How To Lose Weight By Fast Switching Up Exercises

Moving rapidly from one exercise to another is an efficient system to work your body smarter instead of harder. Sustaining a single pace in a cardio workout or completing all your arm exercises in a row develops the muscles, but varying your intensity or frequently switching muscle groups elevates your heart rate and burns more calories. The magic formula for weight loss is to burn more calories than you consume, so an exercise routine that works your heart harder is more efficient for shedding pounds.

Step 1

Alternate between upper-body and lower-body exercises when you strength train. Your heart pumps blood to the muscles you are working, and if you keep switching between areas, your blood flow has to keep adjusting. This burns more calories than simply exercising one area at a time.

Step 2

Go directly from one exercise into the next. If the machine you need is on the other side of the gym, walk briskly or jog across the room to get to it. Keep your heart rate elevated between exercises. Each muscle group rests while you work the others, so the workout doesn't strain or exhaust you.

Step 3

Jump rope, do jumping jacks or jog in place for 30 to 50 seconds after you have completed both upper-body and lower-body exercises. Introducing a cardio burst into your workout before you begin a second set of reps gives your muscles a break from strength training and boosts your heart rate to burn more calories. Keep the cardio burst brief so you don't exhaust yourself.

Step 4

Construct an interval workout for your regular cardio routine. Instead of walking, jogging, running, cycling or swimming at a single pace for your entire workout, vary your speed or intensity. Try walking at a leisurely pace for two minutes, sprinting for 25 seconds, jogging for one minute and then returning to walking. Adjust your routine based on your energy and fitness level; you can change the duration and speed of your intervals any time.

Step 5

Talk to a trainer about your fitness goals and the interval program that will be best for you. A trainer can help you plan the length and intensity of your high-speed intervals and the duration of your low-speed intervals.