Why Jogging is Bad for Fat Loss

This deserves some reading - especially for those who keep running and running but yet have the layers piling on - this article explains to you how your body adapts to your running routine, putting you at the loserly end of this battle.

Firstly, the human body is very smart and will always try to adapt to the activity it is being put through. Therefore, as you jog, you will get more and more efficient at jogging. You get to use LESS calories by getting better at jogging. For example, when starting out you may burn 300 calories by jogging for 30 minutes. As time goes by and you get more proficient at jogging, you can only burn the same amount of calories (300) by jogging(at the same pace) for an hour. See, this works in reverse to what you want!

By jogging for long periods of time, it actually puts your body in a catabolic state, which means you start losing muscle. Having muscles actually raises your metabolism rate so there you go, jogging actually DECREASES your metabolism rate. If your goal is to lose fat, you would want to retain as much muscle mass as you can or even increase, and jogging contradicts what you want ultimately.

So you folks might want to take up High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) - its rarely practiced in the running population here in Singapore. I did it at a local running stadium and it sure invited stares. Only a caucasian who was doing the same thing as I could appreciate what I was doing.

High intensity interval training (HIIT) is great for fat loss and it involves alternating short bursts of high intensity of work followed by resting. There are many forms of HIIT like sprinting, cycling, burpees intervals and kettlebells. An example would be the stationary bike: cycle all-out for 30 seconds and rest for 45 seconds and repeat for a number of sets. The work:rest ratio will depend on your current fitness levels and you have to experiment it yourself to find a sweet spot. Always aim to improve by increasing your work:rest ratio as you progress.

Read it all over here