Saturday, January 17, 2009

Burn the Fat and Keep the Muscle, It's Not Impossible!

By Ricardo d Argence

The reason why most people choose to go on a diet or exercise is not because they are concerned about the amount of unsightly muscle on their body. It is a sad fact that this is the idea that most people bring to losing weight.

They do end up losing weight because of this, but the weight loss is from muscles instead of fat. But, there are good ways to maintain your current muscle mass while losing weight, which is good news.

The mistake most people make when trying to lose weight is to dramatically cut down their intake of calories. On one hand this makes perfect sense, because every 3,000 calories you take in but don't burn off is going to add an additional pound to your weight. Unfortunately, this is the worst tactic you could try if you don't want to lose muscle.

When your body stores up fat in the first place, it does so because it wants to have a backup supply of energy in case you go through a famine period. That is a period when you don't have enough to eat to keep you alive.

Your body does not automatically use up its stockpiles because you have stopped your calorie intake. Those are the emergency, last resort rations.

Your body will begin to turn your muscle into energy and then your metabolism will slow, meaning you'll need less calories, so it will be more difficult to lose weight.

To gradually reduce your calorie intake and let your body adjust to the changes is a better plan. You might reduce your calories by 10% the first week, another 10% the second week, and so on, for example.

You must perform the proper excercises in order to burn fat and not muscle. To focus on cardiovascular workouts, is what most fitness instructors and health advocates are going to tell you. It will help your heart and lungs get stronger so you can do more exercise without getting worn out, so it's a good way to start.

But, it will be great if you need add some weight training to that recipe at least 2 to 3 times a week. That way you'll be replenishing lost muscle and adding new muscle mass. Your metabolism is going to increase which means you'll burn off more calories and lose weight if you have a lot of lean muscle mass in your body.

Muscle tone is another benefit you will see if you add some weight training into the mix. Many people end up flabby because they do not exercise properly or lose weight too quickly.

While plastic surgery can help with that problem a lot, those procedures are expensive and come with a lot of risk. Exercising while you lose weight is the best way to increase your muscle tone and to prevent loose skin.

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