This post is about going to the gym where folks either treadmill for awhile and then go do some sets on some weight machines or just use the machines or just use the cardio:
If you want to get fit / lose weight, skip the treadmill, skip the machines and
Think HEAVY; think BIG and think LESS is MORE.
if you've been a treadmill/elliptical/stair climber person in the gym, either now or in the past, ask yourself this: are you happy with the results?
Do you look in the mirror and say gee whiz i look great and feel great?
If you said "yes" - skip the rest of this post. Otherwise, hope you'll keep reading.
If you didn't say "yes i sure do" to that question, then here's a second question: why keep doing it?
Sometimes answers are: because it's familiar, because we like to feel like we've done something; we've heard it's supposed to be good for us; we've lost a few pounds in the past when we've done this; it's better than nothing.
Believe it or not, you're better off for the most part going for a walk in the fresh air, as pushing yourself on a stairmaster or similar cardio device if weight loss is the goal. Cardio machines are just that: they work your heart: they are high repetition low-ish intensity devices. They are NOT the best tool for optimizing weight loss or, effectively, getting your body into that lean mean machine of your dreams (couldn't resist the near alliteration there).
And here's something else: going from machine to machine doing lat pulls and bicep curls and leg extensions/leg presses (isolation exercises) doing 12 reps each machine for three sets isn't going to get you to your goal any time soon, either.
Only two things really effect weight: nutrition (as touched on last week: that's key) and heavy resistance training with compound movements (here's an example program from Mike Mahler).
All the research in strength and conditioning - i mean all of it - says if you want to make real changes to your body you need those two things: eat right; lift heavy (see this article on the hierarchy of fat loss for more).
What is heavy resistance?
Mainly, it's doing work that uses your biggest muscles: your butt and your legs especially at weights you can move for 5 reps MAX for 3-5 sets MAX. It means you also only need to focus on two moves that leverage those muscles: a pull and a press. There are many pulls and presses to chose from, but that'all it takes: 1 of each that works as much of the body at once as possible.
Initially, you may only be in the gym (or at home) with this kind of routine for about 15-20 mins. That's fine. It's building a base. 15 quality minutes is better than an hour literally spinning your wheels on a stationary bike. Besides, you have a life outside the gym: you'd probably like to get back to it sooner rather than later?
Doesn't matter if you're a guy or a gal: the science is the same.
For gals, though, the thought of heavy weights can be freaky for a couple of reasons: big weights seem impossible to move and potentially dangerous if moved, and there's the fear of "bulking up"
Heavy is relative though: heavy today may be something 12 weeks from now you would consider light. Heavy means sufficient to load: to that 5 rep max.
As for gals building up bulky muscles:forget about it. It takes so much
WORK to do that it's not funny AND it also take a different approach
to achieve this kind of hypertrophy (muscle growth). What a
gal can get from this kind of *strength and conditioning* work is strong and toned; what a guy can get is strong and toned: six packs with definition. We're not trying to build frankenstein bodybuilders - though if that's your goal, that's ok too: it's still lifting heavy-ish but the ratio changes. Here, we're talking more about building muscle to trim fat, get stronger, healthier all round.
For guys, there's a whole other set of issues when you talk about "lift HEAVY" from suboptimal exercises (too many bicep curls; not enough squats) or they don't use full Range of Motion. For example, if they squat with a barbell on their shoulders (and seeing guys squat in the gym is rare in itself) they rarely go as low as legs parallel with the ground, never mind all the way down; if they do pullups they rarely go to a dead hang with elbows locked out before coming back up. If they do pushups, their chest isn't touching the ground each time. You know who you are. They cheat in other words, so they don't get the results using weight that would let them do full range of motion would give them. Good intentions; not so great execution, consequent not so great results.
So what does heavy resistance, properly done, do?
Heavy (for you) resistance builds nice new and tightly packed muscle fibers. The more muscle fiber, the higher the cost to maintain your body. That cost is paid in terms of energy burned. That means calories. The more muscle you have the more calories you need to burn to maintain that muscle. It's that simple. More muscle; more calorie burning. When that energy doesn't come from fuel (like eating carbs), it comes from burning fat stores.
Interestingly, you can't just lift heavy and starve and thus burn fat. The best part of this approach is, as you workout more, you have to *eat* more to maintain your body weight; not too far down the line when working out, you have to eat more just to lose weight. Hard to believe but true!
So, in brief the advantages of going for Heavy means
- Less time in the gym
- Increased lean muscle building which = more calorie burning
and there's a few other benefits we haven't touched on:
- increased bone mass, which means healthier, stronger bones - and staving off osteoporosis.
- more energy, too, as the neuromuscular systems learn to work together better.
The great thing is is all you need to complement your diet to take advantage of this approach are two well chosen resistance moves. Just two: a push and a pull. That's it. Really. less is more.
A perfect routine that you can build up to doing daily like this:
a squat
a bench or floor press
bent over rows
abs
That's it.
Mix this up with some interval work, and you'll be on your way to being a mean lean fat burning machine.
