Precautions While Running
1. The first thing to pay attention to is definitely speed. For example, many people get easily distracted while running, causing their pace to fluctuate between fast and slow, or they fail to maintain a steady pace that allows for even breathing. This can greatly reduce the effectiveness of exercise for weight loss and may also dampen your motivation to run for fitness. Of course, we’re not talking about the kind of speed where you can barely stay awake while running.
2. Equally important as maintaining a correct and stable pace is breathing—make sure to breathe deeply, slowly, inhaling through the nose and exhaling through the mouth.
3. After running, you should also do 15 minutes of stretching and various core exercises. Doing these exercises at this time can help burn localized fat more quickly. Although this is mostly theoretical, if you stick with it long-term, localized fat accumulation can be effectively resolved.
Principles of Running for Weight Loss
When running for weight loss, the duration should be no less than 20 minutes, and the pace should be slow to maintain even breathing. A 20-minute slow, long-distance run not only significantly depletes glycogen stores in the body but also begins to burn fat. Moreover, because a slow, long-distance run isn’t overly intense, it doesn’t cause excessive oxygen deprivation, which helps with fat consumption and thus achieves the goal of weight loss.
Exercise biochemistry research has found that within the first 5 minutes of running, the heart adjusts to accommodate physical activity, with a significant increase in heart rate and more vigorous blood pumping, although unevenly—a phase known as the “heart adaptation period.” After 5 minutes of continuous running, the heart adapts, beating powerfully and pumping blood evenly while adjusting according to the intensity of the workout.
Within the first 20 minutes of running, the primary energy source comes from glycogen stored in the body, especially muscle glycogen and liver glycogen, since sugar can break down into carbon dioxide and water under aerobic conditions, releasing a large amount of energy. After 20 minutes of running, most glycogen is depleted, and the main energy source shifts to body fat.
When fat is mobilized, it is first broken down into glycerol and fatty acids. Glycerol can be directly oxidized to produce energy, while fatty acids are converted into acetyl<辅酶A，再经过代谢，一部分转变为糖以提供能量。由于脂肪供能需氧量多，因而在跑步强度达到缺氧程度时，就不能靠氧化脂肪来提供能量。
It’s worth noting that during the first month of long-distance running, weight may slightly increase due to increased appetite, but weight will drop rapidly in the second month. If you stop running for weight loss, gradually reduce the amount and duration of exercise daily to avoid “rebound weight gain.”