Why Long Bouts of Running May Not be the Answer

Why Long Bouts of Running Isn’t the Only Answer

            In today’s overall view of exercise, one thing is clear: You get into shape by running or some other form of long continuous endurance event.  My question to you, as a reader, is why?  What if that wasn’t the whole truth?  Why do we consume these endurance theories and think that we were made to only function in one way.  We weren’t! Our bodies are constantly changing and always evolving, we can’t rely on one form of activity to get us to our health and fitness goals.  There have been cultures of ‘athletes’ to buck this foregone conclusion and while I do not agree with all that goes with crossfit or extreme weekend warrior training, etc there are a few points that have been proven in the literature and deserves it's time in the spotlight.

            Running can be great for your cardiovascular health, but it definitely has its setbacks.  I am not opposed to running.  If you like running that’s great! I hope you have a healthy heart and continue to run without injuries.  But what if I told you that you could get the same affects from endurance running without the time?  I’m sure most people would scream ‘I’m in!’ along with ‘that sounds too good to be true’.   Well, I’m sorry to disappoint you, but it is true!  Continuous running doesn’t have to be the only answer.

The activity that everyone talks about, but doesn’t practice is interval training.  It seems that everyone has their own opinions and programs that ‘work well for your body type’, but the truth is that in exercise and science there is more than one way to do things and facts often become debunked.  As much as we like the world to be black and white the truth is that it is full of grey areas.  A recent study looked at two training protocols (endurance and high intensity) with a normal population and tested them against each other.  Here’s what they found:

1.  When individuals used a high intensity interval training (HIIT) protocol they had the same positive effects as an endurance-training (END) group.  One benefit is just as much blood flow to the muscles (greater vasodilation) using the HIIT protocol as the END protocol. 

2.  Along with the positive benefits, the interval group had better retention rates! 

3.  If that wasn’t enough, the interval group exercised 33% less than the endurance group. 

It seems that the popular talk among fitness pro’s is all about HIIT and how great it is, but yet people are still killing themselves for long periods of time on the treadmill or around their neighborhood.  Give this a shot and maybe it’ll work for you.

Now that’s one study right?  That could be an outlier and so it wouldn’t apply to the general public.  For the cynics out there let’s address a second study.  These individuals were trained rowers.  The researchers had one group endurance train for four weeks and another group did high intensity training for the a shorter amount of time.  The researchers in this study were looking at adiponectin levels, which are believed to increase fat oxidation (fat burning) in mitochondria (where fat is broken down).

1.  The study found that the HIIT group had higher adiponectin levels post exercise than the END group. 

2.  The HIIT group also had lower body fat percentage than the END group. 

3.  On top of the composition change, there was greater power seen in the HIIT training group.

So why should you try this?  First of all most people in America need more exercise and activity and with our busy schedules, this type of training may help you save time.  An important thing to consider is our bodies tend to take the path of least resistance.  Just because we want our bodies to look a certain way or perform a certain way this doesn’t make it automatically happen.  This means that as we run more our bodies become more efficient and we actually burn less calories the more we run.  Remember that our bodies first instinct is to survive and the better we get at activities the better our bodies get at conserving energy.  There are several reasons why and I won’t get into specifics, but it makes sense doesn’t it?  The more you practice any activity the better you get and most of the time it has to deal with saving time such as washing the car faster or finding a more productive way to rake the yard.  The more you do it, the more effective you get.  Our bodies are no different.  We conserve energy (calories) during our runs by relying on things like the stretch shortening cycle, efficient calorie consumption and various sling systems in our bodies that aid us in everyday life.  Again, I’m not attacking people who enjoy running or even running itself.  What I am doing is presenting activities that may be more beneficial to you and your busy schedule.  If running is what you enjoy then by all means keep doing it, but there are more ways to be healthy and various ways to become more aesthetic i.e. “toned” if that is your goal.   Remember that we must "train"  our bodies and not simply burn hundreds of calories.  This takes time and hard work! 

So what do I do with all this information?  Hopefully you’ll use it and you will contribute more of your time to researching different programs and ways to train.  This article only touches on two areas of exercise of which there is a vast amount of areas.  I admit that finding the “right” program or diet that works for you can be daunting and difficult, but it’s worth a try.  What I want you to get from this article is that there is always a new finding and don’t be so quick to assume things as facts.  I’m sure in 5 years more of our “facts” will be proven otherwise, but until then keep active and stay healthy!