I recently asked my subscribers and clients for questions about health & fitness that they really want the answers to. I had plenty of replies and have got plenty of questions to answer. I will make my way through them all over the next couple of weeks. Here is the first one:
If you could only do one form of exercise to lose weight what should you do?
You should exercise your self restraint and stop shovelling too much food into your mouth - this will definately lead to weight loss - haha. Sorry, I'm not funny I know.
Well, this is a tough one for me as I can't honestly say that there one type in particular and if I had my way everyone would be doing a combination of resistance training & cardio-vascular (aerobic) training. Why, because one stimulates muscle activity & tones muscles which boosts metabolism for 48-72 hrs resulting in more calories burned throughout those days and the other burns fat calories whilst you do it. I hope you know which is which :-)
But , I guess I should answer the question so here it is . Absolutely anything that makes you sweat and sweat lots. Yes, you too Girls. Never break a sweat? Try a boxing class or a spinning/cycle class and you will.. Here are 2 options , an outdoor & an indoor:
Outdoors
- Running is an all time favourite weight loss activity. Why, you are carrying your weight around against the pull of gravity and this leads to a large consumption of calories thus resulting in lots of flab being burned. You can do it practically anywhere and don't need any special equipment - making it convenient and therefore less excuses for you to not do it. Start slow with a walk/jog and then progress to a jog/run and then to a run. When you can run 30 mins non-stop at good pace (this means not so slow that a powerwalking mum over takes you with her stroller) then you should add sprints or/and hills to the mixture. By the way, if you cannot walk/jog then just walk and then walk/fast walk, just try to do a little faster or longer each time and you will soon be running.
Indoors
- In my opinion you can't beat Spinning/Cycle classes. They are high energy and drive the heart rate high and then lower it again . This has been shown to burn more fat than a steady consistent pace and gets you bloody fit in the process, meaning a strong & healthy heart as well as a lean physique. If you have not done this class before you will need to start slow and follow your instructor's guidelines. As soon as you are able - push yourself hard & watch the fat melt away. By the way, I know some of you hate cycling so you should do a high energy class like Body Attack or similar, as always start slow and work at your level of fitness, if you feel faint or dizzy - immediately panic and shout at the instructor for help - NO , don't do that - i'm kidding! Don't worry, just stop straight away and lie down with your feet up against the wall at about 45 degrees if you can - this helps blood flow back to the heart. Now just concentrate on your breathing - big breaths in through the nose (fill the lungs) and slow exhale through the mouth & repeat - you'll be fine in no time at all.
Ok, so that's about it for this question. I could go on and on but I'll leave it here. You'll notice I haven't mentioned resistance training/weights even though at the start I said everyone should do it. That's because weights routines will vary for different people and you should not just go to the gym and do whatever. Yes, we all need weights but we need structured routines and proper guidance. See a good Personal Trainer to have a proper program designed for you.
Bye for now, your fitness friend,
Mr. Inta-Fitness
