How to exercise to optimize weight loss

Have you been doing all the right things to lose weight? Working out, eating right, hydrating properly, and getting enough sleep? Weight loss can be a long, difficult journey, but if you focus on improving your metabolism instead of cutting your calories, the journey can be much more PLEASANT AND SUCCESSFUL. 

 

What about metabolism?

 

To start, let’s talk about metabolism. You’ve probably heard a lot about how fast someone’s metabolism is or how someone “stunted” their metabolism from poor eating habits. This isn’t necessarily true – metabolism is the set of chemical reactions that occur in the body, better known as the more general term energy expenditure. Your total energy expenditure is made up of three things:  

 

Resting metabolic rate – this is the amount of energy you would burn if you were doing absolutely nothing (which is near impossible for someone to do)

 

Thermic effect of food – this defines how much energy it takes to break down the food you eat

 

Activity energy expenditure – this has to do with the calories (energy) you burn during exercise and activity

 

All of these 3 things contribute to your metabolism, which is constantly working and using up energy! So now that you know a bit of background about metabolism, let’s talk about why it’s important in weight loss. 

 

Think of metabolism as a math equation (not hard math!). To maintain your weight, the amount of energy put into your body needs to be EQUAL to what you burn on that day. This is also called energy homeostasis – what’s coming in is equal to what’s going out. To lose weight, the amount of energy you put into your body needs to be LESS than what you burn. Make sense? 

 

Okay, now let’s shift directions and talk about lean body mass.

 

Stick with me – it might seem like a lot of information but it will make sense soon! Lean body mass, also known as fat-free mass, is the total weight of your body without your body’s fat mass. Lean body mass is so important in weight loss because it incorporates your muscle mass! Building muscle mass, and strengthening already existing muscles, will do wonders for your weight loss journey.

 

By increasing lean body mass, your resting metabolic rate (the amount of energy your body burns doing nothing) will increase. Studies have shown that lean body mass is the strongest determinant of your resting metabolic rate – up to 70%! 

 

Bottom line – lean body mass increases resting energy expenditure, AKA improving your metabolism! Meaning you can eat more and STILL LOSE WEIGHT. 

 

While losing weight, it’s so important to maintain (or improve) your lean body mass because of your metabolism. Without a strong metabolism, you might struggle to lose weight or hit a weight loss plateau.Without building lean muscle, you’ll have to continually eat less and less to maintain your weight loss – and that’s a boring life to live!

 

How do I build lean muscle?

 

Ok so you’re convinced you need lean muscle for sustainable weight loss, but how can you build it? Building lean muscle mass isn’t as hard as you might think. Working out and being generally active is a great place to start! The key is to nail down consistent strength training to build those lean muscles. Building lean muscle DOESN’T mean you’ll bulk up, it just means that you need to shift body composition (aka fat changes to muscle). And you can do that with some RESISTANCE TRAINING.The umbrella term for building lean muscle mass is called resistance training – any exercise that causes your muscles to contract against an external force. That external force can be by movement (running, biking, swimming, walking) or with weights! So essentially anything that challenges your muscles. Bonus points if you push yourself to your own limit, because that’s when the muscle fibers really build. 

 

One of my personal favorite exercise types to get strength training and fun cardio in is through HIIT training – high intensity interval training. While it can sound intimidating, it’s actually fun and fast! Who doesn’t love that? Just remember, incorporating any type of strength or resistance training will benefit your muscles and your metabolism. 

 

What can you do? Takeaways

 

• Sometimes all you need is 5-10 mins at home, and when you’re ready to step it up consider joining a group class!

• Complete 2-3 resistance workouts this week – even if they are super short!

• Accept that working out will not cause you to bulk up, but will shift your fat to muscle (AKA body composition)

 

Want some ideas, join our free Metabolism Challenge facebook group by CLICKING HERE! 

 

Co-written by Eleanor Smith