Weight Training

Weight Training

If you are inactive, you will lose 10% of your muscle mass on an average every 10 years.  Weight training helps you to prevent the loss of muscle and to regain, strengthen, and tone it.  This is important because 30-50 calories are burned by 1 pound of muscle in a day in comparison with 1 pound of fat which burns only about 3 calories in a day.  Weight training also increases the density of bones and reduces levels of low density lipoprotein (LDL) (bad) cholesterol.

Perform resistance training at least 2-3 times a week for about 30 minutes.  You will be able to burn anywhere between 250-500 calories per hour.  For those areas, like your thighs, waist etc, where muscles need strengthening, you can perform spot training.

For quicker weight loss, combine aerobic and anaerobic exercises as this leads to fat burning at a higher rate than if only either aerobic or anaerobic exercises are performed.  Resistance training is not as effective as aerobic exercises at burning calories during the training session but these intense exercises raise the rate of metabolism even 3-14 hours after exercise.

The number of calories burned during an exercise depends on the intensity and velocity at which the exercise is performed.  To increase the number of calories you burn, overdraw each motion through the exercise.  Remember to exercise each part of the body like the back, arms, legs, and buttocks.  Exercises in which there is sustained movement for a longer time and those in which you need to balance yourself like dancing, walking, jogging, etc. require additional energy and so burn more calories.  Even though intense anaerobic exercises burn maximum calories, but for rapid weight loss perform exercises sustained over a long period of time.   

Whichever exercise routine you adopt, it is essential to remember that you will not be able to see the results immediately.  Do not be discouraged if you do not lose weight.  Do not forget that muscle tissues weigh more than body fat.  So even though you might be gaining muscle and losing fat your weight may remain constant.  In time your girth will decrease because muscle is denser than fat.  By simply gaining muscle you will lower the percentage of fat in your body.  Always measure your lean body weight and the absolute weight of fat so that you can plan your weight-training program more effectively, consume, and spend calories accordingly.

It is important to remember that fat and muscle are entirely separate.  Fat is not converted into muscle.  You can gain muscle only by losing fat.   Muscle will not change into fat if you stop exercising..  It will just degenerate and reduce in size.  Finally, if you are keen on losing fat remember that along with exercises you need to plan your diet sensibly and stick with it.

More often, than not you would blame your lethargy on the inability to find out time for exercises. Well, here are some tips for you to stick to your daily exercise routine.

·         Prioritise: If you are determined on leading a healthy life,  you should make your priorities clear. Make exercises your priority.

·         Punctuality: You should set an exact time daily to exercise. Stick to the exercise schedule you make.

·         Cut down on Television:  Most of the human time, after work is wasted on watching television. So cut down on your television viewing. Avoid being a couch potato.

·         Find time:  Make yourself flexible to find enough time for exercise.

·         Avoid idle sitting: Take a walk down the neighbourhood than sitting and idling away at home.

·         Write:  Note down your daily schedule. Mark how you spend your time everyday. Then figure out how you can dedicate the time to your exercising.

·         Enjoy: Do not take exercise as a boring routine. You may play music while you exercise. If possible, find an exercising partner for motivation. The partner would also instill a healthy competitive feeling in you.