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Thursday, January 17, 2013

Walking vs Running

Now walking generally uses the same amount of energy (unless you're speedwalking for the Olympics), and in an hour, walking will use 240-468 kcal.  However, running is a totally different story.  Running for an hour varies so much because it depends on how fast you're running.  An individual can run a mile in 14 minutes.  Another person might run a mile in 4 minutes.  Now, yesterday, I had run for about an hour, and in that hour, I was able to run 8.61 miles.  Looking at how much I weighed and how fast I ran, the mapmyrun app said that I burned 1031 kcal.  That's over 500 kcal more than what walking for an hour can do.  According to this calculator, for me, each mile is worth 120 kcal.  Instead of counting the hours, I'll be looking at calories used per mile.

Considering that an individual needs to use 3,500 more calories to lose a pound, it will take 29 miles to lose a pound.  However, this only assumes you are replacing using ZERO calories with the calories used to running 29 miles.  Obviously, as we are always using calories, I'm going to say that if an individual doesn't change ANYTHING else in his or her life, they would need to run 30 more miles in order to lose a pound.

As for me and my life, I already run a good bit, and so what I would need to do (should I not change anything else except my running), would be to add 30 miles to my training in order to lose a pound.  Fortunately, I don't have to lose too much weight to get into my 'ideal weight' so by August, I'll be able to get to a point where I need to be.  It's dangerous to suddenly jump into using too much energy to lose weight.  When change happens, it's better to let it become a part of your life and eventually balance it out til your body finds that good balance.

My goal is to run and finish the Leadville 100.  I can't just jump into getting myself to that point.  It'll take dedication and perseverance to get there.  Adding the extra running to my life will be good for me.  It'll help me take that step towards sculpting my body into that of a professional ultra distance runner.

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