Hi everyone,
I hope many of you have had a read of the post I wrote about raising your metabolism during exercise. If you haven't, I'd strongly urge you to read it before continuing what I am about to write here.
This post is going to give you a number of key principles that you should follow in every workout you do, or any exercise program you design or follow. If you follow every one of these principles, you will be on your way to burning the most fat in the fastest time. These are the principles my programming stands by, and if they didn't work, I wouldn't be able to pay my bills!
So firstly, as the other post explained, the first principle your exercise regime must focus on is:
1. Raise your metabolism!!!
You need to do this so that your body burns more calories in a day than it takes in. The amount of calories you burn DURING exercise is insignificant to a degree when you instead aim to boost your metabolism to burn a surplus of calories for the next several hours AFTER the workout.
To increase metabolism, you should eat small meals frequently, with high amounts of proteins, healthy fats and get as many carbs as possible from vegetables in every meal. The next step in raising your metabolism is by abiding by the following exercise principles...
2. ONLY use Total Body Exercises, or those that use MULTIPLE muscle groups at once.
This point is very valuable, and pains me when I walk into a gym and see the fitness trainer trying to help someone who is looking to lose 10lbs by showing them Bicep Curls, Tricep Kickbacks and crunches. These are single-joint exercises that focus on one muscle at a time, e.g. the Biceps, Tricep, and Front wall of the abdominals repsectively.
These exercises are USELESS for the purposes of fat loss. No fat loss program should ever include such exercises unless there is a very good reason to do so (such as rehabilitation, or if you are a bodybuilder!).
The reason they don't work is this: Muscles are metabolically active, they burn more calories the harder they work. Now, if you want to burn maximum calories in minimum time, then you want to get as many muscles working as possible. The MORE muscles you work, the MORE calories you will burn. Simple as that.
So instead, stick to total body exercises such as Squats, deadlifts, press ups, planks, burpees, rows etc. (If you want any info on any of these exercises just let me know).
To illustrate this point, imagine there were a pair of twins, exactly the same weight, same goal and I had one perform ONLY tricep kickbacks for 100 reps, 3 sessions a week for 2 months.
The other, I had perform ONLY chest presses / press ups for 100 reps, 3 sessions a week for 2 months.
Who do you think would have lost the most fat after the 2 months? Not just on thier arms, but ALL over? The one exericsing her arms, or the one exercising her arms, chest, shoulders, and core all in one go?
3. Focus on the BIGGEST muscle groups:
As we've established, the more muscles worked, the more energy your body must utilise to repair them. But also, the bigger muscles also burn more calories as they do more total work. So focus your exericses on the biggest muscles on your body which are the GLUTES. Everyone wants a nice firm arse and this will burn so many calories and get that whole backside area from your waist, your buttocks and down your thighs and hamstrings lean and firm.
The DEADLIFT will be your most important exericse as it hits all the above backside areas primarily, but also works 75% of the muscles in your whole body, making it technically the MOST efficent exercise for burning fat in one go. If you are unfamiliar with the Deadlift, search it now. Other exercises that have a similar effect are Step Ups and Squats.
4. Increase the Metabolic Cost of your entire workout.
Now that we can see that the Total Body Exercises are the most efficent at burning fat, it is important that your ENTIRE workout consists of these types of exercises. You must squeeze every second you get in the gym and use it efficiently, don't waste any time in there. Use the exercises that give you the most 'bang for your buck' as they say, and use them from start to finish. No bicep curls remember!!
5. Work in a repetition range that generates lactic acid.
This usually means sets of 8-12 reps, where you start feeling that burn of lactic acid. Lactic acid helps burn fat, so it is a good thing! Make sure that the weight you use is heavy enough so that if you can complete more than 13 repetitions, put it to the next weight up and try and get 8 reps again.
Note: Despite the bullsh!t that magazines and the media may throw at you about using light pink dummbells for 'toning', if you can lift something more than 15-20 times, it is NOT challenging your metabolism and will not burn fat. Well, it will burn fat, but it'll probably take you about 5 years longer to burn it. Go heavy with a load you can handle but pushes you, and feel the strength and confidence it will give you.
6. Do MORE work EVERY TIME you exercise:
This is maybe the biggest thing holding so many people back from achieving their goals, and I see it all too often at my gym every day.
Here's the problem I see:
A person comes to the gym and decides to jump on the treadmill. They find an intensity thats right for them, say Level 3, and go for 20 minutes, which just about pushes them. Okay, thats a good start.
But then.... The next day, they come back and do another 20 minutes at Level 3. They do it again the next day. and the next week, and the next month. And possibly next year, until they realise they havent lost any weight and give up, thinking that the gym is a waste of time.
And here is WHY this is a huge problem:
Your body is cunningly efficient at ADAPTING to the demands you put on it. It reacts in the opposite way to anything you do to it. ANYTHING. Just think:
You cut your hair. It grows back thicker.
You break a bone. It heals stronger.
You tear your muscles down with exercise. They grow back stronger and fitter.
Once you have jogged 20 minutes at Level 3 once or twice, you body has ADAPTED to it. So if it burned 300 calories the first time, then you become fitter and as a result you burn LESS calories to perform the same task. So the next time it may only burn 290 calories. Then 260 etc.
Now, considering that your nutrition intake is consistantly 2000 calories a day, if you exercise in this way you may end up taking in more calories and burning less with exericse, which could lead to you actually storing more fat!
The solution is to PROGRESS your exercise EVERY time you step into the gym, or your workout room at home.
It is always better to increase volume first (amount of reps, amount of time, distance) and THEN increase your intensity (weight, resistance level on cardio machines).
So if we are using weights, you want to be in the 8-12 range. If you can lift a weight 13 times, get the next highest weight and go back to 8 reps. The next week get 9 reps, then 10, up to 12. When you can get 13 reps with that weight, its time to increase it again.
With cardio, pick a level (say level 3) and if you can go for longer than 20 minutes, up it to Level 4 and go for 10 minutes. The next session aim for 12 minutes. Then 14, then 16 etc. Until you reach 20 again.
Repeating this process is vital. Remeber you MUST do more work than last time, if not, you have essentially WASTED your time in the gym as your body will have adapted and you will likely burn less calories than last time as you have become fitter.
7. Do your weights BEFORE cardio.
Another tradition that prevents you from relising your potential is this. You have 3 sources of energy to use during exercise:
Carbs, fats, then proteins. (Proteins are only broken down in extreme situations of prolonged exercise though, so we'll take that out of the equation).
Your body will use up its Carbs (sugars) first. Until your carb stores have been adequately depleted, you wont burn as much fat.
Now resistance training requires instant hard energy, so it will use up your carb stores. If you do this, THEN go to cardio afterwards, all you have left to burn is predominatly fat! Not to mention that if the resistance and cardio sessions are metabolic enough then you'll continue to burn fat via your metabolism throughout the day.
It is also important to do resistance training first because it will cause the most metabolic effects. Therefore, you want to give it all your energy whilst you are fresh and can give 100%.
It is also safer to lift weights with good form if you are fresh, rather than drain yourself with cardio and be fatigued before lifting heavy dumbbells.
So to recap quickly:
1. RAISE YOUR METABOLISM
2. Only use COMPOUND exercises that involve the whole body
3. Work the biggest muscles in the body (Glutes, back, and chest areas)
4. Use these metabolic exercises throught the WHOLE session, every time.
5. Build Up lactic acid with reps of 8-12
6. Do MORE work every single time you exercise, even if it just means afew extra seconds here and there.
7. Resistance Exericse BEFORE Cardio. Always.
I know this post has gone on forever but I really want to get these points across to you guys as I know it will save you making the same mistakes as many do. Follow these principles and you will surely see a difference before long.
Thanks for reading guys, good luck
Justin
I hope many of you have had a read of the post I wrote about raising your metabolism during exercise. If you haven't, I'd strongly urge you to read it before continuing what I am about to write here.
This post is going to give you a number of key principles that you should follow in every workout you do, or any exercise program you design or follow. If you follow every one of these principles, you will be on your way to burning the most fat in the fastest time. These are the principles my programming stands by, and if they didn't work, I wouldn't be able to pay my bills!
So firstly, as the other post explained, the first principle your exercise regime must focus on is:
1. Raise your metabolism!!!
You need to do this so that your body burns more calories in a day than it takes in. The amount of calories you burn DURING exercise is insignificant to a degree when you instead aim to boost your metabolism to burn a surplus of calories for the next several hours AFTER the workout.
To increase metabolism, you should eat small meals frequently, with high amounts of proteins, healthy fats and get as many carbs as possible from vegetables in every meal. The next step in raising your metabolism is by abiding by the following exercise principles...
2. ONLY use Total Body Exercises, or those that use MULTIPLE muscle groups at once.
This point is very valuable, and pains me when I walk into a gym and see the fitness trainer trying to help someone who is looking to lose 10lbs by showing them Bicep Curls, Tricep Kickbacks and crunches. These are single-joint exercises that focus on one muscle at a time, e.g. the Biceps, Tricep, and Front wall of the abdominals repsectively.
These exercises are USELESS for the purposes of fat loss. No fat loss program should ever include such exercises unless there is a very good reason to do so (such as rehabilitation, or if you are a bodybuilder!).
The reason they don't work is this: Muscles are metabolically active, they burn more calories the harder they work. Now, if you want to burn maximum calories in minimum time, then you want to get as many muscles working as possible. The MORE muscles you work, the MORE calories you will burn. Simple as that.
So instead, stick to total body exercises such as Squats, deadlifts, press ups, planks, burpees, rows etc. (If you want any info on any of these exercises just let me know).
To illustrate this point, imagine there were a pair of twins, exactly the same weight, same goal and I had one perform ONLY tricep kickbacks for 100 reps, 3 sessions a week for 2 months.
The other, I had perform ONLY chest presses / press ups for 100 reps, 3 sessions a week for 2 months.
Who do you think would have lost the most fat after the 2 months? Not just on thier arms, but ALL over? The one exericsing her arms, or the one exercising her arms, chest, shoulders, and core all in one go?
3. Focus on the BIGGEST muscle groups:
As we've established, the more muscles worked, the more energy your body must utilise to repair them. But also, the bigger muscles also burn more calories as they do more total work. So focus your exericses on the biggest muscles on your body which are the GLUTES. Everyone wants a nice firm arse and this will burn so many calories and get that whole backside area from your waist, your buttocks and down your thighs and hamstrings lean and firm.
The DEADLIFT will be your most important exericse as it hits all the above backside areas primarily, but also works 75% of the muscles in your whole body, making it technically the MOST efficent exercise for burning fat in one go. If you are unfamiliar with the Deadlift, search it now. Other exercises that have a similar effect are Step Ups and Squats.
4. Increase the Metabolic Cost of your entire workout.
Now that we can see that the Total Body Exercises are the most efficent at burning fat, it is important that your ENTIRE workout consists of these types of exercises. You must squeeze every second you get in the gym and use it efficiently, don't waste any time in there. Use the exercises that give you the most 'bang for your buck' as they say, and use them from start to finish. No bicep curls remember!!
5. Work in a repetition range that generates lactic acid.
This usually means sets of 8-12 reps, where you start feeling that burn of lactic acid. Lactic acid helps burn fat, so it is a good thing! Make sure that the weight you use is heavy enough so that if you can complete more than 13 repetitions, put it to the next weight up and try and get 8 reps again.
Note: Despite the bullsh!t that magazines and the media may throw at you about using light pink dummbells for 'toning', if you can lift something more than 15-20 times, it is NOT challenging your metabolism and will not burn fat. Well, it will burn fat, but it'll probably take you about 5 years longer to burn it. Go heavy with a load you can handle but pushes you, and feel the strength and confidence it will give you.
6. Do MORE work EVERY TIME you exercise:
This is maybe the biggest thing holding so many people back from achieving their goals, and I see it all too often at my gym every day.
Here's the problem I see:
A person comes to the gym and decides to jump on the treadmill. They find an intensity thats right for them, say Level 3, and go for 20 minutes, which just about pushes them. Okay, thats a good start.
But then.... The next day, they come back and do another 20 minutes at Level 3. They do it again the next day. and the next week, and the next month. And possibly next year, until they realise they havent lost any weight and give up, thinking that the gym is a waste of time.
And here is WHY this is a huge problem:
Your body is cunningly efficient at ADAPTING to the demands you put on it. It reacts in the opposite way to anything you do to it. ANYTHING. Just think:
You cut your hair. It grows back thicker.
You break a bone. It heals stronger.
You tear your muscles down with exercise. They grow back stronger and fitter.
Once you have jogged 20 minutes at Level 3 once or twice, you body has ADAPTED to it. So if it burned 300 calories the first time, then you become fitter and as a result you burn LESS calories to perform the same task. So the next time it may only burn 290 calories. Then 260 etc.
Now, considering that your nutrition intake is consistantly 2000 calories a day, if you exercise in this way you may end up taking in more calories and burning less with exericse, which could lead to you actually storing more fat!
The solution is to PROGRESS your exercise EVERY time you step into the gym, or your workout room at home.
It is always better to increase volume first (amount of reps, amount of time, distance) and THEN increase your intensity (weight, resistance level on cardio machines).
So if we are using weights, you want to be in the 8-12 range. If you can lift a weight 13 times, get the next highest weight and go back to 8 reps. The next week get 9 reps, then 10, up to 12. When you can get 13 reps with that weight, its time to increase it again.
With cardio, pick a level (say level 3) and if you can go for longer than 20 minutes, up it to Level 4 and go for 10 minutes. The next session aim for 12 minutes. Then 14, then 16 etc. Until you reach 20 again.
Repeating this process is vital. Remeber you MUST do more work than last time, if not, you have essentially WASTED your time in the gym as your body will have adapted and you will likely burn less calories than last time as you have become fitter.
7. Do your weights BEFORE cardio.
Another tradition that prevents you from relising your potential is this. You have 3 sources of energy to use during exercise:
Carbs, fats, then proteins. (Proteins are only broken down in extreme situations of prolonged exercise though, so we'll take that out of the equation).
Your body will use up its Carbs (sugars) first. Until your carb stores have been adequately depleted, you wont burn as much fat.
Now resistance training requires instant hard energy, so it will use up your carb stores. If you do this, THEN go to cardio afterwards, all you have left to burn is predominatly fat! Not to mention that if the resistance and cardio sessions are metabolic enough then you'll continue to burn fat via your metabolism throughout the day.
It is also important to do resistance training first because it will cause the most metabolic effects. Therefore, you want to give it all your energy whilst you are fresh and can give 100%.
It is also safer to lift weights with good form if you are fresh, rather than drain yourself with cardio and be fatigued before lifting heavy dumbbells.
So to recap quickly:
1. RAISE YOUR METABOLISM
2. Only use COMPOUND exercises that involve the whole body
3. Work the biggest muscles in the body (Glutes, back, and chest areas)
4. Use these metabolic exercises throught the WHOLE session, every time.
5. Build Up lactic acid with reps of 8-12
6. Do MORE work every single time you exercise, even if it just means afew extra seconds here and there.
7. Resistance Exericse BEFORE Cardio. Always.
I know this post has gone on forever but I really want to get these points across to you guys as I know it will save you making the same mistakes as many do. Follow these principles and you will surely see a difference before long.
Thanks for reading guys, good luck
Justin