Running But Not Losing Belly Fat? What Should You do?

As you get older, belly fat becomes more and more difficult to lose. Often other parts of the body become lean, toned, and defined. However, losing excess tummy fat becomes difficult. That’s why many people struggle to lose weight from their stomachs.

That is why many people start running in the hope lose belly fat, but what happens if you are running but not losing belly fat? What Should you do?

Even though running is one of the best forms of excise to lose weight, it is often hard and impossible to target exact areas for fat loss.

However, there are some ways you can increase the chances of losing fat around the stomach by running if you follow some simple methods, this includes:

– Variation in your running training
– Increasing the duration of your runs
– Limiting calorie intake during easier weeks
– Do interval workouts twice per week

Following some of the above guidelines can help increase the chances of losing weight around the stomach area. Unfortunately, many runners think the further they run the more fat they will lose from their belly. However, that is not always the case. While long runs are beneficial in improving your endurance and burning calories, they aren’t necessarily the best type of workout to burn fat.

To burn more body fat, you need to vary your training. That means incorporating long runs with intervals and tempo runs. By doing this, you will increase your metabolism and burn more fat. Not only that, the intense intervals you do will help tone the belly.

Is running Enough to Lose Belly Fat?

For some people running is enough to lose belly fat and when it comes to running, more experienced runners can lose belly weight much faster than beginners. This is because they can increase the intensity and distance of their runs much faster than a beginner. However, if you are a beginner runner, you won’t be able to run enough to lose the excess weight in the beginning.

For these beginners, combining running and another form of aerobic exercise is a faster way to lose fat than just running alone. However, once they can increase the volume, and intensity they can run, they will see an improvement n weight loss.

For others, running is generally a great way to lose belly fat. But to get the ultimate results you will need to pair your running training with a clean diet. That means eliminating any dead calories. For example, butter, cream, candy, soft drinks, and jams.

Running But Not Losing Weight? What Can You do?

If you are running and not losing weight, there are typically two issues. One is you are not running enough, and two you are eating much more calories than you burn.

For most people when they start running they will see some weight loss within a few weeks. However, after some more time, the weight loss will start to plateau. This is when you will need to increase the distance, increase the intensity or reduce the calories you eat.

Alternatively, if you don’t want to run more, or cut down your eating habits, you can try to include some other cardio work. Such as rowing or cycling. You can even start a strength program too.

Either way, if you are running but not losing weight you will need to make some changes to your training and diet.

Generally, if your goal is to lose weight by running you will need to run at least 4-5 times per week for ultimate results. That is unless you are running three days a week but more intense or longer sessions.

Do Morning Runs Help You Lose Weight?

If you are running but not losing belly fat or any weight for that matter. You might want to try running in the morning vs evening instead.

Morning runs are typically fasted, meaning most people usually run before breakfast or after they have eaten something small.

Running in the morning can help boost your metabolism and help you burn calories throughout the day. However, if performance is more important than losing a few kilograms, you are better off running in the late afternoon or evening. This is because the body is more awake, energy levels are higher and muscles are much more supple than first thing in the morning.

How Much Weight Can You Lose If You Run two to Three Miles Per day?

The average person is able to burn around 100 calories per mile, which is true to both power walking and jogging. We also know that a pound of weight is roughly 3500 calories. This generally means if you are wanting to lose a pound a week in weight, you must burn an excess of 500 calories a day. If your goal is to lose more than a pound a week, there are plenty of weight loss calculators around that can help you calculate how many calories you need to expend than you take in.

Watches like Garmin, Suunto, and fitness trackers like Apple Watch and Fitbit are a great way to get an estimate on how many calories you burn when walking or running.

Running to Lose Belly Fat Program

If you are stuck in this rut of not losing weight even though you are running, you may need to invest in a running to lose belly fat program. There are many running weight loss programs available online that can help you shed those extra pounds.

At SportCoaching we provide an 18-week running plan for weight loss that is focused on the beginner runner. This program sets itself apart by taking the complete newbie safely through 18 weeks of running that helps to lose weight, become fitter, and generally feel more healthy.

Because this plan is over 18 weeks, it safely increases the running duration and eliminates any walking as you get fitter. Making it a safe and fun way to lose weight.