weight lifting to lose weight

weight training to lose weight

Many times people think that running for hours a week, biking or swimming is the key to helping them lose weight and get in good shape. However, weight training produces a number of benefits that cardio alone cannot make it the best option for weight loss and body shaping.

1. Weight training helps maintain and potentially build muscle mass. Unlike cardio training, which can lead to muscle and fat loss, weight training helps limit weight loss to fat only. The benefit is more muscle per pound of fat (which translates to a more defined appearance).
2. Muscle actively burns more calories at rest: Weight training can help increase muscle mass, which will help your body burn calories regardless of what you’re doing.
3. Weight training increases the release of adventitious fat loss hormones, including testosterone and growth hormone.
4. Strength training can be more cardiovascular in nature by shortening rest periods and combining exercises back to back

So does that mean we scrap cardio training in our training regiments? No amount of cardiovascular exercise can and still is beneficial in aiding weight loss, it just doesn’t need to be the mainstay of your weight loss program.

For cardiovascular benefits, increased calorie burn, and the potential for what’s known as an afterburning HIIT workout is a great idea. HIIT stands for High Intensity Interval Training. This type of training consists of exercising at maximum intensity for short periods followed by a slowdown during rest periods. For faster results with weight loss, it may be helpful to do a HIIT-style workout once or twice a week, in addition to a solid weight-training workout two to three times a week.

While exercise is important for toning and shaping your appearance, nutrition is by far the most important key to losing calories. In order to lose weight effectively, it is important to have a good balance of nutrients along with a calorie deficit. The calorie deficit can be calculated by determining your basic metabolic rate (you can find a basic calculator on the web). Using a basic metabolic rate, you can calculate a goal for the amount of weight you want to lose per week. For every pound of desired weight loss, you should be in a 3,500 calorie deficit. For most people, a deficit of one pound or at most two pounds per week is a healthy goal.