One of the most frustrating things about finding a strength training for weight loss routine is not seeing results on the scale.
Weight loss can take a very long time to achieve. Differences in your physique aren’t always easy to spot even if you have somehow managed to get that darned needle to move a tiny bit down the scale.
Another thing that can be very testing – when you’re attempting to get fit or to get a better-looking body is gym work.
We’ve all been there.
We’re determined to do something about that excess weight or that beer gut, and we head off down to the gym for high-intensity workouts. It can get to the point where a glance at those dumbbells is enough to make you ache.
The day after those gym sessions can see you seized up and sore to the core. It isn’t a pleasant experience; it’s not likely to motivate you. It can be tough to stick with gym work for the prolonged periods required to make a difference to your health.
Note: Check out our Strength Training for Beginners, Boomer Fitness Tips for Strength Training, and How to Increase Bench Press Strength Guides!
Making a Change and Keeping it Going
The truth is that the process of making a change, losing weight, getting more fit, sometimes suck. When you’re out of shape, and you’ve been inactive for a long time all that lifting weights will hurt – right?
So, what if I told you there was a way to avoid both above frustrations and still achieve your weight loss goals?
What if I told you that those frustrations and that level of pain are both unnecessary yo you losing weight?
You don’t even need to heave like a powerlifter to achieve your fitness and body image goals.
In this guide, we’re going to look at how strength training can become a big part of your weight-loss plan.
Shed Weight by Shedding Weights
Sound too good to be true? Well, it isn’t.
It’s a fact that most people hurt and seize up after gym sessions because they get it wrong.
Many try to make a difference in their weight and condition by attempting to lift too much iron.
The reality is that you don’t need to lift heavy amounts of weight to see quicker differences. Weight loss isn’t about bodybuilding.
It’s necessary to change that usual mindset if you’re serious about your strength training for weight loss routine.
Strength training will make the process of weight loss an easier one to negotiate.
We’re about to look at the process that’s going on inside your body when you’re working those muscles down at the gym.
We’ll also examine why those gym sessions can cause a lot of pain, and we’ll look at what you need to do to avoid most of that.
The goal here is to teach you how to make strength training an enjoyable part of your routine.
There’s no reason why strength training can’t be a very positive element in your quest to shed some pounds.
Why Does Strength Training Help You Lose Weight?
The simple fact of the matter is that strength training can help you to lose weight. It does this by accelerating the body’s natural fat burning process.
It might seem odd to think that lifting weights makes your physical form leaner, but that’s what it does.
The way to think about losing weight is not to concentrate too much on the scales. I realize this might sound odd, but, it’s not. It may be necessary to redefine how you think about weight loss.
Often, what you’re trying to do when you think you’re looking to lose weight is to reduce the amount of body fat you’re carrying. You want your body to look better, and you want to lose some flab, sure.
Doing that doesn’t always mean losing massive numbers of pounds dropping off your body. Sometimes it’s more about getting healthier while you’re doing that.
Don’t Think About Weight – Think About Fat
When you work your muscles:
- you increase the amount of muscle mass you have
- you also make it necessary for the body to carry out maintenance on the parts of your body that have been active
- your fat reserves provide the energy that your body needs to function
Working your muscle fibers with minimal amounts of resistance increases it needs to perform.
As a result, you’ll build lean and healthy tissues.
At the same time, you’re burning calories and fat to fund the activity and the transformation.
Set Yourself Up for Ongoing Success
Strength training will start to make you look lean and mean in no time flat.
It’s a win-win activity.
There are way more positives to strength training than there ever will be negatives. That goes for everyone out there who’s looking to get rid of some flab.
Strength training also helps you to develop healthier bones, which makes you far less likely to get injured.
It’s a massive advantage over training programs that concentrate on cardio workouts. Weight training can stop a lot of brittle bones conditions dead in their tracks and efficient at raising your heart rate.
You can start to use strength training without going anywhere near a commercial gym.
You don’t even need to go down to the sports store and invest in lots of equipment.
Try using household items to get strength training working toward your weight loss.
A quart of milk is heavy enough to use as a dumbbell to get you started. We’re not talking about vast amounts of weight. Many different domestic items have enough mass to start working those muscles.
Any poundage added will amplify your body’s natural fat burning mechanism.
Try to view strength training as a two-pronged attack on fat.
You’ll be burning fat by using resistance, and you’re going to replace it with beautiful lean muscles.
You’ll be making your body more able to continue the fight against fat.
Like any process, the more you equip yourself to deal with it, the better and more efficient you’ll be at making it work.
This method will cut the aches and pains that the new exercises cause. You’ll also need less recovery time between activities. Keep going, and add a little weight and resistance to simple workouts.
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Strength Training for Weight Loss Routine and Diet
To lose weight by using any form of exercise, you need to be burning more calories than you’re taking in.
Creating a calorie deficit will ensure that each time you work out, you’ll get leaner and stronger.
You don’t need to starve yourself or go on fad diets to use strength training when you’re losing fat.
Fuel your workouts, eat healthy breakfasts, lunches, and dinners and avoid bad fats. Make sure that you’re burning up more calories throughout the day than you’re taking in to lose weight.
You’ll adopt a diet that enables you to lose weight too. You’ll engage in some aerobic activity alongside all this.
Strength training helps your body deal with that activity best when you eat right.
It’s about changing your body and making it a fat burning machine.
Note: Don’t forget to check out our other guides! Learn How to Control Hunger Cravings, Paleo Diet Guidelines for Beginners, 111 Delicious Paleo Diet Recipes, and Intermittent Fasting Benefits for Fitness!
Free Your Mind – and the Fat Will Follow
Converting your appearance can be a tough task – there’s no getting around that, and it’s a fact.
It takes hard work — a certain amount of dedication. You’ll need to train your mind to get you through the process.
There’ll be difficult times and days along the way, and it’s vital to have the mental tools to deal with that.
If you view the task as being a mountain, then you’ll have a mountain to climb. Try to see it as a journey. Keep your head focused on all the positive experiences you’re going to have along the way.
Think of it like every day you spend working out is another day as a new person. When you feel sore or discouraged, keep walking and keep changing.
The mental side of any task is always a huge factor.
Picture all the things that are happening inside your body while you train. Imagine that machine burning fat.
Think of it as an enormous steam engine. Picture a guy shoveling coal into the furnace to keep the powerful engine moving. Imagine all the pistons and parts pumping.
That’s what you’re doing as you work out, and instead of coal, you’re burning that flab.
Aerobic/Cardio Work Too
Strength training will speed up how your body burns off fat – this we know.
The benefits of building muscle don’t stop with increasing the rate at which you lose fat.
The beauty of converting flabby areas into honed, healthy and tight limbs is massive.
Once you start to see changes to your appearance when you look in the mirror, that’s a great motivator.
We all need encouragement along the way to get to where we want to be. Strength training will provide you with the push you’ll need to get along the bumpy road to success.
It’s crucial to combine your weight loss efforts with aerobic exercise too.
Try to come up with a plan that sees you doing lots of brisk and active activity between workouts.
You don’t have to become a marathon runner overnight either. View aerobic activity as something to get your fat-burning machine started up.
Keep it simple; keep it steady and most essential – keep it going. All the things that you’re doing will have a cumulative effect on your physical appearance.
As you continue, you’ll gain more stamina and get quicker, better and stronger. – so start slow and work with your improvement.
Work on the outer edge of your comfort zone to get your metabolic rate going. At that point, you’re burning fat.
Walk briskly for forty minutes around the park, the streets or if you prefer to – get a treadmill and walk on that.
All the time, picture that steam train moving, and picture the guy shoveling coal into the boiler.
Keep on moving and keep on burning the fat.
Strength Training for Weight Loss Routine Tips
Don’t overdo your activity, especially at the start.
The thing to remember is that strength training will get your metabolism working. That’ll continue to burn fat – even after your workout finishes. Sometimes for several hours.
Your body will also continue to do muscle maintenance and burn off fat reserves for hours.
Choose your weight with care. Pick something that you can manage fifteen or twenty reps with before you start to get tired.
You should still be able to feel like you’re doing a bit of work to finish the reps.
If you’re only able to get anything less than fifteen reps done, though – you’re using too much weight, as you progress with your training, you can add more weight to the way you do each exercise.
Always warm up before you undertake any form of strength training or exercise. Cold muscles cause injuries. You don’t want to sprawl out on the sofa when you should be out walking or lifting weights.
You don’t need to start strength training by lifting weights. If you’re out of shape, try doing a few weeks of body weight strength training exercises to get you off the mark.
Note: Check out Strength Training for Women at Home and Strength Training Exercises for Women for more great tips!
As you make progress, you may want to add to the exercises you’re doing and use a set of dumbbells. Start with the basic exercises and remember what we said about weight.
Take your strength training for weight loss routine slow.
Dumbbells are great because they don’t take up a lot of space at home. Add more weight as you develop.
Whatever It Takes, Keep Going
Using strength training will bring you some startling and welcome results. Always keep in mind that some days will be harder than others. That though the journey might take a while – where you are heading is a happy place.
The strength you get from training isn’t limited to your muscles either.
As you work and get healthier, your confidence and mental power will also improve big time. You’ll lose your unwanted fat, and things will get a lot easier as you go along, and as you see the results in the mirror.
Like we’ve said already, start steady and don’t overdo it at the beginning.
Heading out too fast is only going to cause you pain and set you back.
Be sensible at the outset; don’t strain your body or push yourself too hard.
Remain patient, and the results will start to show, and they’ll keep coming.
Set yourself realistic targets here and there and work toward them. Every time you reach one, you’ll get a buzz from it, and it’ll keep you motivated.
Combine strength training with aerobic exercise and a healthy diet. Work out of your comfort zone and make sure you’re always setting yourself new targets.
Push toward your goal.
Think of the steam train. Think ahead to the day when you look in the mirror and see a leaner, stronger and healthier you.
That day will get here faster than you think if you get started right away.