Losing weight is difficult, but that doesn’t make it impossible. There are many success stories of people who shed a lot of weight, but none of them would tell you it was an effortless journey.
Let’s be honest, paying for a monthly gym subscription is frustrating when you’re not seeing any significant changes with your body and weight. It might be because you’re giving more attention to the result than your actual performance.
To make sure you’re not wasting your time, effort, and money, here are some tips for an effective workout for weight loss:
1. Stop worrying and keep on moving.
Don’t get intimated by the fit person running next to you on the treadmill. Work on your own progress and focus on doing better every time you workout. If you have always been running at the same speed on the treadmill and you don’t feel challenged anymore, then make it faster. Push yourself to be better, and you’ll soon be able to do all the things that the fit person next to you has been doing.
2. Don’t waste time inside the gym.
Taking a rest between workouts isn’t bad, but too much of anything is bad, right? Most of the time, we tend to spend more time at the gym than we should because of scrolling through our phones while at rest. To make every workout session more productive but faster, put your phone down and try your best not to use it in the duration.
Rest as fast as possible when you get exhausted but don’t wait for your heart rate to get back to normal. An elevated heart rate will promote your body to work harder – which means it burns more calories.
3. Embrace the weights.
Don’t get me wrong, I know you’re not aiming for a bodybuilder physique, so I understand that you don’t feel the need to lift weights. However, lifting weights help burn calories, making it efficient for weight loss. Building muscles prompts the body to burn calories even when you’re not moving at all. It also keeps your body in good shape which is essential if you’re trying to really transform your body.
4. Keep all your muscles moving.
Bodybuilders often focus on one area for every workout session to build muscle faster. However, if losing weight is your goal, you should do the opposite and work on different muscle groups every time. This method, which is also referred to as cross-training, is useful for shedding pounds. The trick is to achieve a total body workout and not focus on one muscle group. For instance, lift some weights after a set of lunges or squats, get back to your lower body workout, and so on.
5. Try adding aerobic cardio to your workout routine.
Unlike strength training workouts, aerobic cardio doesn’t cause too much muscle pain but burns just as many calories. This makes it easier to maintain and work on especially for those who are looking to lose weight But to make it more efficient, it’s recommended to spend 60% of your time on cardio during your gym sessions.
6. Explore other gym equipment.
Break up your relationship with your favourite gym equipment and try mingling with the others. If you’re always on the treadmill, try using the elliptical or the rower. This will make your workouts more exciting, and it will add some challenge to your usual cardio routine.
7. Level up your workout with varying intensities.
Make your workout more efficient for losing weight by alternating varying intensities. What does this mean? It simply says you should step up the game and exercise at different paces. Take turns between aerobic and torture exercises so that you’re not stuck at one pace. This might require a lot more effort, but make sure you don’t push yourself past beyond your limits.
8. Stop complaining about muscle pains.
Do your legs feel like burning after a few sets of lunges? That mean you’re doing a good job! Muscle sores are indications that you burned calories during your workout, so stop whining about them.
9. Aim to complete a HIIT session every week.
HIIT (high-intensity interval training) workouts are not the most enjoyable sessions, but they’re highly-beneficial for those who are trying to lose weight. A single course of HIIT can speed up your metabolism for up to eight days, imagine that? However, although it’s effective, this technique is only recommended to be done once or twice a week to give your muscles ample time to recover.
10. Try outdoor workouts.
Aside from regularly visiting the gym, you also need to try exercising outdoors. Working a sweat in different climates also forces your body to work harder, so you’ll burn more calories. Make the most out of a warm sunny day and workout outdoors.
11. Don’t trust the scale.
It’s normal for people who are trying to lose weight to frequently check on the scale. However, this habit should be cut off because the scale doesn’t always define your progress. When you’re trying to get back in shape, you may be losing fat, but the muscles you build might add up to your weight. Don’t just depend on the scale to know whether all your efforts are working or not.