When it comes to weight loss, and especially body fat, we know that power is of prime importance, and the very important tips that you needs are the usual:
- eat every 3 hours
- eliminate junk food and reduce sugars
- eat plenty of fruits and vegetables
- eat a hearty breakfast and a light dinner
- not follow too restrictive diets
- hydrate the body
- eat after training
- etc. etc.
But training also has its share!
#1 - Train with weights before doing cardio
Match the weight lifting with cardiovascular workout as it increases the basal metabolic rate.
Doing cardio before weight lifting is not recommended as it tends to deplete glycogen stores and consequently it reduces the force useful for training.
On the contrary, doing the cardio immediately after the weights session lets you raise and maintain a high basal metabolism for a longer period.
#2 - Do squats and deadlifts
The exercises that involve the whole body are very useful as they recruit different muscle groups and burn many more calories.
They are also the best to raise (and keep) the lean body mass.
So the best exercises are squats and deadlifts, which are the main exercises that involve the whole body.
#3 - Do HIIT instead of the usual cardio
Scientific studies have shown that as short and intense cardio burns more fat than the traditional low-intensity workout.
So put aside the time and do most of cardio at 60-70% of maximum heart rate and dedicate some time to HIIT sessions.
#4 - Lift heavy weights
To burn fat and sculpt the body, increase the weights.
Heavy lifting helps to increase muscle mass and more muscle means more calories burned each day.
For each kg of muscles you can burn 100 calories more each day.
"More muscle mass = more calories burned"
#5 - Superset and pauses
Do not waste time when you're in the gym.
Reduce the breaks between one set and another and between one series and the next.
The goal is to keep your heart rate elevated throughout the workout to increase calories burned.
For this purpose supersetsshould be used, which group several sets into a single series with no gaps, or circuits, which allow you to train different muscle group alternately, giving each the right time for recovery without reducing the overall intensity. Did someone say Cross training?
# 6 - You should turn off your phone and not socialise in the gym
The gym is often a place for chat and friendship.
But the priority should be workout.
So put aside the innate need to have a chat and go headlong into your workout.
Also during breaks between exercises or series, eliminating the "social" pause helps to intensify the workout, keeps up the heart rate and calories burned, leading to greater use of body fat.
And turn off your phone! Reserve chats and selfies for post-workout time
# 7 - Use your heart rate monitor
Intensity has proved to be a crucial component of any training aimed at reducing body fat.
But what should be an intense workout? Are you sure that you are pushing enough?
Here comes in the heart rate monitor. These utilities should not be confined to those cardio sessionsbut should also be used in training with machines and weights.
It is necessary to know the current intensity, degree of fatigue, and the number of calories burned at the end of training.
The latter figure should not be taken as an absolute value, but as a parameter to measure the intensity of a workout, and continually trying to improve oneself.
Yesterday I burned 'n' calories, today I have burned 'n + 100' in the same time = more intense workout.
