The best way to lose weight is to reduce your calorie intake and increase the rate at which you burn fat (aka 'metabolism' or 'metabolic rate') by exercising. (That supply and demand formula I explained earlier.)
The metabolic rate is very individual and depends on many factors; your age, activity level and diet. It is not something that stays static, and the good thing is that you can speed up your metabolic rate. Here are a few ways to make your body burn calories faster:
Building muscle
If you have good muscle tone, you will also have a very good metabolic rate. A larger amount of muscle mass means a faster metabolism.
It is well known that we lose muscle mass as we grow older (and this loss of muscle starts in your 40s). Women lose even more muscle after the menopause and men, as they age, see their testosterone levels drop which affects their muscle mass.This, combined with the fact that the metabolism starts to slow down from age 40 in both sexes, is largely the cause of increased weight as we grow older. Add the increased calorie intake as the pleasures of the table become more and more enticing the older we get and you have the main reason for that middle age spread. We can, however, prevent this and maintain good muscle tone well into old age if we exercise regularly. Joining a gym and following a weight training routine, combined with aerobic exercise such as walking or swimming is the best recipe for building muscle. It is important to remember also, that the fat burning caused by exercise keeps going for 24 hours after you stop. So even at rest, a fit person with good muscle tone burns calories twice as fast as a couch potato.
How much and how often?
A weight training, or strength training routine should be done three times a week or more. Any gym will have staff that can design a program suited to your individual needs and body type. Half an hour in the gym using machines and weights is sufficient to build up basic muscle tone. If you can't join a gym, I would recommend buying a fitness DVD of half an hours' working with light weights. Add this to the daily half hour walking or jogging and you will soon see great results in both your shape and fitness levels
Food that builds muscle and increases the metabolic rate.
We need protein in order to build up our muscles. Increase your intake of lean proteins, such as low fat milk, yogurt, lean meat, poultry and fish, reduce your carbohydrates and drink plenty of water and you will soon feel more energetic and burn calories more efficiently.
So, put in a nutshell; build muscles and feed them with protein and you will turn into that lean,mean fat-burning machine.
A little bit of an effort, yes. But it's worth it!
How much and how often?
A weight training, or strength training routine should be done three times a week or more. Any gym will have staff that can design a program suited to your individual needs and body type. Half an hour in the gym using machines and weights is sufficient to build up basic muscle tone. If you can't join a gym, I would recommend buying a fitness DVD of half an hours' working with light weights. Add this to the daily half hour walking or jogging and you will soon see great results in both your shape and fitness levels
Food that builds muscle and increases the metabolic rate.
We need protein in order to build up our muscles. Increase your intake of lean proteins, such as low fat milk, yogurt, lean meat, poultry and fish, reduce your carbohydrates and drink plenty of water and you will soon feel more energetic and burn calories more efficiently.
So, put in a nutshell; build muscles and feed them with protein and you will turn into that lean,mean fat-burning machine.
A little bit of an effort, yes. But it's worth it!
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