Sometimes i asked, “What are the techniques to shed fat?” People want to know if aerobics is more effective than strength training, or if traditional cardio exercise is much better than intervals.
Actually, to say I did all of them will be an understatement.
With many years experience assisting others, training myself, training for sports, investing plenty of hours in the fitness center, AND really conducting laboratory research studies on different exercise methods, I’m pretty confident in knowing what works and exactly what does not.
However for a start, I would like to frame my responses. I want to talk about what works best for people that have a little amount of time to exercise, mostly because I believe your readers will not have 90 minutes daily to devote to a workout, unlike the typical people of any fitness magazine.
That is why there is a huge disconnect between several of the information found in magazines and the ability of the reader to apply it to their lives.
We just don’t have 6-8 hours per week for exercise, nor do we need it. For everybody who is a triathlete, you’ll need that, but not someone that just wants to lose fat and gain muscle.
Having said that, the results for getting a better body is…
Use bodyweight exercises to warm-up, strength training supersets to build muscle, after which you can end your regular workout with interval training to shed fat in a very short period. I’ve structured my system so that you are in and out of the fitness center in 45 minutes, 3 times per week.
You are going to do 5 minutes of bodyweight exercises to warm-up. It is a much more efficient approach than spending 5 minutes walking on a treadmill, which often doesn’t get you prepared for anything except more walking on a treadmill.
Then we go in to the strength training supersets, where we use two exercises performed back to back with minimum rest between each. This cuts our workout time, while still giving us most efficient results. We really need 20 minutes to do this, and we’ll use simple workouts, and sometimes even more bodyweight exercises, according to the client’s end goal for muscle building.
Last but not least, we are going to do 18 minutes of interval training. A warm-up, as well as six short intervals at the appropriate fitness level for the client, interspersed with small intervals of low-intensity recovery. Complete with a cool-down. And that is the workout. Again, about 45 minutes total.
Compare that to what a lot of people do, which can be run, jog, cycle or use the cardio machines for 45 minutes straight. Sure, that can burn calories, but it really doesn’t build a better body.
Actually, there are many “dark sides” to long slow cardio, including less-than-optimal results, the opportunity for overuse injuries, and it is an inefficient kind of exercise. If you only have 30-45 minutes for your exercise and you invest it all on a cardio machine, when are you going to train the rest of your muscles and sculpt a much better body?
Now the best way to burn fat around your belly is with a variety of strength training and interval training. It’s fast, it really works, and it’s fun!
This article has been written by the author, Alex Blaken. Should you require any more Burn Stomach Fat please visit his Lose Belly Fat resources!