Tuesday, November 24, 2009

How can I lose fat?

The following tips were taken from the insert in my Creative Aerobics disk by Linda Haught.

There are 6 basic keys to losing fat.

1. The frequency with which you exercise aerobically.

If you have more body fat than you should, it is recommended that you exercise 6 times a week (once a day) for 30 minutes. Depending on the intensity and duration of your workout, your metabolism will double between 3 to 6 hours after you finish working out.

If you are overweight or a beginner, it is recommended that you perform your aerobic routine every other day to avoid injury. On the days you do not work out, take a brisk walk, swim laps, or jog on a rebounder for at least 20 minutes, preferably for 30 minutes.

2. The consistency with which you work out.

If your goal is to lose fat, it is important that for at least 3 months you are very regular. Don't take a 2 day vacation.

3. The intensity with which you work out.

Although you cannot start out exercising at an 80% target heart rate, this should be your goal when you get into better condition.

4. The duration of your workout

It is important that you keep your heart rate up for 30 minutes, even if it means being less intense - walking instead of jogging or performing aerobics with marching or stepping only. The reason for this is that for the first 12 minutes of your workout you are using a higher percentage of glycogen (calories stored in the muscles) for energy and a lower percentage of fat. However, after 12 minutes the glycogen becomes somewhat depleted. At this point your body is forced to use greater amounts of fat for energy if you continue to exercise.

** from Tami - It is better to lump all your daily exercise into 1 session, if possible. When I finish my aerobic routine, I automatically jump over to my elliptical to finish the remainder of the hour of exercise. I consider this to be my fat burning bonus points. Once I get past my initial 12 minutes, I figure it is all on fat burning from here on out.

5. The type of food you eat

Cut back on fats and sugars. Although the number one cause of overweight in our country (USA) is lack of exercise, the second biggest problem is a high level of fats in the diet. Do not cut back on complex carbohydrates (vagetables, fruits, pasta, bread, etc).

** Tami's note. Make your pastas and breads whole grain, if possible.

6. The breakfast that you eat

Do not skip breakfast! Skipping breakfast is common in overweight people. You need breakfast to raise your metabolism after a night's sleep.

Keep Crunchin'! We can do it!

Tami

3 comments:

Joy said...

Hey Tami,
Thanks for the article; it has some good information. You are a nurse right? I have a question about exercising on an empty stomach (after reading your post today). I usually get up, stretch, maybe drink a half glass of water, and then get to the exercise. I don´t feel dizzy and usually do this because once I´m into my schedule, I won´t stop to exercise. Seeing the mention of breakfast (which I eat about 15 min. after cooling down) from a medical point of view, do you think it is ok to exercise on an empty stomach? Thanks. Joy

Unknown said...

This is great great stuff!!

Thank you for posting it!

Crunchin with ya,
Dani Joy

Siberia said...

Joy, Yes, I'm a nurse. Sorry I didn't answer your question right away. I wanted to do some research about it first. From what I read on the internet, and consulted with a former fitness instructor, yes, it is fine to exercise before breakfast. In fact, before breakfast, you have no stores of energy left because of your sleeping during the night, so you get to fat burning level almost right away. As long as your body is handling it OK, and you aren't getting faint or dizzy, keep up the morning exercise. The fitness instructor I talked to said that you should probably only do 30 min of exercise though on an empty stomach. Keep up the great work! I can't exercise first thing in the morning. I feel faint quickly!

Tami