Pumping Iron will not bulk you up but help you lose weight

Pumping Iron will not bulk you up but help you lose weight

First, lets try to debunk the idea that lifting weights will only bulk you up.

Aerobics is great for your heart and lungs however do not forget one of the best fat-fighting allies is your very own muscle!

Weight training will help the midline bulge by holding the line on your waistline. Weight training is also great for your bones. So many people diet and eat near to nothing while killing themselves on cardio. However when the weight comes off really most of that weight is the lean muscle mass that keeps us toner, younger and stronger. According to Dale Schoellor, a nutrition researcher at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, “In all reality only 60-75 percent weight lost is fat. For example out of 20 pounds lost only about six pounds is from muscles, bones, nonfat tissue and water. This in turn will leave you weaker. When you start lifting weights you will preserve the muscle and bone. With that being said approximately 85 percent of the weight you trim will actually be fat.”

The older we get the harder it is to keep fat off the bodies. We all know muscle burns more calories than fat ever will. On top of getting older our metabolisms decide they want to slow down and make life a little harder for us. Typically women have less muscle mass than men and therefore will take an even greater hit on the waistline.

According to Glenn Gaesser, an exercise physiologist at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, “ weight training will raise the metabolic rate for as long as 12 hours after exercising.” This means when lifting weights, your body will burn calories faster.

A study was conducted in the Netherlands with an 18 weeklong weight-training program. The study used young men and out of this 18-week program their metabolism increased by 9 percent. Gaesser insists that through these studies by maintaining muscle, weight lifting will minimize the metabolic downward spiral that occurs the older we get.

One pound of muscle burns any where from five to 10 calories a day, even if it’s a rest day. When we start a moderate program with weight lifting, women can gain one to two pounds of muscle after three months. Of course men will increase this to about twice as much. With the extra lean muscle do you know how many calories your body will burn? That is an extra 10-20 calories daily. It may seem minuet but this can add up fast. Only 10 calories per day can turn into 3,650 calories per year. With that many calories burned over time it then turns into one pound of body fat. Remember this is only a moderate weight lifting program. With this being said, 20 years from now your body will be 20 pounds lighter.

Let’s look at another study conducted by nutrition researcher Miriam Nelson, director of Center for Physical Fitness at Tufts University. She credits weight lifting to a trimmer body. Miriam took 10 overweight women and put them on the same diet and half of the 10 women lifted heavy weights only twice per week. Both groups were 13 pounds lighter. However let’s look into some details. On average, the diet only women lost 9.2 pounds of fat. The women who lifted lost 14.6 pounds of fat and lost 1.4 pounds muscle.

With strength training you can remain the same weight or see a small difference on the scale but your body is completely transforming itself. Getting rid of the fat making your clothes a better fit. The improvements happen fairly quickly too. Women should never shy away from weights with any fears. The trainers at Rocc Body will help guide you every step of the way in making you feel more comfortable grabbing those dumbbells.

References

Gaesser, Glenn A. The Spark. Simon and Schuster, 2001

Nelson, Miriam E. and Sarah Wernick. “Strong Women Stay Slim.” Bantam Books.

Votruba, S.G. et al. "The Role of Exercise in the Treatment of Obesity." Nutrition, Vol. 16.

Van Etten, L.M.L.A et al. "Effect of an 18-week weight-training program on energy expenditure and physical activity."

Interviews with Glenn Gaesser, Gaesser, an exercise physiologist at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville; and Dale Schoeller, nutrition researcher at the University of Wisconsin at Madison.