How to Lose Weight Without Running
How to Lose Weight Without Running: Introduction
So, you want to know how to lose weight without running.
This is understandable because if you're here, it's likely that, just like me, you're not a big fan of it either.
So throughout this "How to lose weight without running" article, you'll find out the tricks n tips that helped me lose 19kg in 7.5 months - all without any running whatsoever.
As well as the answer to other popular questions, such as:
"Why am I not losing weight running?"
"Does running make you gain weight?"
"Does running burn fat or muscle?"
So buckle up, hold on tight, and keep reading.
How to Lose Weight Without Running: How Does Weight Loss Occur
Considering this article's central theme is "How often should I run to lose weight", it's crucial to establish how weight loss occurs.
Put simply; weight loss occurs by being in a calorie deficit. A calorie deficit is when you eat fewer calories relative to the number of calories required for maintaining your current body weight.
A deficit can be created by reducing the number of calories eaten and/or increasing expenditure, meaning losing weight without cardio is possible.
Here's an example when looking at some popular dietary approaches:
Low carb, keto/Atkins, low fat, paleo, clean eating, raw food, carnivore, vegetarian, and vegan all help limit food choices.
Intermittent fasting helps limit the time available to eat.
Intuitive eating helps limit the desire to overeat.
Weight Watchers, flexible dieting/IIFYM, and meal plans help limit total food amount.
Although some approaches are much better than others, none are magical. They all lead back to an increased likelihood of being in a deficit.
This doesn't mean eating as little as possible or eating junk for as long as you're in a deficit because weight and health aren't mutually exclusive.
To do this healthily, keeping your calories as high as possible whilst still being in a calorie deficit and prioritising your protein is the main aim when losing weight.
Bonus points if you have some veg and fruit every day too.
Do you notice how exercise is minimally mentioned here? That's because even though exercise can help with fat loss, you'll never be able to out-exercise what you put into your mouth—making nutrition the main driver for fat loss.
So bear that in mind as you navigate this "lose weight without running" article.
How to Lose Weight Without Running: So Why is Running so Popular for Weight Loss?
So now that we've established nutrition is the primary driver, why does running seem so popular for weight loss? Why does it feel like everyone is doing it?
At times they'll even start running with weight!
After coaching people online worldwide, from the USA to Australia to Romania, my experienced guess is running seems to be the biggest "go-to" for weight loss because it's what you see burns the most calories within the moment.
Although there are several issues with this thought process:
Yes, exercise is good for you, but you shouldn't do it with the intent of burning calories. Otherwise, you'll forever be chasing your tail.
Strength training is more effective in the long term regarding fat loss.
The machines you're potentially using to do your cardio have been proven to report wildly inaccurate "calorie burn" estimates, with it sometimes being up to 50% off.
Let's speak about each section in more depth.
Statement 1
"Yes, exercise is good for you, but you shouldn't do it with the intent of burning calories. Otherwise, you'll forever be chasing your tail."
Because as said before, you can't out-exercise what you eat.
So if you're wondering, "Can I lose weight by running 30 minutes a day" then you're asking the wrong questions.
Plus, exercising purely to burn more calories, e.g. "How many calories do you burn running 5km?" is an easy way to build a poor relationship with exercise.
This approach will also cause you to likely ignore other types of progress you've made in your workouts.
Statement 2
"Strength training is much more effective in the long term regarding fat loss."
More strength and muscle also help you lead an easier and more active life due to not having as many issues moving around and being active, e.g.:
You can pick up super heavy luggage at the airport without asking someone else to do it.
If you have kids or little ones in the family, you'll have the strength and energy to keep up with them.
You can carry your grocery shopping without as much of an issue.
And all of these seemingly small behaviours add up over weeks, months and years - causing your NEAT to increase (more on this later) and therefore burn a ton more calories over that time.
All because you decided to start picking up and putting down relatively heavy weights, leading you to lose weight without cardio.
It's also worth mentioning that you become less likely to fall and pick up injuries. Being injured less often means you can be a lot more active more often too.
Overall, an excellent cycle to be in.
You can also grab a free gym workout plan from my website here.
Statement 3
"The machines you're potentially using to do your cardio have been proven to report wildly inaccurate "calorie burn" estimates, with it sometimes being up to 50% off."
50% is a lot, especially if you're making the mistake of eating back calories burnt.
So if you're wondering how many calories you burn running 5km, using a treadmill to confirm that total is not a good idea.
How to Lose Weight Without Running: The Catch? You Don't Need to Do Any Running at All.
So with all this said, within the prior sections of this "losing weight without cardio" article, it becomes safe to say that you don't need to run to lose weight.
Two of the most important factors when it comes to weight loss are:
Being in a calorie deficit.
Eating a gram of protein per centimetre of height.
You could also use non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) to your advantage and get that up as much as possible.
So what's NEAT? Well, it's the best way to lose weight without running.
Because NEAT is the energy (calories) expended for everything we do that isn't sleeping, eating or sports-like exercise.
It ranges from the energy expended walking, going up and down the stairs, carrying your groceries, gardening, picking up objects, putting down things and fidgeting.
It's also one of the most overlooked things on a fat loss journey. Perhaps surprisingly, to you, it contributes a lot more to overall fat loss success than the 30 to 60 minutes of exercise (EAT) you may be doing on some days.
See the image as to why this is the case.
A big pro tip for you moving forward is to give yourself a step goal of 2,000-2,500 more than you're currently getting on average.
Weekly, that's upwards of an additional 17,500 steps, and monthly an extra 70,000.
A massive difference.
Couple that with you being in a calorie deficit and keeping protein high. You're sure to see and feel some tremendous results.
Note 1: Protein is essential because keeping your protein high means that you'll only lose fat, and not valuable muscle, whilst in a calorie deficit.
Note 2: As said, the initial difference in step goal may not sound like much, but that's precisely what you're after. The best habits you can stick to are the ones that don't feel like you're taking on too much too soon.
Better a tiny habit than going from 2,000 steps a day to trying to lose weight walking 4 miles a day suddenly.
That could be too much of a jump for some.
A recommended read!
How to Lose Weight Without Running: Don't Make Weight Loss The Only Thing You Focus on
If weight loss is something you've struggled with for many years, then it'd potentially be a good idea not to make weight loss your main aim or even a focus at all, because sometimes, your obsession with losing weight that causes you to have a hard time losing it.
Years of continuously Googling and obsessing about "Why am I not losing weight running?", "Why does it take so long to lose weight?" or "How many calories do you burn running 5km?" can get very exhausting.
Here's what you should do instead; either have strength goals and/or consistency goals.
These are both superb ideas because not only may weight loss be a byproduct of the above, but it also takes your focus away from losing weight and instead put it towards something you should be focusing on anyway.
Some great ideas for strength goals could look like this:
Deadlifting your body weight.
Squatting half your body weight.
Getting your first full range of motion push-up.
Doing your first chin up.
Farmers walk a third of your body weight.
Some great ideas for consistency goals could look like this:
Be 85-95% consistent with your three focuses, e.g. steps, workouts and calories.
Aim to go to the gym three times this week.
Hit your step goal in 6 out of 7 days this week.
Hit your protein goal on 25 out of 30 days within the month.
Only order takeaway once a week instead of four times.
Overall, you can vary strength and consistency goals depending on your starting point and what you think is realistic. Ensure it's not weight-focused, e.g. "I'm going to lose weight walking 4 miles a day".
Pro tip:
When selecting a consistency goal, you should have at least an 8 out of 10 confidence that you will achieve it.
If it's less, either figure out how to get to at least an 8 or decide on a different consistency goal instead.
The last thing you wanna do is pick an unrealistic consistency goal, which causes you to feel demotivated when you realise it's way too challenging, resulting in you not wanting to try at all.
Pick goals that'll increase your momentum.
How to Lose Weight Without Running: Quickfire Q & A
Before finishing, I did a quickfire Q & A answering six popular Googled questions about running and weight loss, so here goes.
Question 1
"How often should I run to lose weight?"
Wondering how often you should be running for weight loss is you asking the wrong question. You could run 0 or 5 hours a day - but if you're not in a calorie deficit, there'll be no weight loss.
Question 2
"Can I lose weight by running 30 minutes a day?"
Yes, in the same way, you can lose weight by running for 0 or 100 minutes a day.
"But surely running will help even more?”
Maybe, but think of it like this, let's say you're butt naked (bear with me), and you go outside in the cold - you're going to be freezing.
Think of running for weight loss as the equivalent of you only wearing a t-shirt in the cold - it'll make a tiny difference, but it'll feel like borderline nothing at all.
This is why you should instead focus on the calorie deficit, high protein and strength training - these are your thick winter jacket, sweatpants and boots.
Question 3
"Why am I not losing weight running?"
Simply put, because you're not in a calorie deficit.
A calorie deficit guarantees weight loss, not running.
Question 4
"Why does it take so long to lose weight?"
The most likely reason is that you need more patience and/or consistency.
Think of it like this - how long have you been out of shape and not looking after your health? It's been years and maybe decades - so to expect weight loss results in just a few weeks shows you need to adjust your expectations.
Tough love? Maybe, but it's often true.
Question 5
"Does running make you gain weight?"
No, but resistance training could make you gain weight - not fat.
Remember, weight gain doesn't have to be associated with being "bad".
Because if you gain 1kg worth of muscle, but lose 0.5kg of fat, overall, you would've gained 0.5kg on the scale - but your body composition would be improving immensely.
Question 6
"Does running burn fat or muscle?"
Running burns calories, and it'll depend on other factors as to whether you lose fat or muscle, e.g., adequate protein intake, resistance training with a progressive overload, etc.
How to Lose Weight Without Running: Final Take
To summarise this "Losing weight without running" article, understand that running is overrated for weight loss. I can easily name 15 other more important factors when it comes to losing weight, such as:
A calorie deficit
Having a step goal
Prioritising fibre
Sufficient sleep length
Cooking more often
Drinking more water
Cutting down on alcohol
Planning in advance
Not to mention that running can be a poor place to start if you're overweight or obese due to the repeated force on the knee joint with each stride.
This further proves why strength training and walking are more sensible places to start.
Although if you're starting and feel overwhelmed by everything, then to summarise with the essential points:
Be in a slight calorie deficit, which you can figure out by clicking here.
Aim for about 0.7g of protein per centimetre of height, which you should aim to gradually increase to a gram per centimetre of height as you get more comfortable tracking protein.
Aim for 2.5k steps more than your current average.
How to Lose Weight Without Running: Ending
In the opening section of this "Losing weight without running" article, I say, "You're going to find out the tricks n tips that helped me lose 19kg in 7.5 months". Understand that this shouldn't be used as the benchmark of your success.
Because even though this happened, being a personal trainer and online coach means I have a lot more experience and understanding of health related-habits than most of the population. Because I dedicate my life to learning about it.
So don't give yourself 7.5 months or any deadline. Give it as long as it needs to take.
It's also worth mentioning that if you've read this entire article, but you love running, or if you must run for whatever reason, then don't let me stop you - feel free to still go ahead with it, because doing what you enjoy most is super important too.
One of many reasons why running may be a necessity.
I hope this helped.
So if you were previously wondering, "Can you lose fat without cardio?"
Well, now you know.
If you want to follow my weight loss journey post-3 months in Texas, I'm documenting it on my YouTube channel.
So click the link to watch the most recent video when publishing this article, and of course - don't forget to subscribe to the YouTube channel too!
Speak soon,
Leo
P.S. If you found this "Losing weight without cardio" article helpful, please share it with at least one friend. It'd mean the world to a small business like mine.
