How To Cut Fat Fast Without Losing Muscle

About 68 percent of American adults struggle with obesity or overweight issues, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. If you want to cut fat quickly without losing muscle, you need to use both cardio and strength-training exercises. Together, these activities will help you shed fat quickly, without losing muscle.

Step 1

Set a fat-loss goal. The fastest weight loss recommended is 1 to 2 pounds a week, according to Medline Plus. You can lose that 1 or 2 pounds a week by creating a calorie deficit, which occurs when you burn more calories than your body needs each day. Since a pound of fat contains 3,500 calories, burn 3,500 calories for each pound of body fat you want to lose. For example, you can lose 2 pounds of body fat each week by cutting 1,000 calories a day. You can accomplish this through exercise and a reduced-calorie diet. For example, work out daily to burn 400 calories and reduce your food intake by 600 calories.

Step 2

Cut fat quickly by selecting high-intensity cardio activities. For example, walking burns 277 calories an hour, for a 160-pound person. However, if you select jogging instead, your calorie burn increases to 584 calories an hour. Increase your intensity to running and burn 986 calories an hour. Other high-calorie-burning activities include playing racquetball, jumping rope and rollerblading. These activities burn 500 calories or more an hour.

Step 3

Plan strength-training sessions. If you want to lose fat quickly without shedding muscle mass as well, strength-training is an important part of your routine. At a minimum, plan at least two strength-training sessions weekly, recommends the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Focus on working your major muscle groups, like the arms, legs, back, chest, abs and glutes. You can use your own body weight, resistance tubing, free weights or weight machines to strengthen your muscles.

Step 4

Use a circuit training approach. Circuit training allows you to combine high-intensity cardio activity with strength training to increase calorie burn by 30 percent, according to "Fitness" magazine. Start out with a strength-training activity, like leg squats. Then, rotate to an intense cardio exercise, such as jumping jacks or jogging. Select a new toning exercise, such as bicep curls, then rotate back to your intense cardio activity again. Continue this rotation for at least 30 minutes.

Tips and Warnings

With circuit training, don't work the same muscle group two days in a row. For example, if you work your abs and back on Wednesday, wait until at least Friday to work these muscle groups again.
Discuss your fast weight-loss goals with your doctor. She will help you set goals that are effective and safe.