A comprehensive weight loss program will always include exercise. If you're interested in losing weight, incorporating exercise into your regime will greatly increase your results. Ideally, those interested in weight loss results will work out five to six days per week. If your schedule only allows for two workout sessions per week, you will want to maximize the effectiveness of your workouts and also take additional steps to facilitate your efforts.
How Weight Loss Occurs
You lose weight when you burn more calories than you consume. Working out assists weight loss efforts because it increases the total amount of calories that you burn and helps to create a caloric deficit. Cardiovascular activities specifically burn a significant number of calories per unit of time. For every pound of fat that you want to lose, you need to burn a total of 3,500 calories more than you consume.
Loss Per Week
An aggressive weight loss program will result in a weight loss total of 2 to 3 lbs. per week. This comes from eating healthy foods and exercising frequently. By exercising only two days per week, you're going to slow down your results significantly. Based on the 3,500 caloric deficit needed to lose 1 lb. of fat, if you can burn 500 calories each time during your two exercise sessions, which is a common number of calories burned during a workout, you will lose 1 lb. of fat in 3 ½ weeks.
High Calorie Burning Exercises
There are exercise activities that will burn more calories than others per unit of time and therefore maximize your exercise session. Running is the most effective activity, as a 160 lb. individual will burn about 986 calories per hour they run at 8 mph. Other effective exercise activities include rollerblading, jumping rope and sports such as football and basketball. If you prefer exercise workout machines in a gym, just increase their intensity so that you're really physically pushing yourself.
Other Steps You Can Take
If you can only work out two days per week, try to incorporate more physical activity throughout your daily regime. Break up your work days with 5 minute walks and park a distance away so that you have to walk further to get to the store. While these steps seem minimal, they will eventually add up to your overall physical activity total and thus contribute to your weight loss efforts.
Additional Considerations
You can contribute to your weight loss by making some nutritional steps. While exercise helps you burn more calories, you can create an even greater caloric deficit by consuming low calorie foods. It's much easier to consume 500 less calories per day than it is to burn 500 calories per day through exercise. Make steps to lower your overall calorie consumption, such as drinking primarily water and limiting high calorie foods.
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