Kinda a long read, but all great info for anyone trying to lose weight... Enjoy! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Author Unknown: Muscle Bulletin Article Host: 1 - You only do cardio training Cardio burns fat, weights build muscle. That’s the simplistic, misguided premise upon which countless men have built their exercise regimes. ‘You can’t put them together,’ these men say. In fact, weight training is an important element of any fat-loss fitness plan. Firstly, weight training itself can burn over 400 calories per hour (running burns upwards of 600) and it also increases your resting metabolic rate (RMR). Your RMR is basically the number of calories that your body burns when you’re sat on your backside watching Family Fortunes. So, lift weights and you’ll burn more calories for longer after you’ve stopped exercising. On top of that, any weight-loss eating plan means you will lose muscle as well as fat. If you’re lifting weights to gain muscle, a greater proportion of your weight loss will come from fat. Weight training will also make you stronger and this will, in turn, improve your cardio performance. So if you are a runner, strengthening your legs by doing squats and lunges in the gym will help you run faster – and therefore burn more calories. 2 - You’ve heard that low-intensity training burns more fat This is probably because you’ve heard of something known as the ‘fat-burning zone’. The theory is that relatively low-intensity exercise, where you work out at around 60 per cent of your maximum heart rate (MHR), burns more fat than high-intensity exercise, where you work out at around 80 per cent of your MHR. (To calculate your MHR, subtract your age from 220.) The truth is that low-intensity exercise burns a greater proportion of fat, but high-intensity exercise burns more calories overall and raises your RMR for longer. This makes it a more effective way of shedding weight. Here’s the maths: if you walk for 60 minutes, you burn around 270 calories, of which 60 per cent comes from fat. That’s 160 fat calories you’ve just burned from low-intensity exercise. If you run for the same length of time, only 40 per cent of the calories you burn comes from fat – but you burn around 680 calories in total, which means you’ve burned 270 calories of fat. The lesson? Don’t plod along on the treadmill for an hour in the belief the fat will fall off – you can achieve the same results in less time (and get fitter into the bargain). Introduce some high-intensity cardio workouts into your regime and try interval training, where you mix short bursts of maximum effort (up to 90 per cent of MHR) with lower-intensity recovery periods. 3 - You’re always dieting You diet, therefore you lose weight, right? Well, yes, that’s true – up to a point. The problem is that diets are, by their very nature, restrictive and therefore unsustainable. Ultimately it doesn’t matter whether you do Atkins, SlimFast or the Holistic Standing On Your Head Eating Nothing But Figs Diet – any weight-loss plan operates by limiting what you eat, whether it’s by slashing calories, removing entire food groups or forcing you to live on milk shakes. In the short term, of course, the weight falls off, you can tighten your belt an extra notch and your shirt buttons no longer pop. ‘Great,’ you think, ‘I’ve lost weight, so I can go back to eating normally again.’ And before you know it the weight has piled back on and you’re back where you started. This is known as ‘yo yo dieting’. The real secret to losing weight is not to give up fast food and beer for two weeks. It’s to make long-term, sustainable changes to your diet. The weight will take longer to come off, but if you do it this way it will stay off. 4 - You eat ‘low-fat’ meals Supermarkets aren’t stupid – that’s why they’re so big and wealthy. A few years ago, faced with the accusation that ready meals were fattening, they began introducing ‘low-fat’ versions in an attempt to make us all think we were being really healthy. Unfortunately, ‘low fat’ is not the same as ‘low calorie’. To lose fat without neutralising taste, the manufacturers use extra salt, sugar and additives. So eating a low-fat ready meal doesn’t mean you’re not taking in unnecessary, useless calories. It helps if you remember that, for example, the Sainsbury’s Be Good To Yourself range should actually be called Be Slightly Better To Yourself Than Eating The Full-Fat Range But Still Don’t Expect To See The Weight Fall Off range. To be fair, pressure resulting from rising obesity levels has prompted supermarkets to take further steps to reduce salt content in ready meals, but there is no question that you will be healthier and more likely to lose weight if you make the effort to cook your own meals using fresh ingredients. Consider: when was the last time you saw a ‘low-fat’ banana? ‘Healthy living’ broccoli? ‘Light’ pasta? No. Natural, unprocessed food is precisely that – natural – so it doesn’t need to have bad stuff taken out of it and a fancy label slapped on it. That’s why it’s good for you….so long as it’s eaten in moderation! 5 - You don’t eat any fat Fat makes you fat. Not eating fat makes you less fat. Eat no fat and eventually you won’t have any fat at all. Right? Wrong, wrong - If only life were that simple. There’s no doubt that fat is the most calorific of the nutrients we eat. Fat contains 9 calories per gram, whereas carbohydrates and protein contain 4 and even alcohol contains 7. And the saturated fats present in processed foods such as biscuits, cakes and sweets, as well as the junk food we cram down our sozzled throats on Friday nights, will cause weight gain and clog your arteries into the bargain. But not all fat is bad. The unsaturated fats found in oily fish, nuts and pulses are good for your heart and cholesterol levels. Research also shows that health fats, such as Essential fatty acids (EFA’s) and CLA actually help burn fat, as they assist in transporting oxygen to the body’s tissues. So don’t dodge fat altogether because omitting an entire food group is little more than a fad diet – and it’s bound to end in failure when you get bored of it after three weeks, you can also suffer from extreme tiredness. Instead, ensure you eat a balanced diet, of which between 20 and 30 per cent of your intake comes from healthy fats. It won’t affect your long-term weight loss, but it will affect your health for the better. The real key to losing weight is to cut calories, rather than stop eating fat or doing the silly ‘one meal a day’ plan. The average man consumes 2,000-2,500 calories a day, depending on height and weight, but can survive perfectly adequately on 1,500, especilly if those calories come from foods that are high in protein or fibre and therefore fill you up, ie; apples, porridge, whey protein, vegetables. You also need to calculate how many calories you burn each day. First you need to work out your RMR (remember point 1?). Multiply your bodyweight in kilos by 29. Then add the number of calories you burn through exercise (the average man might burn 250-300 calories through 30 minutes of cardio training or 200 calories for 30 minutes of intensive weight training) to give you your grand total. One pound (or half a kilo) of fat is equivalent to 3,500 calories, so if you cut your intake by 500 calories per day you will lose a pound a week. Simple as that. Just remember you need to eat to fuel your workouts, so you may have to up your calorie intake on the days you do plan to exercise. cont...
6 - You only have coffee for breakfast Coffee, that is, and nothing else. The chances are you think you don’t have time for breakfast and that you’re saving up calories for later by not eating until lunchtime. But this will not help you burn fat. The best tactic for losing weight is to eat little and often. Aim to eat a combination of meals and snacks between four and six times a day at times that suit you, depending on your schedule. You should also aim to eat foods with a low glycaemic index (GI) score. The carbohydrate in these foods is digested slowly, which means they fuel your body with a steady, constant supply of energy, thus avoiding the blood sugar crashes that send you to the biscuit tin. Fibre is important, too – it slows down the digestion process, which means you feel fuller for longer, and has a low GI. Fibre is, of course, present in the wholegrains and wholemeal bread that make up many breakfast options. The very best breakfast is a whey protein shake, as it triggers of the CCK hormone which tell your body that you are full, allowing you not to feel hungry until lunch time. I always have a protein shake, along with some carbohydrates for energy, ie: a piece of fruit (tangerine or banana) or slice of toast. This only takes 2 minutes to make and there is no excuse not to. Remember you need the whey protein to help fuel muscle growth, now you are lifting weights to help build new muscle and tone up. 7 - You don’t eat after 8pm The theory that you should not eat in the evening gained popularity a few years ago when some nutritionists claimed eating at night results in weight gain because you don’t do any physical activity afterwards to burn off the calories – they will be stored as fat while you sleep. In fact, it doesn’t really matter when you eat so long as you consume the right number of calories over a day. Food is digested and metabolised in the same way, whatever time it’s eaten. Perhaps this tactic seems to work because most of what we eat at night is comfort food – it’s the classic time to slump in front of the TV and nibble on crisps or chocolates. How often have you found yourself overeating carrot sticks? Equally, if you set yourself a cut-off time of 8pm the temptation is to overeat before you reach that point, so you may have a larger dinner in an attempt to stave off hunger pangs later on, especially if you’ve been to the gym after work and your energy and protein levels need replenishing. Even worse, there will be times when you shatter the rule by devouring a bumper pack of Kettle Chips at 11pm. That’s the trouble with rules – the more you have and the stricter they are, the more likely you are to break them. Allow yourself an evening snack if you want one, but factor it into your daily calorie allowance and try to make sure it fits it does not end up being a food binge. It’s also a good time to cram in an extra portion of fruit. High fibre fruit such as apples, or porridge are great bedtime snacks, as they fill you up and help you sleep well. A little tip is to eat pickles or gherkins (if you like them). Did you know that an entire can only contains 3 calories! 8 - You do endless sit-ups Did you know that for every 100 sit-ups you do, you lose ten pounds of fat? No you didn’t, because we made it up, it’s rubbish. But the way some people insist on crunching up and down for hours on end, you’d think this basic exercise was a miracle fat-loss technique…Nothing is worse than those late night ‘celeb’ featured shopping channels, where they go from a size 20 to a size 8 in 4 weeks, by doing 5 mins of crunches each day, don’t believe it - it’s a total scam. It’s not that sit-ups are bad for you, they are great at strenghening your abs and giving you a nice six pack, along with leg raises, but…. if you have a layer of fat covering them - you’ll never see them, and trust me doing 5000 situps every day will not ‘burn’ fat from your stomach. You simply cannot ‘spot burn’ fat from one part of your body. You lose weight evenly from all over, so the places with the greatest amount of fat will be the last to slim. We’ve already explained that mixing cardio and weight training will shed fat, but it’s worth reiterating. The resistance element of a weights workout burns far more calories than the repetitive motion of a sit-up. Abs exercises should be added to your workout only so that when you do lose the fat, you’ll have a six-pack lurking underneath. 9 - You blame your genes Genetics give us a shedload of excuses, including metabolism, ‘big bones’ and an underactive thyroid. In fact, only around one per cent of people have a fault in their DNA – a hormone, glandular or chromosomal disorder – that means their metabolism does not function normally. Being overweight is more about bad eating habits and learned behaviour. If you’re overweight, the chances are that your parents are, too. But don’t assume this is genetic – it’s far more likely that you have inherited their eating habits and lifestyle. Your genes do have a certain influence on your figure – for example, the body shape scientists call ‘endomorph’ is more prone to collecting weight around the abdomen – but they don’t make you overweight in the first place, if you don’t eat the food. ‘Underactive thyroid’, meanwhile, is a load of codswallop. If you are aware you have an underactive thyroid your GP, which is a serious medical condition, he will have put you on medication to counter it, so it’s no excuse for stuffing your face with cakes. Remember that being overweight is about what you eat, not the DNA that made you. Chances are you eat more than you realise, which leads us on to… 10 - You don’t keep track of what you eat You may think you’re eating healthily, only to discover you haven’t lost any weight when you step on the scales. Maybe you’ve forgotten that sneaky biscuit that you had with your morning coffee or you’ve discounted last night’s ice cream on the basis that it was ‘low fat’, and the ten pints of Kronenbourg you drank last weekend don’t count because, well, it was the weekend and you deserved a treat. It’s hardly surprising. Research has shown that most people who are attempting to lose weight underestimate how much they eat. The way around this is to keep a food diary. If the truth about what you eat is there in black and white, you’ll be less likely to sneak in sugary, high-calorie treats. You should also buy a pocket calorie counter from any good bookshop to tell you precisely how many calories you’re consuming. In a surprisingly short time you’ll know the calorie content of your favourite foods off the top of your head and it won’t seem like such a chore.
Thanks for the info. Just when I thought I've been doing good by being on the bike an hour a day for the past few days. Now I need to add weights too. Geez...how long is it gonna take me to lose the 35 lbs I put on in the past 10 years?
Yeah, its all good stuff.... the only part i take issue with is the part about low intensity cardio. There are 2 different schools of thought on the issue(both stated in the post). 1) that low-intensity, long period of time is best for fat loss. 2) Variable intensity or just straight up high-intensity is better.... I think this issue depends on what your goals are. The fact is that high-intensity burns more calories faster, but is way more likely to burn muscle for this purpose. My personal goal is to lose my gut and put on some muscle for summer(not trying to be a muscle man, but to look decent at the pool). While muscle loss can't really be avoided while going lo-cal, it can be minimized by the low-intensity + weight training. If muscle mass is not important to you, or your goal is to actually get in shape(not just look like it), then hi-intensity might be for you. Just my opinion...
^^^ For reals? If so, pm me with any questions... I've done enough research to be a personal trainer and assist with diet, I'm just not a people person... If I don't know the answer, I could figure it out for you......
I'm sure you've done more research on this that I have, but I was under a different impression about high-intensity cardio. From the reading I've done on it, it seems that the point of High intensity interval training is more about getting your resting metabolism up. I remember from my college health class that your body burns fat mainly when it's in a resting state.... well actually I just did a quick search and found this which pretty much sums up what I was getting at: http://www.askmen.com/sports/bodybuilding_100/135_fitness_tip.html Low or moderate cardio is what I thought was worse for your muscle mass. In fact when I first read about HIIT, it was in an article about how to cut before a body building show or a beach trip.
^^^ Very interesting read... and I have looked into this type of training before. Most of it makes perfect sense and does not contradict the other school of thought. It goes inline with what I was saying about hi-intensity or interval training will definetily get your heart in better shape and increase overall cardiovascular health... However, when trying to increase muscle mass, I really don't feel this is the way to go. Look at the first line of the article, "So you've finally added enough muscle to your body, but you still seem to have that extra layer of "padding." ".... Then, later in the article towards the end it says this is the way to go if trying to add muscle with minimal fat gain... From my experience, muscle gain while on a restricted doesn't work to well. If you are brand new to weight lifting, or haven't lifted in years, you will gain muscle to a point and then plateau... other than that, all you can hope for is minimal muscle LOSS while dieting... As I said, there is so much conflicting info out there about this, all you can do is read and decide which theory makes more sense to you. To me, with my goals, if hi-intensity even has a chance to burn away my hard earn muscle... I can't risk it. On the other side, I've never read one study that said long duration/low-intensity burns muscle...
I just do this.... www.crossfit.com It's weight training and broad cross training at high intensity for timed periods. Brings your RMR up something fierce. Also went from a skinny 6'3" 165 2 years ago to a solid 192. GT's rugby team trains with it. Example workout: "Linda" 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 reps of the triplet: Deadlift: 1 1/2 body weight Bench press or strict standing press: body weight / 2/3 body weight Clean: 3/4 body weight Set up three bars and storm through for time. Post time to comments.
Can you expand on this?? These exercises (especially the deadlifts and cleans) must be done with the strictest form to avoid injury.. putting any kind of time constraint seems like an easy way to get hurt... and, big props to you for gaining 30lbs of lean mass in 2 years.. thats incredible...
Haha, thanks, yea i just filled out. I was 6 3 155 when i came to college in 2003. Pretty easy to gain with unlimited access to a cafeteria and spare time for the gym, got up to 203 last summer i think before i decided to cut. Anyways, thats an extreme example of a crossfit workout, they stress that you scale the workout to your ability. So for instance when i do that one, i do my deadlifts at 225, power cleans at 135 and strict standing press at 115. I dont think most people are able to do this one in under 30 minutes. Deadlifts arent as bad with the form as you would think, just lock your arms out, tuck it close to your shin as possible and use your hips. Cleans on the other hand take alot of practice, as long as you arent doing them heavy to begin with you should be fine. i suggest starting with a broomstick, then an empty bar, youll start to fix the finer points of your form as your approach the limit but the basics should be there if you work light. One of my favorites is "Murph" which is: 1 mile run 100 pullups 200 pushups 300 squats 1 mile run for time ...with a 20 pound weight vest Most of the workouts are like...10-20 minutes of high intensity,but this one took 47 minutes for me and 50 for a friend. or "Grace" 135 pound ground to overhead (i do power clean split jerk) 30 reps for time (5:32 seconds for me) Anyways, read the site, its neat as far as having a variety of stuff to try (like gymnastics rings, rowing, handstand pushups) if youre looking for more than "back and bi, chest and tri". Here, watch a workout demo and youll see what i mean http://media.crossfit.com/cf-video/CrossFit_SDHP-RDFreddyOptWOD.wmv
Interesting... I'll check it out^^^. As far as the deads, I don't know if its because I'm so tall(6 4') or what, but even with the strictest form, they aren't real comfortable for me...
If it's your core that doesn't feel stable you can wear a belt, dunno. The #1 form fixer on them is to keep your chin level the whole time and touch it to your shin, it aligns everything nicely. Long arms help you out but long legs make it harder, haha.
Its important to remember that everyone has their own "recipe for success". Take everything you read with a grain of salt, try it and see what your results are. Weight training and weight loss still have some things to figure out. Get the general guide lines down though and stick with them, and you should be successful.
^^^ I agree..... Do the research, do the work. Take in all the info and do what makes the most sense to you, and if that doesn't work.. change it up. Everyones different, what works for me might not work for you at all.
I totally agree here. Weightloss does not = physical health by itself. Anyone still doing their military PT offer up some insight about conditioning for an alternate perspective?
this is what alot of people just do not know...You should eat smaller portions with more frequency. do not eat after 6pm (loosing weight) eat till midnight (gain weight).
depending on whats nearby. I got a subway and a boston market. Steamed veggie medley FTW. no... my vice is not eating out. Its Dr Pepper. -_-
Number one should be "because you are eating sugar". Your body can only do one or the other. It burns sugar easier than fat. If you eat sugar, you don't burn fat. It's that simple. I've dropped 18 pounds in the past 5 weeks by only cutting out sugar. I haven't touched a weight or done any cardio. I sit in my chair at work. Sugar is in pretty much everything you eat and drink. Read the label.