How to burn more calories running

The good news is that according to Healthline, running burns more calories per hour than any other form of exercise. So, if the aim of your workout is to burn calories, you’ve chosen the most effective way to do it. But how can you fine-tune your workout to burn even more calories when running? Let’s look at some of the subtle changes you can make to really feel the burn.

Do you burn more calories running in the cold? 

Logic suggests that running in the cold would burn more calories than running when it’s hot, simply due to the extra calories the body burns to keep you warm. However, running when it’s cold is not an effective strategy to boost your calorie burn rate. As long as you dress appropriately for the weather, the rise in body temperature that occurs when you’re running will prevent the body’s natural warming mechanisms, such as shivering, from kicking in. 

In fact, there’s evidence to suggest that runners eat more after cold-weather workouts, possibly due to the natural increase in appetite we experience during the winter months. The solution is to keep running whatever the weather but to be cautious of what you eat immediately afterwards.  

Do you burn more calories running uphill? 

Yes. Running uphill rather on the flat can burn up to 250 calories more per hour. Studies show that a 180-pound person running uphill would burn around 1,250 calories per hour, compared to 1,000 calories on the flat. Equally, a 150-pound person would burn around 1,000 calories an hour running uphill and 800 on the flat. Interestingly, the gradient doesn’t have to be huge. Even just a gradual incline of a few percent can make all the difference to the calorie-burning efficiency of your run.

If you don’t have access to a treadmill or your local area is mostly flat, simply adding weights such as a weighted vest, wrist weights or a backpack will increase the number of calories you burn on your run. The heavier the weight, the more calories you’ll burn. 

Does running faster burn more calories?

Many people assume that running long distances is the best way to lose weight, simply because all those extra miles add up to lots of calories burned. However, all those additional miles can have a dramatic impact on appetite, which causes some runners to overeat and put most or all of those calories back on. 

For that reason, running faster rather than running longer is the best way to burn calories. Speeding up one or two of your weekly runs could make a big difference. Running faster burns more calories in three ways:

• As intensity of exercise increases, so does calorie burning, with up to ten extra calories burnt per minute;
• After an intense run, you continue to burn calories as your body recovers at up to twice the rate of a low-effort session;
• A high-intensity run produces extra heat which affects temperature-sensitive appetite controls and puts a damper on your appetite. 

What burns more calories, running or spinning?

Spinning is often thought of as the ultimate calorie-burning workout in the gym, but how does it compete with running on a treadmill or the open road? Both running and spinning are among the best ways to burn calories and improve your cardiovascular health. However, when it comes to calories burnt per minute, there can only be one winner.  

A 30-minute treadmill running session for a 155-pound adult at 6mph will burn around 350 calories. That same adult will burn approximately 260 calories during a moderate 30-minute session on a spin bike. However, a spinning class takes calorie burning to a whole new level. In an intense spin class, all that shouting and sweating adds up to a calorie burn rate of 400-600 calories for a 30-minute session. That makes it extremely tough to beat.   

Top tips to burn more calories while running

1. Reduce rest periods during your workout to keep your heart rate higher for longer periods. 
2. An easy way to boost the calories you burn during your run is to include a few jumping exercises, such as jump squats, jump lunges and burpees, in your warm up. 
3. Interval training is the key to supercharging your workout and torching a few extra calories. Unlike steady-state cardio, interval training will build intensity and increase your heart and metabolic rate. 
4. Switching directions during your run can be a simple way to increase your calorie burn rate. Running backwards or sideways will strengthen your hips and force you to work more purposefully. Adding a resistance band will also ramp up the work you do.