Weight Loss Strength Training Programs

Many strength training programs can help you lose weight. According to "Xtreme Lean" authors Jonathan Lawson and Steve Holman, weight training helps to burn fat more efficiently than cardiovascular training. The reason for this is simple, you do not just burn fat while you lift weights, but for up to 72 hours afterward as well. There are many different ways to achieve the same thing in fitness, so experiment with different training programs to see what works best for your body.

Volume Training

This form of training uses volume, the number of sets and reps, to create a muscle building and fat burning stimulus for the body. Also known as German volume training, this program involves doing 10 sets of 10 repetitions for one compound exercise per muscle group. For example, to train the chest you would do 10 sets of 10 reps on the bench press, using a weight that you can handle for a large volume. According to "The Ultimate 10X10 Mass Program," this method can get you results quickly. The breakdown looks like this: do chest and back on day one, legs on day two, then you rest on the third day and do arms on the fourth. Rest another day or two and repeat.

Split Training

This form of training specializes by separating each muscle group into its own training day or combining push-pull muscles, such as back and chest. A five-day split that works well is shoulders on Monday, arms on Tuesday, legs on Wednesday, back on Thursday and chest on Friday. You can use super-sets to make this workout efficient. Super-sets mean doing a set of one exercise then with little rest doing a set of a second exercise, making one super-set. Then you repeat the super-set one to two times. For the chest, for example, you could do a set of dumbbell flyes, followed immediately by a set of bench press. Choose one to three super-sets for each muscle group.

Circuit Training

To perform a circuit, you do several exercises back to back with little or no rest between them. A sample circuit might include squats, leg extensions, leg curls, standing calf raise, pull-ups, cable rows, bench presses, dumbbell flyes, upright rows, dumbbell shoulder press, dips, kickbacks, bar curls and concentration curls. One set of each would make up one circuit. Then you can repeat the circuit one or two more times. Make your own circuit by choosing one to three exercises for each muscle group and doing them in the order of muscle size, largest to smallest. You always do legs before arms, for example, because they require more effort and your workout would suffer if you did them last in your routine.