Experts Say Step Away From The Treadmill

Everyone knows the fastest route to losing weight is running on the treadmill or hitting the pavement right? I say slowly “step away from the treadmill” and no one gets hurt.

At The Life By Design Centre we definitely (with reason) buck the trend of conventional wisdom and our disapproval of “chronic cardio” is no different.

“That’s blasphemy!” you say. Everyone knows that in order to lose body fat and get lean you need to spend a lot of time walking the infinite steps to nowhere on the climber. Still not buying in? Go to the gym, take a look at everyone running, walking, and cycling…head back a year later and voila, no change.  

How can that be? How can someone spend hours sweating it out in the cardio section and not lose body fat?

As discussed before, our body’s genetics have been shaped by our lifestyle over the past 40,000 years. Our hunter-gatherer ancestors didn’t spend an hour a day significantly elevating their heart rates, but they did spend many hours walking at a slow pace using fat as the primary energy source (as well as sprinting occasionally and lifting heavy things). As such, our current physiology is set up to handle those demands.

When you elevate your heart rate for extended time periods on a chronic basis with no regard for recovery, you start to depend on stored glycogen as an energy source and as a result, you eat excessive amounts of carbohydrates (sugar) to refuel that lost energy.

Total up the lack of results, the inflammatory effects of chronic cardio, the boredom and it equals a no-brainer – run if you love to or if it’s purposeful, but don’t fool yourself into believing it’ll be your best fat loss vehicle.

 There is even some good research that suggests not only is extended cardio not the best bet for fat loss but it may also be damaging to the heart, cause inflammation and heart disease! 

I’m not suggesting we’re not designed to run for distance nor should we avoid it like the plague, simply that we’re cognizant of the potential negative effects and limit the amount of unhealthy, untrained people that choose endurance running as their first choice for fat loss. 

Low to moderate endurance efforts have their place in a balanced training program but just remember…”You’re human, not hamster”.

If you would love to see if an expert led group strength & conditioning program is right for you…try a FREE training session on us.

Dr. Jamie Richards

I’m Jamie and I’m obsessed with health, passionate about maximizing performance and love being an expert in Bio-Structural Restoration™. As the CEO and founder of Life By Design Inc. I have the drive to lead our community toward extraordinary lives. I am in love with my wife, Dana, daughters Andie & Scottie, I’m fanatical about modern design, and I’m deeply committed to the pursuit of a happy life.