Does running burn belly fat? Guide to visceral fat loss

If you’re asking “does running burn belly fat?”, you’re probably not chasing a beach-body fantasy. You’re chasing that feeling of being lighter, more in control. For many people, “belly fat” is shorthand for the one area that feels hardest to shift.

The science is clear.unning can burn belly fat, including the more harmful visceral belly fat, but the driver is a consistent calorie deficit supported by regular physical activity. Running is one of the most accessible ways to raise your weekly energy expenditure, improve body composition, and protect long-term health.

This matters because movement isn’t just “good for you” - it’s a biological need. Over time, being inactive increases body fat and leads to a gradual loss of fat-free mass (FFM), including muscle, which can start as early as age 30 in inactive adults. In one study, inactive participants lost around 0.34% to 1.28% of fat-free mass regularly from age 30 onwards.¹ That’s not a small thing. Muscle is what keeps you strong, mobile, and independent as you age.

The straight answer: does running get rid of belly fat?

Yes, running helps reduce belly fat, particularly when it supports a consistent calorie deficit.

Running is effective because it:¹

• Uses large muscle groups (high energy demand)

• Can be repeated weekly (consistency is achievable)

• Improves cardiovascular and metabolic health

• Helps shift body composition (lower fat mass, better fat-free mass ratio)

It’s important to note, however, that spot reduction isn’t real. You can’t “target” belly fat with a specific exercise. What you can do is reduce overall fat, and belly fat often follows, especially the deeper type (visceral fat).

Visceral vs. subcutaneous: the type of fat running targets

When people say “belly fat,” they usually mean one of two things:

Subcutaneous fat

This is the softer fat under the skin, the kind you can pinch. It’s often what people notice in the mirror.

Visceral fat

This is the deeper fat that sits around your organs, inside your abdomen. It matters more from a health point of view because it’s more metabolically active. It releases more chemical signals (cytokines and hormones) that are linked to insulin resistance and chronic low-grade inflammation than overall body fat or BMI alone.²

That’s why many scientists and clinicians pay close attention to visceral fat, not just your weight or BMI. BMI can look “fine” while still missing what’s happening inside the belly.

Running comes into this because regular, long-term physical activity is linked with healthier body composition and lower visceral fat compared with being inactive. In a large study of adults aged 18-65, recreational runners who ran at least 10 km per week (and in reality averaged around 21.6–31.4 km/week) had significantly better body composition than inactive adults, including lower visceral fat across age groups.¹

How running burns fat 

Running supports belly fat loss through a few overlapping mechanisms. The useful part is understanding what you can control.

1) Energy balance (calorie deficit)

Fat loss requires a sustained energy deficit over time. Running increases your weekly energy expenditure. That makes a deficit more achievable, but diet still matters.

2) Body composition and healthy ageing 

With ageing, body composition tends to drift towards:

• Higher adiposity (more fat mass)

• Lower fat-free mass (including muscle)

Over time, low activity levels contribute to sarcopenia, which is the gradual loss of muscle strength, muscle quality, and physical function. This becomes more common after the age of 60 and is one of the main reasons people can lose independence as they get older.³

Data from a women’s health study also showed that women tend to see a noticeable increase in body fat alongside a drop in fat-free mass around two years before their final menstrual period, with these changes continuing afterwards.⁴ This helps accentuate why regular, consistent movement becomes even more important during this stage.

3) Visceral fat responds to regular activity

Visceral fat tends to rise with age in both active and inactive groups, but the rise is typically steeper in inactive people. However, studies show that:¹

• Inactive individuals exhibit significant increases earlier

• Runners maintain markedly lower visceral fat across age groups

• The oldest runner groups had visceral fat levels comparable to much younger inactive groups (a striking “age offset”)

4) EPOC (afterburn effect)

Harder sessions (like intervals or hill runs) can increase post-exercise energy use through something called EPOC, or excess post-exercise oxygen consumption. 

EPOC isn’t a miracle, but it’s a real physiological effect where your body uses energy after training to return to baseline and recover.^1,5 But you don’t need EPOC to lose belly fat by running. You need consistency.

How long does it take to lose belly fat by running?

For many people, noticeable changes in belly fat can start to appear within 4 to 12 weeks, but this isn’t a fixed rule. How quickly you see results depends on several factors, including how often and how far you run, your overall calorie intake, sleep, stress levels, and your starting point.

Running 3-4 times per week can support fat loss, but it only leads to a reduction in belly fat if it contributes to a sustained calorie deficit over time. In other words, running helps create the conditions for fat loss, but how much belly fat you lose, and how fast, is highly individual.

A realistic timeline depends on:

1. Consistency (weeks matter more than single sessions)

2. Running volume (total weekly minutes/kilometres)

3. Intensity mix (steady runs + 1 harder session)

4. Diet (calorie deficit is non-negotiable)

5. Sleep and stress (which influence appetite and recovery)

Why consistency outperforms intensity

It’s tempting to sprint your way to results. But most people don’t need “harder”, they need “repeatable”. Regular physical activity is associated with major health outcomes:¹

• Physically active people have a 30–35% lower risk of death compared with those who are inactive.

• Strongly active adults aged 50–75 live, on average, 6.3 years longer in good health and 2.9 years longer without chronic disease than inactive adults.

• Regular running has been linked with 25–40% reductions in premature death and can extend life expectancy by up to 3 years compared with non-runners.

Maximising fat loss: the best running techniques

The best running plan for belly fat loss is the one you can stick to. That said, different styles do different jobs.

HIIT (high-intensity interval training) for belly fat

HIIT can be useful because it:

• Improves fitness quickly

• Raises energy expenditure in less time

• Often triggers stronger EPOC than steady running

Beginner-friendly HIIT (once weekly):

• Warm up: 8–10 minutes easy jog + mobility

• 6 rounds: 30 seconds hard / 90 seconds easy

• Cool down: 5–10 minutes easy jog or walk

Remember, HIIT should feel challenging, not destructive. If you’re wiped for days, it’s too much.

LISS (low-intensity steady state) and its role

LISS is steady, conversational-pace running or run/walk. It works because it’s:

• Easier to recover from

• Safer for beginners

• More sustainable for building weekly volume

The most important pillar of belly fat loss

Belly fat loss often stalls when one of the key pillars is missing, most commonly diet. Running helps create a calorie deficit, what you eat determines whether you keep it.

If fat loss isn’t happening, the most common reasons are:

• Portions creeping up “because I ran”

• Underestimating calorie density (nuts, oils, snacks)

• Weekend drift wiping out weekday consistency

If diet and appetite feel like the main roadblock, structured support can help. 

Resistance training and muscle mass

Remember that fat-free mass decline can begin from age 30 in inactive adults. That’s one reason strength training matters alongside running.

Two weekly sessions help:

• Preserve muscle while losing fat

• Support metabolic health

• Reduce injury risk (so you keep running consistently)

A beginner’s 4-week running plan to start losing belly fat

There are three simple rules to stick to throughout your plan:

• Run 3 times per week

• Walk on off-days if you can

• Keep most sessions easy enough to repeat

Week 1: build the habit

3 sessions

• 5-min brisk walk warm-up

• 8 rounds: 60 sec easy jog / 90 sec walk

• 5-min walk cool-down

Week 2: add time on feet

3 sessions

• Warm up 5 min

• 8 rounds: 75 sec jog / 75 sec walk

• Cool down 5 min

Week 3: longer jogging intervals

3 sessions

• Warm up 5 min

• 6 rounds: 2 min jog / 1 min walk

• Cool down 5 min

Week 4: build continuity and introduce one faster session

Session 1 (easy): 20–25 minutes easy jog (walk breaks allowed)

Session 2 (steady): 5 min warm up + 15 min easy jog + 5 min cool down

Session 3 (intervals): 6 rounds: 30 sec quicker / 90 sec easy

The numan take

The reason running is so often recommended isn’t because it’s trendy. It’s because physical activity is one of the most consistent, controllable levers we have for health.

And right now, inactivity is common:¹

• In EU adults, physical inactivity exceeds 30%, reported at around 36.2% in one large cross-sectional survey.

• WHO estimates around 39% of men and 40% of women are overweight, with 11% of men and 15% of women living with obesity.

Running won’t fix everything - but it’s proven to burn belly fat.It’s particularly valuable because it can help reduce visceral fat and improve metabolic health over time.

References

1. Kutac P, Bunc V, Buzga M, Krajcigr M, Sigmund M. The effect of regular running on body weight and fat tissue of individuals aged 18 to 65. J Physiol Anthropol. 2023;42(1):28. 

2. Abdullah SR, Nur Zati Iwani AK, Ahmad Zamri L, Wan Mohd Zin RM, Abu Seman N, Zainal Abidin NA, et al. Visceral adiposity loss is associated with improvement in cardiometabolic markers: findings from a dietary intervention study. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2025;16:1576599.

3. Larsson L, Degens H, Li M, Salviati L, Lee YI, Thompson W, et al. Sarcopenia: Aging-related loss of muscle mass and function. Physiol Rev. 2019;99(1):427–511.

4. Kutac P, Buzga M, Elavsky S, Bunc V, Jandacka D, Krajcigr M. The effect of regular physical activity on muscle and adipose tissue in premenopausal women. Appl Sci (Basel). 2021;11(18):8655.

5. Tucker WJ, Angadi SS, Gaesser GA. Excess postexercise oxygen consumption after high-intensity and sprint interval exercise, and continuous steady-state exercise. J Strength Cond Res. 2016;30(11):3090–7.

6. Alexander M, Machado L. Chronic exercise and neuropsychological function in healthy young adults: a randomised controlled trial investigating a running intervention. Cogn Process. 2024;25(2):241–58.