cake ffs.
DXA scans confirm distance runners can have low muscle mass but still have a bit of fat on them. Of course when you are scrawny even 10% BF starts to look not so appealing. 10% BF won't be seen on most serious distance runners but when they are injured, taking time off etc.
Really big deck wrote:
DXA scans confirm distance runners can have low muscle mass but still have a bit of fat on them. Of course when you are scrawny even 10% BF starts to look not so appealing. 10% BF won't be seen on most serious distance runners but when they are injured, taking time off etc.
So basically : No such thing as "skinny fat" if you actually take the idea seriously and test it. Oddly enough when not running my weight stays the same 6'3" 175 pounds because how much I want to eat is closely linked to how much I'm expending.
There is a more serious issue here than the question of whether running can make one fat. This whole discussion highlights the fact that most people view weight as the sole determinant of health. This is really stupid.
If I am a sedentary person, I will undoubtedly improve my health by going out and running a few miles a week (whether I call it marathon training, or I just call it going for a jog). Even if I put on a few pounds at first, I am still doing something that is good for my body. Declaring an activity to be unhealthy because it initially results in a small amount of weight gain is just unbelievably misguided.
health isn't just weight wrote:
There is a more serious issue here than the question of whether running can make one fat. This whole discussion highlights the fact that most people view weight as the sole determinant of health. This is really stupid.
If I am a sedentary person, I will undoubtedly improve my health by going out and running a few miles a week (whether I call it marathon training, or I just call it going for a jog). Even if I put on a few pounds at first, I am still doing something that is good for my body. Declaring an activity to be unhealthy because it initially results in a small amount of weight gain is just unbelievably misguided.
They also seem to have missed the real cause of the weight gain - namely an overactive knife and fork.
Over weight and depressed wrote:
I weighed 312lbs when i started running 3 years ago. I'm up to about 10 miles a week of running and i recently weighed myself at 386lbs. ( 75lbs gain in weight) I always use the same scale and my diet hasn't changed all that much except i started eating more rubarb pie after my runs. I tried wrapping a garbage bag around my body to help sweat out some calories but didn't help too much I just gained more weight back. I don't know where to turn. I always read on this site how runners are always breaking marathon world records and one day I want to do the same but I feel like my day will never come. It's very frustrating to put so much effort into my running and it just feels like i'm going backwards in life. I don't know what to do anymore.
Your time will come
This is sooooooo true! I train with the group of women you mention in the first paragraph, but I know oh so many who fit the bill for the 2nd. I have been running/training for marathons and a variety of other distances for over 35 yrs and I have yet to gain lbs from training. Maybe in the down season, but never during a training season. In fact, I trained for a Half IM this summer and lost weight since I wasn't really eating enough.
Precious Roy wrote:
I think the main issue here is that there is a big difference in what people are calling "marathon training". The women I see out in my training group who are all very fit and lean (but not elite athlete lean) all train very hard for marathons. They run 40-50 mpw, maxing out @60. They push themselves very hard at interval sessions, tempos and long runs. On easy days, they still run with some pace and do not just shuffle out 12 min miles. No one obsesses about diet other than making the usual good choices on what to eat.
Then there are the people who go out with the "couch to marathon" programs and run minimal mileage, very easy workouts and most everything is at a pace that is just faster than walking. On long runs, they will stop for 10-15 minutes to chat with friends. The pace is so slow that they can talk the entire way and sound like they are sitting on the couch at a coffee shop. At first, the increased activity might knock off a few pound. But after awhile, they acclimate to the distance and consume enough calories to easily cover what little was burned off. If self control goes out the window, they will gain weight very quickly. But the result would be the same if they were doing yoga, cross fit, pilates or cycling. They just think that because they are doing a marathon "training" program they can eat freely. If they actually trained for a marathon instead of doing the minimum amount of shuffling needed to finish the race, they would not be gaining weight.
By the way, as an "older" female runner/athlete now, the weight gain thing has a bit to do with hormones, etc. Not for these 20-somethings though.
Precious Roy wrote:
I think the main issue here is that there is a big difference in what people are calling "marathon training". The women I see out in my training group who are all very fit and lean (but not elite athlete lean) all train very hard for marathons. They run 40-50 mpw, maxing out @60. They push themselves very hard at interval sessions, tempos and long runs. On easy days, they still run with some pace and do not just shuffle out 12 min miles. No one obsesses about diet other than making the usual good choices on what to eat.
Then there are the people who go out with the "couch to marathon" programs and run minimal mileage, very easy workouts and most everything is at a pace that is just faster than walking. On long runs, they will stop for 10-15 minutes to chat with friends. The pace is so slow that they can talk the entire way and sound like they are sitting on the couch at a coffee shop. At first, the increased activity might knock off a few pound. But after awhile, they acclimate to the distance and consume enough calories to easily cover what little was burned off. If self control goes out the window, they will gain weight very quickly. But the result would be the same if they were doing yoga, cross fit, pilates or cycling. They just think that because they are doing a marathon "training" program they can eat freely. If they actually trained for a marathon instead of doing the minimum amount of shuffling needed to finish the race, they would not be gaining weight.
+1
A lot of women in my local running club claim this. But they are training between 30-40 miles a week at the most and that is not very many calories burned...even the 20 milers on the weekend. Experienced runners always seem to forget that you become more efficient at an activity as your body adapts to it. For example: I've been running at some level for more than 20 years. Currently i run between 70-90 miles a week during a training cycle and I only need about 2000-2500 calories depending on the day (I'm a woman). This seems low when plugged into a calculator but I maintain my weight and I'm still just barely in the healthy weight range for my height, so not underweight.
PepeTheFrog wrote:
Not surprised
Walking for 10 minutes while downing energy bars and then eating extra food for meals because you're in training isn't healthy.
Along with above, I've noticed that every swim team and cross country team my kids have joined from elementary through high school, encourages eating before, during and after practices and events as if the kids are training for and running marathons, when they are actually running 20 mpw and racing 1.8 to 3.1 miles. The swimmers are worse with the snack bags and high cal sports drinks.
gubyenletsrun wrote:
... Currently i run between 70-90 miles a week during a training cycle and I only need about 2000-2500 calories depending on the day (I'm a woman). ...
I find 2000-2500 difficult to believe. It might just be possible, provided you are motionless throughout the day except when running.
Maybe its just me, but I've always thought that the generic calorie estimate of ~150 calories per mile is really high. (I realize this is a sliding scale) I feel like we would not have survived as a species if we were that energy inefficient.
Here's the deal:
Anybody CAN lose weight doing super low mileage. I run 10-15 mpw these days and have no problem managing weight, even with my 5 days a week of wine consumption. I'm in my mid 30's too so youth is not on my side. Its simple really:
1. Run most if not all of your miles uphill on a treadmill (5-6% incline) ***(this burns 1.5x the normal amount of calories per mile)
2. Run 30 second to 2 minute intervals at fast pace uphill with uphill walking @15 min pace recoveries.
3. LIFT WEIGHTS targeting all muscle groups at least once a week.
4. Replace sports drinks and sodas with mineral water drinks like Perrier. (Saves tons of calories over time)
5. Drink coffee for mood and metabolism boosting effects.
6. Drink wine and be happy. (in moderation of course)
That's it. FORGET marathon training. Studies have shown that chronic long distance running is BAD for your health in the long run (pardon the pun).
yupfsdfsdfs wrote:
Maybe its just me, but I've always thought that the generic calorie estimate of ~150 calories per mile is really high. (I realize this is a sliding scale) I feel like we would not have survived as a species if we were that energy inefficient.
I've always read and heard 100 calories per mile.
Personally, I have to get to about 50 mpw before I can quit caring about how much or what I eat. But that does include some intensity, not just jogging around. I'm 46 now and that mileage limit has climbed a bit with age.
In late 30s and running 75+ miles, I purposefully ate more not to lose to much weight.
Runningart2004 wrote:
You don't get fit by running, but you have to be fit to run.
I bet everyone on this board who is a runner was already relatively skinny and fit looking before they started running.
This concept is not new.
https://runningugly.com/tag/rachel-cosgrove/Alan
Nope. Not true. I looked average, but never skinny. Looked like i could lose like 5-10lbs. Then when I started running i lost the weight and got very skinny and become a very fit AA in college. I did not look fit before I started running.
ExpertKipWatcher wrote:
Really big deck wrote:DXA scans confirm distance runners can have low muscle mass but still have a bit of fat on them. Of course when you are scrawny even 10% BF starts to look not so appealing. 10% BF won't be seen on most serious distance runners but when they are injured, taking time off etc.
So basically : No such thing as "skinny fat" if you actually take the idea seriously and test it. Oddly enough when not running my weight stays the same 6'3" 175 pounds because how much I want to eat is closely linked to how much I'm expending.
He just explained that there is. Sounds like at 6'3'', 175 you're not skinny fat but there are plenty out there. The average lets run member is a skinnyfat freak.