Carrying extra weight is a health concern, increasing your risk for high blood pressure, heart disease and diabetes. However, approximately 68 percent of Americans struggle to lose extra pounds, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Jogging is effective for burning fat and reducing your risk for serious health concerns. If you're interested in jogging to lose weight, it helps to set running goals that will inspire your progress.
Calorie Deficit and Weight Loss
Jogging regularly helps you create a calorie deficit. This means your body burns more calories than it needs, resulting in weight loss. A pound of fat is equal to 3,500 calories. Therefore, if you want to lose 1 to 2 lbs. of fat with jogging, you need to burn 500 to 1,000 calories daily. If this goal seems too high, consider combining diet modifications with your jogging routine. For example, jog to burn 400 calories and eat 600 calories fewer daily, for a 2 lb. weekly weight loss.
Calories Burned Jogging
The amount of calories you burn jogging varies, based on your weight and jogging pace. For example, a 160 lb. person jogging at 5 mph burns 584 calories an hour, according to the Mayo Clinic. If you weigh more you'll burn more calories per hour. For instance, if you're 200 lbs. you'll burn 728 calories an hour jogging -- someone weighing 240 lbs. burns approximately 872 calories an hour.
Workout Guidelines
For consistent weight loss, you need to schedule jogging sessions most days of the week. At a minimum, schedule two hours and 30 minutes of exercise weekly. This breaks down to five 30 minute sessions every week. If you're having a hard time meeting this goal, break jogging into a couple different sessions. For example, jog for 15 minutes in the morning and 15 minutes in the evening.
Increase Calorie Burning
If you want to increase calorie burning use jogging with circuit training. This type of workout approach burns 30 percent more calories, according to "Fitness Magazine." Start out with a strength training movement such as abdominal crunches. Complete this exercise for a couple minutes, then switch to a couple minutes of jogging. Continue this rotation, selecting a new strength training movement during each interval.
References
- "Fitness" Magazine Circuit Training Workout: Burn 30 Percent More Calories
- MayoClinic.com: Exercise for Weight Loss: Calories Burned in 1 Hour
- Mayo Clinic: Interval Training: Can it boost your Calorie-Burning Power
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: Statistics Related to Overweight and Obesity
- Mayo Clinic: Exercise for Weight Loss: Calories Burned in 1 Hour



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