I Weigh 260 Pounds & Work Out Every Day â�� How Can I Lose Fat & Gain Muscle?

Working out is only part of the equation when it comes to weight loss. To lose weight and keep lean muscle, whether you weight 160, 260 or 360 pounds, it's best to follow a low-calorie diet and exercise regularly. Exercise should be a combination of cardiovascular exercise and strength training. This will keep lean muscle while burning lots of calories. Consult your doctor before beginning any new diet or exercise regimen.

Goals

To lose fat you need to burn more calories than you consume. To lose 1 lb. of fat, you need to burn 3,500 more calories than you take in. If you are consuming close to the same amount of calories that your are burning on a daily basic, trimming 500 calories a day should allow you to lose 1 lb. of fat in a week. MayoClinic.com recommends 2 lbs. per week as the maximum amount of safe weight loss, so the rest of the calories can be burned doing exercise.

Diet

What and how much you eat is the key factor in losing weight. Not only do you need to follow a low-calorie diet, but you also need to consume healthy food to nourish the body. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's MyPyramid website recommends a diet including lean meats, fish, poultry, fresh fruits and vegetables, and low-fat dairy products. Avoid foods high in saturated and trans fats, salt and added sugar. Keeping a low-calorie diet is important, but the MedlinePlus online medical encyclopedia cautions that men shouldn't go below 1,500 calories a day and that women should not go lower than 1,200.

Cardiovascular Exercise

Exercises that work the heart and lungs, such as running or jogging, are the best at burning calories. To lose weight, the American Council on Exercise recommends doing cardiovascular exercise five to six days a week for 45 minutes at a time. The intensity of the exercise should be enough to make you sweat and increase your heartbeat. For a 260-lb. person, it's best to do cardio exercises using a machine, such as an elliptical device, to avoid stressing the joints too much. Once your weight comes down, you can add exercises such as jogging and running. If you have not done any cardio previously, start slowly and work your way up in time and intensity. The good news is that the more you weigh, the more calories you will burn.

Strength Training

Workouts that strengthen the muscles should be done at least twice a week. All the muscles in the body should be worked for the best results. Each exercise should be done for at least one set of eight to 12 repetitions. As you build endurance, you will be able to do more sets; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend two to three for healthy adults. Strength training is important because it builds muscle, which burns more calories than fat and signals the body to take the calories it needs from fat instead of muscle. Weightlifting doesn't burn as many calories as cardio, however; if you are using strength training as your main workout, it is best to cut back and do more cardio until you lose more weight. Muscle also weighs more than fat by volume, so you might look the same but weigh more, at least in the early stages of a workout regimen.

Considerations

Consult a doctor before beginning a weight-loss program. Your doctor may prescribe a very-low-calorie diet if he feels you are too obese or need to jump-start your program. A doctor can also monitor your health and make sure you don't overdo your workout for your level of fitness. Keep a written journal of calories expended and consumed to help you focus. There are also online tools, such LIVESTRONG.com's MyPlate, that can give you an accurate calorie count and help you monitor your daily expenditure.