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Do you know what type of exercise is best for weight loss? Many people think that endless hours of cardio is the recipe for weight loss, but although this will be effective in the long run, particularly if you are currently sedentary, there are better and more effective forms of exercise for weight loss.
The key to effective weight loss is keeping your metabolism high - your metabolism is the speed at which you burn calories. As you might imagine, the faster your metabolism, the easier it is to lose weight.
Thus the problem with most fad diets, for example, is that because they starve you - your body has to find ways of feeding itself, and it does so by burning your muscle.
This is bad news, because your muscles are the biggest engine driving your metabolism. The more muscle you have, the higher your metabolic rate, the less muscle you have, the slower your metabolic rate.
Therefore the best exercise for weight loss is going to be one that protects, or even adds to, the amount of muscle you have. This is particularly crucial as you get older, because we all lose muscle as we age - unless you are actively working to protect or add to your muscle mass, you will be losing muscle and your metabolism will be slowing every year. That's why so many people gain weight as they get older.
Let's look at the different types of muscle building exercises you can do:
- Machine resistance training: Most gyms are packed with gleaming machines that allow you to work your muscles. These are a good place for beginners to get used to strength training, as the machines are safe and easy to control. However the range of exercises is limited, and the machines limit the range of muscles used in any given exercise.
- Free-weight resistance training: Free weight training includes dumbbells, barbells, and kettlebells. This is a superior method of training, offering almost infinite possibilities and allowing you to work several muscle groups at once. Depending on your goals you can use the same equipment and exercises to target muscle size, weight loss, or even overall fitness. If you are not sure how to use free weights, be sure to consult a trainer first to learn proper technique and a good variety of exercises. Free weights also have the advantage of being inexpensive and taking up a limited amount of space, so they are ideal for home workouts.
- Resistance band training: Developed from physical therapy techniques, resistance band training uses elastic bands to work and build muscle. They can be used to work the whole body, and are ideal where space is limited. They are good for people who have little initial conditioning, but are ultimately limited in how much strength they can develop.
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