The Fit Conundrum – Should you be lifting heavy, or going light to lose weight?
You don’t have to wade through gym sessions while fighting off bouts of dizziness, lethargy, and self-pity.The twisted mindset is that training should be honed in on burning fat. If you feel like you’re about to crash and hit the floor midway through the set of burpees, then great, you’re on track. The more you knees buckle, the more fat is getting burnt off.
So you find the will to keep going, because it will all be worth it in a few months time.
And here’s why this theory is backwards. By training to lose weight, you wind up losing less. On the other hand, lift to gain muscle, and you’ll be blessed with a steady trail of fat loss that will stretch out to meet whatever medittaranean sunset you’re after.
Trying to maximise the calories you’re burning in the space of an hour or two can just simply come at the compensatory cost of your body dialling back on the burners in the other 20 something hours left over the day. The metabolism doesn’t get revved up by a bout of circuits, any more than a bout of lifting or running would. And it’s got a bigger chance of slowing the body down, because hits you with a giant stress ball.
Making strength a priority, allows you to protect muscle breakdown, and prevent the metabolic slowdown that gets initiated in response. It opens up a potent new route for fat loss by getting rid of muscle glycogen. With the muscles emptied, the body can begin using its fat storesas fuel instead.
The gym can be a lot more focused if you come in with clear objectives. Lift heavier object, bring them down slowly, and throw in some circuits and cardio at the end if you still have energy. Keeps things uncomplicated. Train to gain.
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