Weight Loss and Exercise

By Joni Douglas

Yes, plain and simple. To lose weight, you have to exercise.  Eating healthy is the right first step and adding an exercise program to any diet plan is sure to help you lose moiré weight faster.  Hate to be the one to say it but, we all know it is true.   Experts agree weight training is the best way to crank up your resting metabolic rate.  As we age, the rate drops.  Weight training and exercise can rev it back up. A normal routine of strength training can increase your overall resting metabolic rate anywhere from 6.8 to 7.8 percent.   Which means even sitting and watching TV you would be burning more calories than before. Weight training also gives your metabolism a short-term boost. When women lift weights, their metabolism rates remain in overdrive for up to two hours after the last bench press, allowing them to burn as many as 100 extra calories.  

Adding interval training, bursts of high-intensity moves, to your workout is a great metabolism booster.   Since your body is working harder, it's a more intense workout, and you therefore burn more calories.  Whenever possible, try breaking up your exercise routines cutting each of your workouts into two smaller sessions.  Even small bursts of activity are enough to get your metabolism revved.  For five minutes out of every hour, get up and do something, even if it's just taking a walk.  You can burn a couple of hundred extra calories every day.  An easy tip to aid any diet plan.

Most us just want to curl up on the couch when the mood swings and the bloating of PMS strike, but if you exercise during the two weeks before your period starts, you will lose more weight. Studies have shown  women burned about 30 percent more fat for the two weeks following ovulation to about two days before menstruating because that is when the reproductive hormones are at their peak.  They promote the body’s use of fat so more fat is burned off when you exercise during this time.

Sleeping is probably the most important ingredient in any weight loss plan.  People who only get 4 hours of sleep or less, have more difficulty processing carbs. Skimping on sleep leaves your body exhausted.  It takes energy to do the day to day functions which include burning calories.  When you body lacks energy due to lack of sleep, your metabolism is automatically lowered.  Setting regular sleep patterns of going to bed and getting up in the morning at the same time everyday is the best strategy.  Schedule workouts earlier in the day since a good work out too close to bedtime can keep sleep at bay.