Most runners that I’ve worked with through my e-coaching and running schools feel that they would run better and feel better if they reduced the amount of fat on the body. While researching for my books Running Until You’re 100 & A Woman’s Guide To Running, I discovered several key tips that have helped runners lose that "last 10 pounds":


* Get a step counter and shoot for 10,000 steps a day—regardless of how much you’re running. Insert your walking during the "lulls of your life" when you’re waiting for a meeting to start, while watching the kids, during a TV commercial, etc. Runners have told me that they have burned up to 20 pounds in a year, by averaging more than 10K walking steps a day.

* Keep a small notebook (your food journal) with you and record everything you eat. This will allow you to learn portion control. Because the journal makes you aware of what you’re eating, most cut back on the "bad" foods when journaling.

* Instead of eating 2-3 times a day, eat 8-10 times a day. Assuming the same number of calories consumed eating each way, you may burn up to 10 pounds in a year from this lifestyle change. You’ll feel better throughout the day also.

* Use one of the many "calorie counting" websites. A site like http://www.fitday.com/, for example, can help you gain control over the intake side of the equation. Not only will it tell you the calorie gain or loss each day—it will give you an accounting of the vitamins, minerals, protein, etc. This is the best tool I know for learning what you are really eating, and what you’re missing.

* Don’t get discouraged if you hit "plateaus" or "bump ups" in your weight. The ebb and flow of fluids will leave you up some days when you’ve been exercising more. Over a week or two, it settles out.

* Don’t ever say "never". If you love potato chips, and suddenly promise that you’ll never eat another one, a psychological time bomb will start ticking. Sometime in the future when the chips are around and no one else is, a starvation reflex can drive you to eat and eat and eat. Moderation is the key.

* Learn to like foods that are healthy. Good recipes, such as the ones in Cooking Light magazine, have seasonings that bring low fat foods to life.


Note: Sign up for Jeff’s free newsletter at JeffGalloway.com. For more training information see Jeff’s books Galloway Training Programs (new!), Half Marathon, Year Round Plan, Walking A Complete Guide, Galloway’s Book on Running 2nd Edition, Testing Yourself & A Women’s Guide to Running. These are available, autographed, from JeffGalloway.com.

ANNOUNCING the new Galloway Run-Walk-Run training app! With coaching, motivation, nutrition, a FREE run-walk-run timer, and more!

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