Is 3 runs a week enough exercise?

[DeeMak]

Hello all it's I have finished my 4th week and haven't seen any change in my weight 🙄. I run and walk between level 3 to 12 with max speed 5. Is this enough exercise to see and feel changes? Do I need to do more? Has anyone else have noticed the difference within 4 weeks?

[John_W Graduate Ambassador]

Before others add their replies re: C25K and weight-loss, I'm curious to know why you started and what your expectation were/are ...

[DeeMak in reply to John_W]

Hi John thanks for the message.

Being really honest here. I never thought about running. I loved doing basic yoga, walks and bit of light strength training. But I injured my elbow hence cannot do any of the above and found about c25k from my GP. I'm really enjoying it but little deflated as I have not seen any positive changes yet.

[John_W Graduate Ambassador in reply to DeeMak]

OK, what 'positive changes' were you expecting?

[DeeMak in reply to John_W]

Inch loss or some weight loss.

[Annieapple Administrator Graduate]

🍏😊Welcome to our forum Dee. So pleased you have completed 4 weeks already. That’s awesome!

Weight loss is a complex issue & not many lose straight away but with healthy eating you shouldn’t gain either!

If you look at the bottom of your running app there are some helpful articles about what to eat when you run.

We don’t advise running too fast on the program until you graduate. This is to prevent injury. By the end of the 9 weeks your body will be far more ready to cope with fartleks and speed runs, &preparing for races etc and that may keep your weight under control. Exercise and good eating habits go hand in hand. What you will notice is a tightening up of your muscles particularly in your legs as you consistently run 3x week. Running makes you feel good so it’s easier to control comfort eating.

Week 5 is a really fun week so enjoy and let us know how you get on! X

[DeeMak in reply to Annieapple]

Thank you.

[Cmoi Graduate]

You might find this FAQ post helpful DeeMak : healthunlocked.com/couchto5...

Personally C25K helped me tone up, but I didn't lose weight. To do so I need to resist comfort eating and do at least one longer (for me that's 10km minimum) run a week. Fwiw, the only time I've ever been able to eat what I wanted and lose rather than gain weight was during trail marathon training.

I live in a hilly, rural area and only ever run outdoors, so I have absolutely no understanding of the numbers you mention. I would nonetheless advise against adding to the C25K programme, or trying to speed up beyond a pace that's comfortable for you.

[DeeMak in reply to Cmoi]

Thank you.

[MissUnderstanding Administrator Graduate in reply to Cmoi]

I’ve never been lucky enough to hit the eating absolutely everything I want phase of running… I’d need to go back to being in my twenties again for that! Plus everything I want includes a LOT of cheese. I put weight on during my half marathon training. I was just hungry all the time!

Running up hills has been great for my legs and derrière though! Plus it’s a lot of fun…

Couch to 5k is brilliant for health and fitness but not really for losing weight. The weight loss board might be of use to you with that DeeMak . Wishing you all the best with that aspect of your health journey.

healthunlocked.com/weight-l...

[DeeMak in reply to MissUnderstanding]

Thank you for your help.

[Dendev75 Graduate in reply to Cmoi]

How many runs do you do a week? Is your longer run always at least 10k? I’m just curious as I’ve only started increasing my distance recently due to training for a half but once I’ve completed it - I’m not really sure what to do.

[Cmoi Graduate in reply to Dendev75]

How often and how far I run weekly varies wildly Dendev75 ! For the past few months mostly a couple of times a week, and certainly not always including a 10k+run.

I'm really not interested in training, goals, PBs and races, so I just do what makes me happy. That's getting in as much vertical as possible, exploring forest trails and hills, and going on ridiculous stop-start all-over-the-place outings with the dog.

However, if I decide to do a solo ultra or enter another serious trail event, I'll prepare accordingly. That will involve a focused, much more structured approach.

For me personally, doing what works and what's enjoyable is key. In practice, what that means for me and for you might well be very different.

Enjoy your HM training!

[Dendev75 Graduate in reply to Cmoi]

Thanks for replying, I’ve been trying new runs including cross country and trail running - it’s keeping things interesting - I think that’s the key really.

[Heti Graduate]

Hi!

In my case, it has taken me 6 months to really see a difference in body weight and shape. I’ve lost 2 dress sizes by now. As an older runner, I’ve taken time to re-run weeks before moving onto next run. My goal was to become healthier and more energetic rather than run a 5K.

Hoping this helps!

Best wishes,

Ceirios

[DeeMak in reply to Heti]

Thank you so much.

[Oldfloss Administrator Graduate]

Good morning... and well done to you for getting this far!

As Annieapple has said, some lose and some gain weight on this plan. It is not a weight loss programme but may, impact your weight.

I have gained weight... and I have lost weight... Currently trying to get weight back on.

So. is it enough exercise?

Well exercise alone, done safely and enjoyably is no guarantee for weight loss. There is an old adage.. to lose weight, " Eat less, move more".

It would probably be better to rephrase it? Maybe Move more and eat healthily and well.

How much other exercise are you doing, whilst running this programme.? We advise all our new runners to try to do some strength and core work on some of the rest days. As the runs get longer that need for core strength and stamina work becomes more important, and there is a chance that the increased exercise is working towards that loss you mention.

There is so much in guidance on the post which I am sure you will have read ... the How to run C25K post. There are too, a wealth of exercises for the strength and stamina on the S and F forum. If you have not taken a peek, maybe it is time to do so.

Aslo, many of our friends on the running forums are also regulars on the sister forum, Weight Loss Support. If you feel like it, you could pop in there... linked with their advice, and the advice here, many of our friends, find it is a great combination.

Regular exercise and a healthy eating regime, also a winning combination

I hope this may have given you some ideas... and look forward to watching your progress

[DeeMak]

Thank you so much 🙂

[Trailslogg Graduate]

FWIW I started in September wanting to improve my general fitness rather than wishing to lose weight. In November - almost two months in! - I noticed that my legs looked more toned. I imagine that any changes take a while...

[DeeMak in reply to Trailslogg]

True. Thank you.

[LeeU Graduate]

I've always lost weight when I've done the program but when you're starting from essentially sitting on a computer all day and weighing 25 stone then ANY exercise will help move some weight..

The most I've ever lost has been around 2 stone BUT the other changes that happened were more impressive (to me anyway)

The adaptation of the cardio system is amazing, from struggling to run for 8x1m segments in week 1 to running for 30 minutes in 9 weeks, which is 27 runs.

My body did change quite a bit, my legs in particular but general all over changes too.

The worst part is the more you run, the more the muscles in your legs react, while you'll never build massive muscles from running alone you will find you do add some mass in your thighs.

I found that the right diet lost me more weight than any exercise ever has.

The main thing is to try and enjoy the running, as a supermarket chain says, every little helps.

[DeeMak in reply to LeeU]

Thank you. Yes I'm trying and I keep forgetting that every little helps 🙂

[Sax64 Graduate]

You may find this interesting to listen to. It's Michael Moseley's Weight Loss Special with Dr Giles Yeo. With lots of useful info about diet and exercise.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001t...

Good luck with C25K

[DeeMak in reply to Sax64]

Thank you so much.

[Semley]

Having originally thought that exercise would result in weight lose, I've discovered that it's good at maintaining weight and building muscle tone but to lose weight I have to eat less, even healthy foods, which I find much more challenging! But in doing more exercise I am fitter - some would say it's the best medicine...

[DeeMak in reply to Semley]

Thank you.

[Teaching]

Dieting is good with exercise!

[nowster Graduate in reply to Teaching]

As long as it's a sensible diet and not a "lose X pounds in Y weeks" fad diet.

[DeeMak in reply to nowster]

I just like to drop one dress size in 2 months. Not planning on doing any drastic diets just right knowledge that's why I asked in the forum. Thank you so much for your message.

[nowster Graduate]

You will develop muscle as you exercise, and that may add itself before the stored fats start to get used up. What I mean is that your weight may go up a little before it goes down.

It's unlikely you'll burn much fat in the early weeks. For that you need to keep at it long term.

Before I started C25K my general sedentary lifestyle and love for biscuits meant I was starting to develop a bit of a belly and I was getting heavier jowls on my face. I'm a guy.

I properly took up C25K in June 2020 after two failed starts. I also cut back the biscuits and substituted cheese slices on Ryvita which were a little more satisfying anyway.

Gradually over the first six months I lost about 5kg. Then I plateaued over the winter months, then lost another 5kg over the following year.

The first thing I noticed was that my face had slimmed up. Then my trousers started to feel tight around the thigh area. And gradually I was no longer straining my belt.

I've put a few kilos back on since, but that's probably because I haven't been as strict with the biscuits.

[DeeMak in reply to nowster]

Thank you so very much for sharing your experience. This really helps me to understand my journey to feel better and within myself.

[nowster Graduate in reply to DeeMak]

There seems to be a point in the metabolism where the balance tips in favour of fat burning for some, and that's during a sustained aerobic activity of over an hour. For me the second dip in weight started when I was regularly doing a long run of 75 minutes or more once a week.

[DeeMak in reply to nowster]

Thank you for your help.

[Larry46]

I started running in April 2020 and was hoping/assuming that I would lose weight, on the basis that I would be expending a lot more calories than I had before. However, I was surprised/disappointed when I didn't. I carried on running because I liked it, and because of all the other benefits. I didn't lose weight until a year or so ago, which appears to be all down to just eating less.

As I understand it, all the evidence points to exercise not being effective as a tool to lose weight, but it is a way of maintaining weight loss. I can't say I understand that as if you go from no exercise to running several hours a week, then that is quite a big increase in calories expended, which you would notice if you were replacing that by eating an equivalent amount of calories. But it's what the evidence shows, and it's what I experienced.

Lots of good advice above, but two from me -

1) get an app like Strava, or something else, which will show you how many calories you burn running (based on your weight/time/speed and maybe heart rate?), but take the actual figure with a pinch of salt. I round it down to the nearest 100, and then halve it, as indicating the amount of 'extra' calories I could take on safely.

2) whilst muscle does weigh more that fat, and it is theoretically possible to lose fat and maintain or increase muscle, it is very, very difficult. Almost everyone who loses weight on a diet will lose fat and muscle. So, if your weight is the same week on week, whilst it is possible that you are losing fat, it's pretty unlikely. I say that as when I was complaining about not losing weight when I started running, a few people said things along the lines of that I may have replaced the fat with muscle. It's a seductive idea, but not a likely one.

Once I started losing weight, my speed increased naturally, to quite a remarkable extent (this website - runninglevel.com/ has a calculator for roughly how much) it was a real motivator.

Not sure if any of that helps, but good luck with it!

[DeeMak in reply to Larry46]

Wow thank you so much for your message and thank you for sharing your experiences and support. This really helps. I'm truly grateful.

[Tasha99 Graduate]

you won’t lose weight by exercising unless you change your diet too.

[DeeMak in reply to Tasha99]

Thank you.

[Dendev75 Graduate]

I only noticed toning (less cellulite), I didn’t lose any weight until I changed my diet - trying to eat only food I’ve prepped and cooked myself now.

[DeeMak in reply to Dendev75]

Thank you.