People have good intensions when they make the decision to start working out. They want to be healthier so they can play with their kids (a noble goal), they want to feel better (like it), or they want to look like someone on a magazine cover (not realistic for most, but whatever gets you started!).
Now that I think about it, I can’t think of a reason someone would start working out with bad intensions (unless you’re in a prison movie and are trying to seek revenge, e.g. Linda Hamilton in Terminator 2. That’s not very likely for the every day person, but I digress).
Unfortunately, all too often when someone decides to start the
ir fitness journey, they have only the slightest clue of how to begin. Inundated with conflicting information from every available form of media, they start one day with one idea only to read something the next day that totally counters what they thought they knew!
Nonetheless, most folks know that whether they like it or not, weight loss entails moving more and eating less. If you do those two things consistently enough then you will lose fat. Knowing and doing these things will put you on the right track, but understanding how to make your exercise more effective for fat loss will be the added ingredient to your recipe for success!
3 Things to Stop Doing
These are three things I see people doing all too often when they are trying to loss body fat.
1) Doing Only Things You Are Good At
This sounds odd, one might think, “I like doing things I am good at, that’s why I do them, you know because I AM GOOD AT THEM.”
Point taken, I get it, but if your goal is to lose body fat then doing only the exercises you do well or really enjoy, meaning staying right inside your comfort zone, is not going to help you lose fat. If something comes easy to you, meaning you don’t feel challenged, then doing just this will not elicit a bodily response that gets your heart rate to a level that results in fat loss.
If you are not sweating, breathing hard, and feeling physically challenged then you need to try something different or work harder.
2) Isolation Exercises
I have talked about my feelings on isolation work in the past. The way I see it, if you want to lose fat, then don’t worry about how your biceps and triceps are looking. Do you really think doing calf raises and shoulder shrugs are going to get you the body you want? I sincerely hope not. (Refer back to item #1. How much of a sweat do you break shrugging your shoulders?)
Now if you have a weakness that causes pain or prevents you from doing something, you should certainly work on strengthening that area through an isolation-type move, but do not consider those to being key to fat loss success!
3) Taking Long Breaks
If you want to get good results then you need to make sure y
ou keep moving during your workout. Of course you should take breaks, but those breaks should not be 10 minute long talks about who would win in a fight between Wolverine and Captain America. One, it’s a stupid argument and two, of course Wolverine would win as Captain America is a lame superhero and all he has is a shield made of vibranium and he took some really good PEDs.
If you don’t agree with anything else I have said up until this point, we can at least agree on this..
3 Things to Start Doing
Now that we know what not to do, let’s look at what you should be doing to get better workouts that will lead to better fat loss.
1) Doing Things You Aren’t So Good At
As I stated above you should stop (or at least cut back on) doing the things that come easy to you. It is odd to say, but I am an odd guy, that the more inefficient you are at doing something, the more benefit you’ll get from doing it. . When I say “inefficient”, I don’t mean having shit form. What I do mean is that it is an exercise that does not come easy to you.
Let me provide some examples:
If you love to run distances –> Start doing sprint drills, hill repeats or shorter higher intensity runs
If you love lifting light weights for more reps than most can count to –> start lifting heavy with fewer reps
If you inherently find an exercise very hard to perform correctly –> Start doing it more, your body isn’t good at it; you’re creating a new muscle stimulus and thereby generating results.
What this also means is that if you are doing an exercise and you don’t feel challenged, then you need to put more effort into it. As long as your form is good, increase the weight or the reps. Push on, find that uncomfortable spot. This is how you will get results!
2) Multi Joint Exercises
Your programs should consist mostly of multi joint exercises such as the Squat, Dead lift, and Carries, and for the upper body, Push Up and Row variations will be your money movements.
These movements will allow you to use most of your body at once (that’s what “multi joint” means) Doing these types of exercises properly will result in an elevated heart rate and a greater number of muscles being used.
3) Keep Your Heart Rate Up
If your goal is to lose body fat, then like I said before, you need to watch your rest. I would say to start with a 50/50 work to rest ratio, and try to gradually lower that to a 60/40 ratio and then even lower.
If you are taking two to three minutes rest between sets and you are not competing in the world’s strongest man competition, then you need to shorten your rest.
You can keep your heart rate up by using tri sets or adding a higher intensity exercise into one of your sets like jumping rope. .
Example:
A1. DB Goblet Squat 3×10
A2. TRX Jump Squat 3×10
A3. Side Plank 3x30sec
This combination will increase your strength with the goblet squat. The jump squats will help get your heart rate up or maintain it, and the side plank will help increase core strength while also giving your legs a little active rest before going back to the goblet squat.
Closing
Remember: In order to achieve results and lose fat, don’t do just the things you are proficient at, do things that are challenging. Don’t do isolation exercises, do multi joint exercises. Don’t take long breaks, do keep them short.
