Weightlifting is often associated with getting bigger and stronger and is generally very underrated for aiding in weight loss. It helps you lose body fat and weight, increase your strength and make you less prone to degenerative conditions such as arthritis, osteoporosis and diabetes, according to MayoClinic.com. Weightlifting includes any activity done with dumbbells, barbells, kettlebells, resistance bands, sandbags and even your own body weight.
Types of Lift
There are two main classifications of weightlifting exercises: isolation exercises, which involve the movement of a single joint, and compound exercises, which use two or more joints. Compound exercises tend to be better for aiding with weight loss, as they use a lot more muscle groups. This means that when you perform them, an increased demand is put on your body, thus burning a higher number of calories. Base your workout around compound exercises and add isolations if you need to improve lagging body parts.
Equipment
You can use any equipment you have at your disposal in your weightlifting routine. Dumbbells and barbells are best to start with. Kettlebells and sandbags also have many benefits, although it can be tougher to learn the correct techniques with these. Finally, if you travel a lot or have to work out from home, then you may wish to consider body weight and resistance-band training.
Frequency
Frequency is a hotly debated topic in the fitness industry, and it appears there really is not an optimal training frequency. However, strength coach Jason Ferruggia recommends that if you are looking to burn fat and lose weight, three full-body workouts per week is the best place to start, as this will create maximum calorie expenditure per workout. As you progress and become more advanced, you might consider moving on to an upper-lower split or even a body part split.
Duration
Training with intensity is far more important than training for long periods. Keep your workouts under an hour, and train as hard as you can. If you finish your session and feel like you could have trained for longer, then you probably didn't work hard enough. Even if you have only 10 or 15 minutes to work out, you can still get an effective weightlifting session done if you train with enough intensity.
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