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Losing weight, a relatively simple. If the body is fed fewer calories than it burns, it will begin to shed weight. In the beginning, making small changes in your eating habits might prove to be successful for weight loss, but as our fat percentage gets lower, and we weigh less, it becomes more difficult to eat in a calorie deficit without some kind of activity to support it.
Weight lifting, cardio and NEAT are great tools to easier make weight loss successful and sustainable. Let’s have a look at why including these activities will benefit you and how often they should be done.
Lift Weights
Weights loss is usually not the first thing coming to our mind when thinking about strength training. However, it isn’t something that we should ignore. Weight training has two primary benefits when it comes to weight loss.
- Just as walking, swimming, or any other activity that we do requires energy and burns calories, so does strength training. A guy weighing 80 kg (176lbs) can burn up to 600 calories per hour, depending on intensity.
- As we begin to lift weights, the body will try to adapt to the increased workload. We will experience an increase in muscle mass. As muscle mass increases, the body will need more energy (calories) to maintain. The body will need more calories to function, and both maintaining- and losing weight will become easier.
As a weight training beginner, your body needs time to adapt. Begin with 3-4 workouts a week. Focus on good form, and in no time, you will feel the benefits of weight lifting for weight loss.
Do Cardio
Cardio has numerous health benefits, but when it comes to weight loss, its main function is to burn calories. Some of the best and most popular forms of cardio for weight loss is:
- Low-intensity activities such as walking serve as one of the best kinds of cardio and pair perfectly with strength training. It doesn’t require a big effort from the body and can even be used for active restitution after a hard workout. Walking doesn’t burn the most calories but deserves a place in any workout plan.
- High-intensity activities such as running burn more calories than walking. It does, however, require more energy and needs more time to restitute.
Both low- and high-intensity activities should be included in a workout schedule, whether your goal is to lose weight, become healthier, or build muscle mass.
Aim to do low-intensity activities such as walking at least twice a week.
The good thing about low-intensity cardio, such as walking, is that you can do it as often as you’d like. Aim to take a walk or do another easy cardio workout at least 2 times per week.
The high-intensity cardio is important has many important health benefits, besides the obvious of burning calories. Aim to do this kind of cardio between 1-2 times a week.
Increase NEAT
NEAT (Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis) is all the activities you do throughout the day that aren’t counted as exercise. Grocery shopping, cleaning the bathroom, or taking out the trash are examples of this. NEAT makes up for a significant amount of the calories burned every day, more than what we burn through exercise.
Having a high NEAT is important for good health but crucial when it comes to weight loss. There are many ways to increase this depending on your situation. The following are some of the easiest.
- Park your vehicle as far away from the entrance as possible.
- Get off a stop early and walk when taking public transport.
- Always take the stairs when possible.
- Stand while waiting or talking on the phone.
And the list could on. Find areas in your life that could where you could increase your NEAT and try to make it a habit. It might feel like a big task in the beginning but that changes fast. After taking the stairs a couple of times, it becomes a habit, and you won’t think about it like some annoying exercise. All while the activity still burns the same number of calories.
Combine the Activities
We have had a look at the different activities that can help boost weight loss. Let’s discuss some of the different ways to combine the activities for weight loss and the benefits.
Focus on Weight Training
The first option has weight training as the primary activity but includes both low- and high-intensity cardio as well. Let’s have a look at the weekly
- Monday: Weight training
- Tuesday: Weight training
- Wednesday: 30 min walk
- Thursday: Weight training
- Friday: Weight training
- Saturday: 30 min walk
- Sunday: 20min of preferred medium-high intensity cardio
Keep NEAT in mind and try to do at least one thing every day to increase it. Make sure that you keep the walks low-intensity as they serve as off-days with active recovery.
Weight training might not burn as many calories here and now, as going for a run, but has better long-term benefits for weight loss. As muscle mass increases, so do the number of calories needed to maintain.
Following a workout schedule similar to this might not lead to a fast weight loss. However, it will help you maintain and lose weight easier in the future.
Focus on Cardio
The second option will include more cardio and less strength training than the first.
- Monday: Weight training
- Tuesday: 30 min walk
- Wednesday: Weight training
- Thursday: 20min of preferred medium-high intensity cardio
- Friday: Weight training
- Saturday: 30 min walk
- Sunday: 20 min of preferred medium-high intensity cardio
Keep NEAT in mind and try to do at least one thing every day to increase it. Make sure that you keep the walks low-intensity as they serve as off-days with active recovery.
A good mixture of cardio and strength training sets you up for a workout schedule that’s effective for weight loss both now and in the future.
The cardio sessions will help you burn plenty of calories and benefit your cardiovascular health.
The weight training sessions might burn fewer calories but help you maintain and/or lose fat in the future.
The no Weight Training Combination
The last option is for those who prefer not to include weight lifting into their workout schedule.
- Monday: 20 min of preferred medium-high intensity cardio
- Tuesday: 30 min walk
- Wednesday: 15 min of preferred high-intensity cardio
- Thursday: 30 min walk
- Friday: 30 min of preferred medium intensity cardio (Could be a run in a slower tempo)
- Saturday: 30 min walk
- Sunday: 30 min walk
Keep NEAT in mind and try to do at least one thing every day to increase it. Make sure that you keep the walks low-intensity as they serve as off-days with active recovery.
While this workout schedule won’t help you build muscle mass, it will be beneficial for weight loss. The cardio sessions can burn more calories than weight training. Most will experience a faster weight loss following this type of schedule. However, unlike the other combinations, this schedule won’t help you increase your maintenance calories over time. As a result, maintaining weight in the future requires more focus and work.
Conclusion
While it’s possible to lose weight only by focusing on the nutritional aspect, adding different kinds of activities will make it easier.
The three types of activities you should be aware of are weight training, cardio and NEAT. Including all three leads to the optimal conditions for healthy and sustainable weight loss. However, adding just one of the activities for weight loss has benefits, and is far better than doing nothing.
