Fitness Enthusiasts: 3 Tips for Promoting Weight Loss

Whether you are a fitness junkie or fairly new to the health craze, it is important to stay up to date on ways to overcome common fitness barriers (i.e. weight-loss). As a Northwestern Student specializing in Learning & Organization Change with a passion for fitness, I have found two articles that will interest you.

                                               

In the Huffington Post Life article Is Strength Training Better or Cardio Better for Fat Loss?, author Melissa Edmonds grapples with the most common question her new personal training clients ask her: how can I lose weight fast? Many women believe in the myth that strength training leads to bulking, Edmonds pushes back on this notion, “Ladies, if you want to get a ‘toned’ body, you need to increase muscle mass. You can do cardio all day every day and you’ll never achieve the look you want if you don’t have enough muscle underneath that fat layer you are working so hard to lose.” Edmonds recommends strength training combined with cardio in order to efficiently and effectively meet any weight-loss goals.

Image credit: Muscle & Fitness

In an evidence-based Healthline article Cardio vs Weight Lifting: Which is Better for Weight Loss? Dr. Grant Tinsley addresses the scientific facts underlying why cardio plus strength training are crucial for sustainable and successful weight loss. Dr. Tinsley gives workout suggestions and explains the importance of implementing HIIT (high intensity interval training) into every gym session. While he acknowledges less caloric burn in toning, he emphasizes the positive impact that lifting weights has on the metabolism overtime. In all, Dr. Tinsley states that as long as one is doing 150+ minutes of exercise per week, overall body composition will improve.

Based on my reviews of these two articles and my studies at Northwestern, I have developed 3 key tips to keep in mind the next time you are struggling to overcome a weight-loss fitness barrier.

1.         Just do …. both! - In order to optimize weight loss, it is recommended to incorporate both strength training and cardio into your workout regime.

2.         Stronger and more confident -  If you lift weights, as a female, you won’t end up looking like a bodybuilder – just a stronger more confident version of yourself.

3.         Physicality = Weight loss - The ACSM (the American College of Sports Medicine) states that 150+ minutes of physical activity (cardio + weight lifting) is sufficient to help produce weight loss in most people.

These three recommendations should help any fitness enthusiast that is struggling to overcome weight-loss fitness barriers.

Brianna Kessler has a passion for fitness and health. She is a senior undergraduate student studying Learning & Organizational Change, Business Institutions, Legal Studies, and Integrated Marketing Communications. Graduating in Winter 2018, she aspires to combine her passions for marketing and nutrition. You can reach me at LinkedIn or Twitter.