What are the components of an effective exercise plan to lose weight?
I would say that the biggest percentage of my clients come to me because they want to lose weight. People tend to approach this in a kind of all or nothing way but it really doesn’t need to be complicated. For the majority of people, if you make healthy food choices most of the time and move more then you will lose weight. I am going to tell you exactly what you need to incorporate into your exercise programme and why you need to do it.
Firstly, all exercise plans to lose weight should include some form of cardiovascular activity. ‘Cardio’ is really about burning calories through aerobic activity (which means by using oxygen). This type of exercise is often light to moderate intensity and involves continuous activities. Examples include walking, jogging, running, swimming and cycling. Energy is provided by oxygen combining with sugar in the body to provide fuel for the muscles to work.
Cardiovascular exercise can burn a lot of calories compared to spending the same amount of time doing resistance exercise and the great thing is that there are many other benefits to be gained from cardiovascular exercise than just calorie burning. These include: increasing your physical fitness, reducing your risk of heart disease and stroke, increasing your lung capacity, increasing your metabolism, helping improve your sugar regulation in the body and therefore helping prevent type 2 diabetes.
The second thing you need to include in your exercise plan to lose inches is resistance exercise. Resistance exercises, body weight or using additional weight, are great for fat loss. However, it is still a common misconception by most women that if they train with weights they will adopt the appearance of a young Arnold Schwarzenegger. This is simply not true as women do not naturally have enough testosterone to build masculine physiques. What is true is that resistance exercise can burn between 400-600kcals per hour and can also have a huge impact on your metabolism as they increase your metabolic rate by increasing the amount of lean muscle mass you have.
Resistance training will increase your muscle strength and tone as well as help your body to become more mobile and increase your core stability. It will also increase the strength of your joints and bone density which is of paramount importance as we age.
So, what are you waiting for? No excuses! Our bodies are designed to move. Exercise will help you lose body fat and make your body stronger and more efficient.
Fill in the contact form at www.health4youbyleigh.com if you’d like further information on how we can work together.
Your health is your wealth.
Leigh x
