If you are overweight, losing a few of those extra pounds can make you feel better about your appearance and improve your overall health. As a woman, a specific exercise plan is required to burn calories and fat while building strength and muscle definition. Of course, you won't lose weight unless you also adhere to a healthy diet.
Aerobic Activity
Aerobic activity or cardiovascular exercise gets your heart rate up. This type of exercise burns calories and is the only kind of exercise that actually causes weight loss. According to the American College of Sports Medicine, you should perform an aerobic activity, such as running or swimming, for 30 minutes a day at least five days a week to see weight loss over time.
Interval Training
According to MayoClinic.com, interval training is a way to lose weight quickly and to get the most out of each workout session. When performing an aerobic activity such as jogging, you can keep the same pace for about five minutes, then burst into a sprint for 30 seconds. Accelerating and decelerating the pace and starting and stopping makes the body work harder and burn more calories than if you kept the same pace consistently.
Creating a Calorie Deficit
To lose one single pound with exercise, women have to burn 3,500 calories more than they eat each week. According to MayoClinic.com, this is called a calorie deficit and is required if you want to lose any amount of weight. A realistic goal is to lose one pound a week, which would mean you'd have to burn an extra 500 calories a day. A combination of eating a low-calorie diet and exercising at least 30 minutes at a high intensity will enable you to achieve this.
Strength-Building Exercises
Building muscle through strength- and weight-training can also help you lose weight. Using dumbbells for bicep curls and bench presses will tone and define your muscles, as well as increase your resting metabolism. Strengthening exercises like push-ups, lunges and squats also build muscle mass and encourage your body to burn more calories when combined with cardiovascular activity.
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