Tips from Marie-Claire on Fat Burning
1. TIME YOUR PRE-MEAL SNACK
Eating a low-carbohydrate protein bar 90 minutes before you work out
will enable you to exercise longer and harder (and burn more
calories) than you normally would, says Steve Zim, author of Hot
Point Fitness. However, that 90-minute mark is crucial. Eat any
closer to your workout, and blood will rush to your stomach,
actually diminishing your performance
2. BREATHE THROUGH YOUR NOSE
Inhaling and exhaling through your nose, rather than your mouth,
helps stabilize your heart rate and (like the pre-workout snack)
increase your endurance. The result? You work out longer and burn
more calories. But don't get discouraged if it feels unnatural at
first — it takes about six to eight workouts to perfect.
3. DO CARDIO LAST
Strength-train before doing any cardiovascular work, says Ken
Fitzgerald, owner of Lift Gym in New York. Why? It takes the body
about 15 minutes to warm up and start burning fat. So, a 30-minute
bike ride is really only burning fat for the last 15 minutes of your
workout. But, if you lift weights first, your body is warmed up by
the time you hit the bike, and you'll burn fat throughout the entire
ride.
4. VALUE VARIETY
Do the exact same workout every time you hit the gym, and your body
will start to adapt to it — and eventually stop burning as many
calories, says Zim. So if you jog one day, try biking or swimming
the next. Or, if you weight-train from the shoulders down one day,
next time, begin with your legs and work up. The important thing,
Zim says, is to keep your body guessing.
5. DON'T SLOUCH
Slumping over the handlebars on a stationary bike inhibits the
amount of oxygen your body can take in — and slows your fat-burning
process, says Fitzgerald. The bars and handles are there to help you
balance, not to support you. If you can't move without holding on,
slow down.
6. TRAIN IN INTERVALS
The best way to burn fat is to work out as hard as you can for as
long as you can, says Malick Diop, a trainer at Equinox Gyms in New
York. But, if you're just starting to exercise, interval training's
your ticket. Two minutes on the treadmill at, say, 7 mph, followed
by two minutes at 5 mph, then back to 7 mph (and so on) for 20 to 45
minutes will whittle away pounds and build your endurance.
Eventually, you'll be able to extend the high-intensity periods (and
decrease the low ones) until your whole workout is done at top
speed.
7. ADD LIGHT WEIGHTS
It's a fact: The more muscle tone you have, the more calories you
burn — even when you're sitting still. So, if you can't seem to find
time to weight-train and do your cardio, Zim suggests doing bicep
curls and overhead presses holding two- to three-pound weights while
you're fast-walking or stair-climbing. This will build muscle tone,
helping you shed more fat during your cardio workout than you would
without the weights.
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