Weight loss is a pretty basic formula to understand: a healthy diet + training = weight reduction. For the scope of this article, let’s break down half of the exercise equation a little more to make sure we’re maximizing our time at the health club. It is a common misconception that in order to lose and burn calories you should just hit the cardio machines and to gain muscle mass you should only hit the weights. The truth is people looking to lose weight need to be more dynamic in their workouts using both the benefits of sustained cardiovascular exercise and the benefits of weight lifting.
Metabolic benefits
Lifting weights has extremely beneficial results in metabolic activity for people looking to lose fat. When you lift weights, you put your muscles under tension, triggering incredibly small micro-tears that can lead to muscle pain for a day or more. By using protein in a process called protein synthesis, your body repairs these micro-tears, which makes your muscles a little bigger and more powerful (it’s like the common idea that after you break a bone, it pushes back harder than before). Synthesis of protein requires energy, which suggests that your body continues to burn calories even after you stop exercising. Protein synthesis occurs for up to 48 hours after lifting weights, which means you burn calories for two full days after training, even if you are inactive during those days.
Another benefit of lifting weights as part of your weight loss regimen is that when you are building muscle, your metabolic process actually runs much faster at all times of the day, even when you are stagnant at all! This is especially true for your larger muscles, as they simply require more energy to maintain.
How to burn calories with weights
Weightlifting can burn calories during and after exercise just as well, if not much better, than cardiovascular exercise, especially when done right. When you do weight-bearing exercises, your bigger muscles require the most energy (that’s common sense, right?). The 2 biggest muscles in your body are your glutes (your buttocks) and your quadriceps (if you don’t understand, this is the area on each leg that you would rest on if someone told you to rest on their knees. ). While it is recommended that you work all of your muscles, if your goal is weight loss, you should invest the most time on your larger muscles, mostly found in your legs. The squat, which engages both your glutes and your quads, burns more calories per repetition than any other workout – you’ll know you’re burning calories due to your heart racing!
Spice up!
Finally, adding weight lifting as part of your regular fitness program can help combat the monotony of people who often struggle to invest long periods of time in cardio equipment. In truth, you might find that weight lifting can in some cases be a fun option for cardio (although you should keep doing both), and find your inspiration for going to the gym regularly will be more. simple.
