Posted Jan 24, 2009
IT’S so much easier to stick to an exercise and diet plan if you see fast results. But losing too much weight too quickly often leads to false hopes. The reason is that an unrealistic amount of exercise, or restricted calorie intake, is too difficult for most people to sustain.
And as soon as you return to your old ways, the weight piles back on.
Instead, most health experts advise losing between 1lb and 2lbs a week.
According to fitness consultant Carolyn Murray, of Glow Leisure in Glasgow, to shed weight in a healthy way takes a bit of time.
She said: “You’ll be more successful if you make small changes to your diet and take some extra exercise.
“While you’ll have to be patient with the weight loss, these changes will be easier to stick to over a longer period.
“This means that in the long-term the pounds will stay off.”
But Carolyn, who is a personal trainer, says there is a secret fitness weapon to help boost the rate at which your body burns fat.
She said: “While it’s necessary to eat less and exercise more, you can improve the fat-burning rate by increasing the amount of muscle in your body.
“Muscle is a key tool for losing more weight and keeping it off.”
Muscle-boosting studies claim to show that for every extra pound of muscle you put on, your body uses around 50 extra calories a day.
In another study, researchers found that regular weight training increases your resting metabolic rate by about 15 per cent.
“Muscle is metabolically active and needs energy just to exist,” said Carolyn. “So muscle burns more calories than other body tissue even when you’re not moving. The greater your muscle mass, the more fat you’ll burn.”
The personal trainer suggests that people should train with weights for 20 minutes three times a week.
She said: “You could do a short set of weight-bearing exercises, such as press-ups, lunges, sit-ups and bicep curls just a few times a week.
“You should build up these sets up slowly and introduce small weights such as dumbbells or water-filled bottles when you feel able.
“Over five weeks or so, this will equate to a leaner body with less body fat.”
But for even greater effect, the weight training should be combined with cardiovascular exercise.
“Research shows that doing weights or resistance exercise first, then a cardio workout is extremely good for fat burning,” said Carolyn.
Date: Jan 12, 2009
