Read 37 times since Friday, December 23, 2011
Running is without a doubt the most effective way to lose weight, the only thing is you have to diversify the workout to get continuous results. You can do this by increasing the intensity or the speed of the run, or you can start finding inclines to move up or down on.
The interesting thing about working with inclines is the different muscles that it develops. When running on flat ground you are only working the most core muscle, this is great for toning the clalves and thighs.
Though, it is easy to hit a plateau, not in a literal sense because obviously you already have but in a muscle developmental sense. When you practice the same routine repetitively the body gets used to it and starts to quit developing outward shape and starts fortifying the muscle to maintain rather than develop.
So what you have to do is start working with other routines to create muscle confusion. Muscle confusion is a very popular term ever since the p90x system came to the market.
You do not have to change the workout every day or every week for that matter, you can actually go two weeks on two weeks off between separate workouts. So for the first two weeks you start running up hill and for the second two weeks you start running flat ground again.
This will keep the muscles confused enough to promote physical development. Running up hill is going to develop more strength and jumping ability, this is going to also burn many, many more calories.
Working at a forty percent incline is going to create twice the caloric burn that flat level ground would. So if you are trying to lose weight and strengthen the legs then you would want to use the uphill and flat land technique.
Though, if you are training to run faster, you need to start running downhill. Running downhill trains the body to move in a way that is more ergonomically correct, plus the accelerated run from the pull of gravity trains your legs to move faster.
So it is a win-win, though it doesn't burn as many calories as running up hill does. If you are training for races incorporating downhill training is going to give you an immense advantage.
You can also train your legs to move faster by using treadmills. By turning to speed up dangerously high you will force your legs to move at rate they are not comfortable with, and this will develop the plyometric response necessary for quicker runs.
Start running on hills and inclines of all sorts and you will see what it does and how it effects your run and body. Good luck and get fit. Destry Masterson is an author who has written hundreds of articles. She publishes articles for http://www.nordictrack.com and recommends them for treadmills.
Contact Info:
Destry Masterson - MyOnlineArticleWriting@gmail.com - Twitter: @DestryMasterson
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