How to Lose Weight and Kick Start Your Metabolism
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Hello! There are a few things to know that will greatly help you with your fitness goals:1.) It is commonly thought that only cardio will help someone lose fat. This is only partially true. To lose fat effectively you will need to build muscle AND do cardio (running, swimming, etc.). Generally, you'll want about 30-40% of your work out to be cardio. Gyms are great, but lifting free weights (dumbbells) is more effective. You can also do push ups, pull ups, etc.2.) Keep track of what you have done and the results you have achieved. Keep a journal of the days that you work out and hold yourself to working out a certain amount each week. (I would suggest 5 days.)3.) Make a plan of what you want to do. I'll help you with this, but you need to have a plan so that you aren't just stabbing this body transformation blindly.4.) Don't give in to cravings. You mentioned that you are eating healthily. Great! Keep track of what you are eating and look back at it after about a week, you can assess what you've been eating and see if you could make any helpful changes. More vegetables, less fatty meats. (Try grilled chicken and salmon for examples of low fat meats.) This being said, you still want to eat. I would suggest eating at least 1400 calories a day to lose weight. Make sure that you are not starving yourself! It is a fine line.5.) Sleep really is ESSENTIAL. Make sure you are getting 7-8 hours of sleep a night. Giving your body sleep reduces stress (stress forces your body to store fat and improperly digest food), and helps you build muscle. The good thing about muscle is that it burns many calories to hold it, so it essentially does not let your body store anymore fat as you get it off, it also helps you to create the calorie deficit that you need to lose weight.I'll post a great workout below (for any fitness goal, it has a lot of cardio and strength building, and it can all be done easily at home!). But here are my suggestions for losing weight.Day 1: Start with the program I posted below. This is a great program, all you need are some dumbbells and a little bit of space. Remember, do the first "Station" for a minute, rest for a 10 seconds, then do the second "Station" for one minute, rest for 10 seconds, etc. If you want to do 45 seconds instead, that is fine, but work up to a minute. Day 2: Go on a jog! Use your car to map out a mile in your neighborhood/area and run it! If you aren't used to jogging, start with a mile, but gradually work up to a few miles. Don't give in to walking, you will feel much better if you go through the whole way only jogging. If you REALLY need to, you can, but just think about the beach body you will have next swimming season if you don't walk. Day 3: Do the workout listed below (same as day 1). If you didn't repeat the exercise 3 times, do that now. After completing all ten stations, you should do the workout twice more (with a two minute break in between each)Day 4: Use your body! Do the following exercises: a.) Plank! (Do a plank for two minutes straight) b.) Push ups (start with 10, increase it in increments of 5 every time you do the workout until you get to 20) Repeat three times. c.) 20 sit ups/ crunches. Get those ab muscles! Again, slowly increase the amount of crunches you are doing until you can do about 50. Repeat three times. d.) Squats. Do 20 squats (Make sure you are SQUEEZING your butt and thighs while going down and up, if you want, add a dumbbell to your arms and it will add more difficulty.) Repeat two times.*Repeat this exercise at least twice. Day 5: Go on another jog! Try to make this one longer than the last one. You want to slowly work your way up to a few miles. Also, time yourself and challenge yourself to make a faster time.This 5 day workout system gives you two free days throughout the week. Right down on a weekly calender, or just in a journal which days you plan on doing what. Feel free to modify any of the workouts to best fit your routine, and the order of the days. I gave you about 40% cardio, and 60% strength building. Another tip: Don't burn yourself out! Feel free to workout for more or less days if you need. Just write down what you plan on doing and make it consistent! I believe in you, and you have already made your first step to the healthier body that you want. Good luck!P.S. Here is the workout:http://www.menshealth.com/fitness/spartacus-workout-1
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