If you’re tired of putting in loads of effort in the cardio section of the gym and not seeing any results, you may need to change your tactics. According to the National Centre for Health Statistics, just 21 per cent of women use strength training exercises two or more times a week. But what most people don’t realise is that when you skip this vital part of your exercise regime, you lose out on some great exercises which burn fat and help you to maintain a healthy weight. Those two sessions a week can help to reduce your overall body fat by around three percentage points in just 10 weeks, even if you don’t adjust your diet by a single calorie. That could translate to as much as three inches of your waist and hips, with your new found muscle helping to boost your metabolism in the long-term. Although cardio burns more calories than strength training in just thirty minutes, pumping the iron in the gym could help to burn more overall. In fact, in studies, researchers found that women who completed an hour-long strength training workout burned an average of 100 more calories in a day than those who hadn’t lifted a single weight. Look at the figures – with three sessions a week, that is a total of 15,600 calories a year or four and a half pounds of fat – all without having to up your gym sessions at all.
Researchers have found that there are long-term benefits to lifting as well, with muscle accounting for around a third of the average woman’s weight. This has a strong effect on ones metabolism, which means your body can burn extra calories. Muscle eats up calories even when you’re not working out, so if you replace ten pounds of fat with ten pounds of lean muscle, you could be burning 25 to 50 calories a day without having to do anything. You shouldn’t rely on the scales to see if your routine is effective though. Muscle is denser than fat, so your weight is not necessarily the best form of tracking device. So how is it done? You need to begin with three weight-training sessions each week. The best calorie burner, you should aim for total body workouts that work your arms, abs, back and legs. Squats, for example, call on muscles in both sides of your legs, rather than leg extensions which target just one area. If you’re unsure how to begin, speaking with a trainer may be helpful as they can create a programme for you that targets specific areas and includes multi-faceted exercises that work twice as hard.
For each exercise you do, you should aim to perform three sets of 10 or 12 reps with a weight that challenges your muscles. You should also fuel your workout effectively, by ensuring that you have enough energy to get you through the workout. Too many dieters make a fatal error in cutting back on protein in order to lose weight. But it’s counterproductive as they lose muscle along with the fat that they may have melted away with the workout. Experts recommend that you should eat one gram of protein for every pound of body weight you have that doesn’t come from fat. For example, a 140-pound woman who has 25 per cent body fat should eat 105g of protein. The best sources of high quality protein is chicken or other lean meats, as well as eggs and soy products.
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