Can I burn fat with 30 minutes of running?;

By Elias Asimakopoulos, Gym Trainer, Glyfada

Can you burn fat with 30 minutes of running? Of course you can. But the more valid question is, how do you do it?;

The answer is relatively simple!

But first, you need to know some basics about training and when our body mainly uses fat burning to produce energy.

Let's go see!

Carbohydrates vs Fat

When you do any form of exercise, including running, the your body needs energy ( magic word )! To produce energy, it must find a fuel! These fuels for exercise are carbohydrates, fats and proteins. But the main ones are carbohydrates and fats! The participation of which in the energy production mechanisms depends on the duration and intensity of the exercise.

That is how much fat we burn or how much carbohydrate we burn, has to do with how hard we run and for how long. So, by changing these we can have more or less fat burning from our body!

Our body can store both, but as a source of energy when we need it, will use carbohydrates first, as they break down faster, better and give instant energy!

Burning fat to produce energy is a basic process, but a secondary solution for our body, as the breakdown of fatty acids takes longer and slower. So the body will start using carbohydrates first and fat later!

Duration vs Intensity

But what about the duration and intensity?;

Depending on how we exercise in terms of time and intensity, we will see adipose tissue burning and carbohydrate burning change activation rates from the beginning to the end of the exercise.

When we have short to medium duration and medium to high intensity, the body will use carbohydrates more whether we want it to or not! Conversely, if we train with medium to long duration and low to moderate intensity then the percentages change and fat is used to a greater extent.

It is very important to understand that when the intensity is high and the duration is short, then we cannot expect much from fat burning, most of the energy comes from carbohydrates.

Conversely, when the intensity drops and becomes low or medium, but the duration increases, then we have a higher rate of fat burning and a lower rate of carbohydrate burning.

For this reason, the pattern we use in training should be one of low to moderate intensity and medium to long duration (30 minutes or more). Continuous running for hours at low-to-moderate intensity helps us to activate fat burning for energy!

Aerobic vs Anaerobic Training

Here's the biggest confusion... Well, we've talked so far, but ultimately what workout should I choose on my run to get fat burning? And yet, it's actually not that much of a mess!

On the one hand to say that both fat combustion and carbohydrate combustion are used in proportion to the percentage of energy production. When we say we do aerobic exercise, we need the aerobic range, i.e. the limits within which we activate the aerobic energy mechanism.

The aerobic range is therefore determined by the HRM ( Maximum Heart Rate ) and corresponds to a percentage of 55% - 85% of HRM . A more correct percentage for fat burning is 55%-70% of HRM . That is, if we run with moderate intensity and medium to long duration, we will manage to burn more fat for energy...

Conversely, as time gets shorter and intensity increases, the more carbohydrate we need in proportion.

That's why we want aerobic workouts, with moderate intensity and relatively long duration. Then we have the best conditions to help our body activate fat burning!

So run at a moderate pace for a long time and then you will give your body a boost to eliminate excess fat, precisely because it will have used it to produce energy!

What time is the most suitable for running and fat burning?;

In the morning! Yes, you read that right, during the morning hours the levels of glycogen (i.e. carbohydrates stored in the body) are very low so the body is forced to find other sources of energy! And where will he look then? But on the adipose tissue... It will activate the burning of fatty acids and give the necessary energy for running! For low-intensity running! As morning training at high intensity is not recommended without a light morning meal.

Running before or after weight training?;

Because weight training in its basic form is an anaerobic type of exercise, this means that it mainly uses the already stored carbohydrates for energy. So we can understand that going for a low to moderate intensity run after weight training will help our body burn fat during the run!

So give the right amount of time to both resistance training and improving your heart through running.

Do we continue to burn calories after training? - E.P.O.C. effect

Το Ε.P.O.C (Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption) σημαίνει αυξημένη μεταπροπονητική κατανάλωση οξυγόνου. Αυτό με την σειρά του, σημαίνει πως ο ανθρώπινος οργανισμός έχει την ικανότητα να συνεχίζει να καίει θερμίδες όσο κάνει την εσωτερική του αποκατάσταση για να έρθει σε ισορροπία! Το φαινόμενο αυτό επηρεάζεται από την ένταση της προπόνησης. Για αυτό και προπονήσεις υψηλότερης έντασης έχουν αρκετή καύση θερμίδων και μετά την προπόνηση ακόμα και στη ξεκούραση.

Συνοψίζοντας, το ανθρώπινο σώμα για να τρέξει ή να κάνει οποιαδήποτε μορφής άσκησης, χρειάζεται ενέργεια! Την ενέργεια αυτή, θα την βρει κυρίως από την χρήση υδατανθράκων  και λίπους. Εάν το τρέξιμο σου μπορεί να είναι συνεχές με χαμηλή έως μέτρια ένταση και για μεσαία προς μεγάλη διάρκεια, τότε ναι, να είσαι βέβαιος πως θα έχεις χρησιμοποιήσει ένα μεγάλο μέρος ενέργειας από την καύση λιπώδη ιστού!

Όλα αυτά όμως, θυμήσου πως δεν έχουν καμία σημασία αν η διατροφή σου δεν είναι η κατάλληλη για τον στόχο σου!

Καλή και ασφαλή προπόνηση!