Being overweight or obese can lead to serious and even deadly health risks, such as some cancers, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and asthma. Reducing your risk for serious chronic disease such as these is as simple as losing weight and exercising regularly each week. Jogging is a popular and effective way to reduce and maintain your weight and increase your overall health. Always speak with your doctor before beginning any new exercise routine.
Aerobic Activity Basics
Aerobic activities such as jogging are the most effective types of exercise when trying to lose weight and keep it off. The body's large muscles perform aerobic exercise as they move in a rhythmic and sustained motion. This type of exercise needs oxygen to produce energy. The longer you do an aerobic exercise, the more calories your body uses and the more fat your body burns.
Calories Burned Jogging
Jogging is a moderate or vigorous exercise that burns many calories. This calorie burn and a healthy diet can help you maintain your weight loss. According to MayoClinic.com, a 160-lb. person jogging at 5 mph burns 584 calories per hour. At the same speed, someone who is 200 lbs. burns 728 calories each hour. Running at 8 mph burns 986 calories each hour for someone who weighs 160 lbs.
Interval Training
To increase the amount of calories you burn while jogging in order to maintain your weight, consider running intervals. Interval training occurs when you alternate short bursts of more vigorous activity with light or moderate activity. If you normally jog at 5 mph for your entire workout, try to add 30-second or 1-minute bursts at 8 mph every few minutes. This allows you to burn more calories in the same amount of time as your regular jogging routine.
How Much?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that healthy adults get 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic exercise, such as jogging intervals, in addition to two sessions of strength training each week. Ideally, spread out the 75 minutes over five days. To maintain your weight, you may need to exercise for longer durations more often throughout the week, depending on your caloric intake and other factors. If you are just beginning, start out jogging for five to 10 minutes, and gradually increase the duration.
References
- Harvard School of Public Health: How to Get to Your Healthy Weight
- The President's Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition: Exercise and Weight Control
- MayoClinic.com; Exercise for Weight Loss: Calories Burned in 1 Hour; December 2009
- American Council on Exercise: Interval Training
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: How Much Physical Activity Do Adults Need?
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