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Is physical activity mandatory for weight loss? Is it true that not at all conditions it “burns fat”? How, when, and where is spent training calories? Is there an optimal for anyone weight loss program?
For those who are just starting to think about a similar choice for themselves, and for the first time, trying to find answers to these questions, we describe the basic principles that are important in weight loss.
Is it possible to lose weight while lying on the couch?
For the beginning, let’s ask ourselves why do we need loosing weight exercises? After all, if science found that when a negative balance of calories people, in any case, will be to lose weight, then simply eat less, that’s it? If we have less than half we spend, we will lose weight. Right? Right. But weight loss there are some unpleasant moments:
- the body feels a strong lack of energy, reduces its own energocascade — muscle activity, pulse, respiration, growth processes, and recovery, etc. — all life processes are slowed down significantly after a few days of significant energy deficit. As a result, creating a large energy deficit, after a maximum of a week will see that the rate of weight loss will fall much.
- reducing energy expenditure, the body primarily gets rid of muscles, because they make the maximum contribution to our energy consumption, and even when we sit or sleep. So the result of weight loss, especially for men, extremely unattractive: torso, hands, and feet will be visibly reduced, while the stomach continues to droop, against the background of haggard body, sometimes looks even worse than the original, more proportional figure.
Moreover, since muscles have the greatest contribution to energy, and fat has almost no effect, then after a month or two people can no longer go back to the previous state: if losing 3-4kg a month both fat, and muscles, you will gain in a month this weight back and it will be all fat. As a result the person:
- with the same caloric content, at which he used to lose weight, we start to get fat (energy consumption decreased with loss of muscles)
- even in the future, it does not increase the energy consumption to past values. (with the addition of fat, the energy consumption almost does not change)
- and appearance and physical characteristics significantly deteriorate
Therefore, it has not turned so that the person begins to eat less, and has even more fat, usually dietary guidelines recommend that you do not create a calorie deficit of more than 10-20% of the usual diet, and not to cross the border calories, which for the body is no longer enough even for everyday needs — the supply of energy to the heart, brain, lungs, etc. While small energy deficit the body almost “do not notice” that it is losing weight — the daily fluctuations in energy balance greater than the average daily weight loss. But the speed of weight loss is rarely more than 2 kg per month for women and 3 kg for men. Still, there remain problems with loss of muscle mass, although at slow weight loss they are not as substantial – the form of the body usually is catching up with slight muscle loss, in contrast to the starvation mode.
A universal solution for most problems
So, in fact, it turns out that if we decided to lose weight, then we can do it more effectively, and more beautifully, only increasing physical activity. Moderate classes (initially it could be dancing or walking) bring so many advantages:
- Allow us to maintain muscle mass, and, consequently, energy consumption at rest (basic metabolism).
- Increase the daily energy consumption significant value, allowing to increase the energy (and therefore speed weight loss), not reducing the amount of food.
- Allow for same or greater energy deficit to eat more nourishing (here, of course, important individual characteristics of the diet and habits)
- Reduce the likelihood of almost all of the symptoms and diseases specific to fat people (lower cholesterol, increase insulin sensitivity, train heart, etc.)
- You probably know more advantages, since you seriously interested in this topic 🙂
In short, a continuous positive!
Beginners should not create sports activities programs by themselves and should not imply a less serious attitude to diet, and they only improve the efficiency, comfort, and curative effect of proper nutrition. Moreover, the Internet sometimes can be found in the tables of embodied energy numbers like “cleaning of the apartment — 350 kcal”. Believe it or not, untrained women, as a rule, do not spend over their gymnastic exercises even 300 kcal! And one extra chocolate bar contains more than 500! In any case, beginners, and especially women, should remember that the major muscles in the human body are in the legs, and no other workout may be compared with, for example, walking up stairs, squatting, intense dancing, or an exercise bike.
What to choose? What to avoid?
So, if we decided that we were going to do it, what’s best? Here, for beginners in the first place, the question of individual preferences arises, as well as in scope. Some kinds of good simplicity and cheapness — a walk in the Park or stairs are available to all, some species, on the contrary, a good exclusivity sessions with a personal trainer will help you no problem to get accustomed to the workout and if they are paid six months in advance, they will be sorry to miss :).
Unequivocally that any physical activity will bring a huge amount of the above-mentioned advantages, and is much more important to choose something that can certainly be part of your lifestyle, which you will be easier to adhere to than to calculate the difference between different types of activity, and then to understand that the chosen activity regularly does not work..
However, as in the case of food, a lot of myths associated with the selection of the optimal type of exercise for losing weight. For starters, let’s dispel typical misconceptions:
- Exercises “for the press” not the tummy. Moreover, serious exercises on the obliques only visually degrade the waist in women. Seriously remove fat in a specific spot is almost impossible, but the General losing weight is easily achieved and reduction of the abdomen.
- “Work at home”, in most cases, will not replace physical exercise. Remember that calories burned are the real energy consumption, and if you don’t feel hot and/or you are actively secreted sweat, then most likely your power consumption less than 300 kcal per hour. (depends, of course, and the temperature in the room, and from the clothes and from the individual). For orientation, you know that 300 calories are enough a person with overweight, to run about 4-5 km
- Rumor has it that to burn fat, the duration of employment should be no less than 30-60 minutes. This is not so. As we know, reduces fat even without lessons (albeit slowly), and all the calories that you do not get food eventually (on a scale of months), be sure to take off fat – well, nobody other such large energy reserves. Yes, some of the calories in the classroom come from glycogen, but, anyway, his loss will be replenished, including, indirectly, from fat. But this myth, obviously, helps people to adjust themselves to the longer classes, which undoubtedly brings a positive result – the more calories, the more fat will be wasted (the same power).
- There is a myth that “to burn fat, you have to train on an empty stomach.” Option: “after training two or three hours is not”. This is a fairly harmful myth and refuted the direct experimental verification of(#). Burns the body is not that fat and any calories that sooner or later, it will take from fat. But if “slow” exercise, like walking, the body can perform largely at the expense of fat, or that intense strength exercises are dependent on glucose, that is from the current supply. And in fact, a similar workout on an empty stomach will not burn more fat, and less due to the smaller total load. Moreover, the shortage of glucose at the end of a workout can lead to muscle breakdown, i.e. “burn muscle”, devaluing practice, however, this applies mostly to the trained people and high loads.
While you are an athlete, your weight loss matters is a total calorie and total energy consumption. The important thing is the intensity and duration of exercise and the food you important only insofar as it helps (or hinders) you to move. Some are better than exercise after eating, some prefer to eat only after exercise, you choose how you feel more comfortable. - Often, even in “reputable sources” are saying to lose weight, be sure to carry out long workout low intensity, in the so-called “gyrosigma” zone (50-65% of maximum heart rate or maximum oxygen consumption). These so-called cardio workouts are training, as the name implies, the heart, and improve the other physical parameters associated primarily with endurance, but not strength.
It is also not necessary. In fact, if low-intensity loads, the percentage of fat in the diet more muscles during more intense workouts in the muscle nutrition a higher percentage of glucose, however, first, the fat-burning still goes harder (although with a smaller share of fat), and secondly, of the fat later spent, including, indirectly, the restoration of glycogen.
Read more about the impact of training intensity on weight loss you can read, for example, in this study, just know that as cardio and power, and combined “interval” training has its advantages for those who want to reduce fat percentage, and do not pay attention to the division of exercise in the “fat-burning”, “anaerobic”, and others. If you’re not an athlete and a beginner, all your calories will be taken from fat, of course, if you correctly while feeding, kept the calorie deficit, but not too big. (And first, in fact, the easiest way to spend calories with cardio). The subtleties and specifics of different kinds of exercises for you will make sense much later, following the increase in muscle mass and increase its energy efficiency.
Another side of the loads problem when losing weight — health restrictions. For the overweight people often doctors do not recommend certain types of activity. Here we refer you to consult with your doctor, but it is well known that for large BMI usually recommended avoiding large shock loads on the joints — such as walking or bike preferably running, and with a BMI>40 is often recommended swimming. However, it’s your life, your choice, and with a good doctor, you can always discuss your problems. Don’t be afraid to ask the doctor questions: what exactly am I risking by starting to engage in such a sport? How can I reduce my risks in these activities? How similar can these exercises be replaced?
Anyway, almost in any situation, you can find opportunities for activity (walking instead of the Elevator, the stairs instead of taking the car to work and shop, to squat at lunchtime, walk the child over rough terrain, etc.). And load (especially if it is power — those that we do “at the limit of power”) burn calories not only during class but also during the day after! Also, stress causes in the body and hormonal changes that stimulate. the collapse of adipose tissue and the formation of muscle. The day you were engaged, and the next few nights, your muscles will grow and fat melt, with HGH, is produced when the limit for your loads.
And try to find something to do with pleasure. And it’s not just developing a nice habit. Long been known that endorphins stimulate the body’s production of growth hormone. Also a positive for muscle growth (just a few of the hormones) is affected by a good night’s sleep, so try to sleep at least the night before and after a workout.
Give your body the opportunity to enjoy the power and movement! And the body will thank you and feelings, and views, and the numbers on the scales!
More about loosing weight watch in the video below: