Aerobic and anaerobic are the two types of exercises you will encounter when trying to lose weight. Aerobic exercise refers to any exercise where your heart has an increased demand for oxygen, such as jogging, swimming or cycling. Anaerobic exercise burns glucose and involves short bursts of intense activity, such as weight lifting, racquetball or soccer. Aerobic helps you lose weight by burning excess calories; anaerobic helps you lose weight by building muscle mass.
Aerobic
Aerobic literally means "with oxygen" and involves moderate-intensity activity that is steadily and rhythmically carried out over a prolonged period of time so that that your heart has an increased demand for oxygen. Aerobic exercise burns fat as your body breathes in oxygen. It involves actively training your heart, lungs and cardiovascular system to efficiently process and deliver oxygen quicker to every part of your body, burning calories faster.
Anaerobic
Anaerobic means "in the absence of oxygen". This type of exercise involves short bursts of intense activity with recovery time allowed between two repetitions. Anaerobic exercise burns glucose (sugar), converting a starch in your muscles known as glycogen. As you reach muscle fatigue, your muscles accumulate lactic acid, causing that 'burn' you may feel. This means you are burning glycogen, not fat. Anaerobic exercise helps reduce your body fat percentage, increases your metabolism and increases muscle mass, which, in turn, helps you continue to burn calories long after you have finished exercising.
Benefits
Since oxygen makes fat metabolize, aerobic exercise helps you expel excess calories for more weight loss. Aerobic exercise also makes your heart muscles work harder, keeping your heart strong and healthy in the process. This type of exercise increases stamina and helps you recover from muscle fatigue faster. Anaerobic exercise is intense, helps build muscle mass and increases power and speed, resulting in a low body fat percentage. The increase of muscle mass from anaerobic exercise results in more calories being burned, even after you are long finished working out.
Limitations
Aerobic exercises do not build strength, power or muscle mass. In fact, doing aerobic exercise alone may result in loss of muscle mass. Aerobic exercises for weight loss are intense, resulting in a fast anaerobic process where glycogen breaks down and results in lactic acid, accumulation of which causes muscle fatigue. This means more recovery time is necessary before you can continue working out.
Which is Better?
An ideal weight loss routine is to combine aerobic and anaerobic exercise. Aerobic exercise will melt calories and burn fat and anaerobic exercise will increase your muscle mass, reduce your body fat and increase your metabolic rate even after your workout is finished.
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