A Workout for Weight Loss

To ensure weight loss, a workout should consist of a warm-up, cardiovascular exercise and resistance training. Design your workout so it will maximize your caloric expenditure. Choosing exercises you enjoy will make it easier to maintain the necessary intensity levels for the duration of your routine. This will help you burn more calories.

Always Warm-Up

Every workout should include an eight to 12 minute warm-up. The purpose of a warm-up is to increase your core temperature, according to "Fitness: Theory and Practice" by the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America. Warm-ups also prepare your muscles and joints for the movements required throughout your fitness routine.

Cardiovascular Exercise

Incorporate cardiovascular exercises into your workout for weight loss. Choose from such activities as running, walking, skiing, skating, dancing, swimming or hiking. You may need to include 60 to 90 minutes of physical activity into your workout to achieve or maintain weight loss, according to the American College of Sports Medicine. Choosing an activity you enjoy will make it easier to sustain exercise for longer periods of time, which will help you burn more calories.

Resistance Training

Incorporate resistance training into your workout will help burn calories, reduce fat and build muscle tone. You can use free weights, resistance machines, resistance bands, medicine balls or kettle bells to add resistance. If you don't have access to resistance training tools, try calisthenics. Push-ups, pull-ups, sit-ups or lunges are all examples of calisthenic exercises. Calisthenics build strength and endurance by challenging control of your body weight, according to ArmyStudyGuide.com. Regardless of the method you choose, resistance training will strengthen your muscles and burn more calories.

Intensity Level

Keeping your intensity levels between 55 and 90 percent of your maximum heart rate will ensure you're burning enough calories. "Fitness: Theory and Practice" recommends following these percentages, or to gage your heart rate levels using the Rate of Perceived Exertion, or RPE, scale. On a scale of 1 to 10--one equals no exertion and 10 is maximum exertion--your intensity level should be between a five and seven during your workout.

Include Variety

Performing the same routine repeatedly can cause your body to adapt over time. Once your body adapts, your weight loss can plateau and you won't lose any more weight. Constantly change your workout to prevent a weight loss plateau. For example, if you usually perform your cardio last, try doing it first. Add more repetitions to your resistance training routine or simply change the order of the exercises. The more your body has to guess, the more it will respond to your routine.