How Much Daily Exercise Does It Take To Lose Weight
How Much Exercise Do You Need Every Day To Lose Weight
Weight loss is a goal that requires both a disciplined dietary approach and exercise, among other factors, to achieve and excel.
How much exercise is needed every day to achieve your weight loss goal is a common question and not one that generally has a clear answer.
Unfortunately, there is not a magic number of minutes, reps or hours needed to lose weight, rather there are a number of variables that need to be considered in order to figure out the right number.
We’ll examine the different variables that come into play when trying to determine how much exercise is needed to give you a roadmap to determining the exercise timeframe that works best for you.
Variable 1: Calories Consumed and Calorie Quality
The first principle of weight loss is that to lose weight we must achieve a caloric deficit or expend more calories than we are consuming. Thus, in order to know the amount of exercise needed to lose weight, we need to know what our daily caloric intake is, and just as importantly, what the sources are for those calories (for example, vegetables versus potato chips).
To this point, if you operate on a low-calorie diet generally speaking, it would take less exercise to lose weight and you may be fine with a moderate 3-4 day a week training plan. Conversely, if you eat excessive amounts or use tons of supplements, you’ll need to up your exercise plan and really push to get back into the caloric deficit mode.
Variable 2: Exercise Type and Intensity
The second key variable is the type of exercise, and more specifically the intensity. 20 minutes on the elliptical has a far different energy output than 20 minutes of all out sprinting. This variable can also dovetail with our first variable, in that the greater the number of calories consumed, the more energy we may have for high intensity exercise, whereas if we aren’t consuming too many calories, we may not need to exercise for an especially long time or at a high intensity per se.’
In general, exercise modalities that are more aerobic will require a longer time to see any sort of effective impact on weight loss. Jogging, biking, the elliptical or other options would all require a significant amount of time, potentially hours over the course of a week, to see a meaningful impact.
Conversely, anaerobic activities such as sprinting, resistance training or interval training methods will be more effective in a short amount of time, yet their intensity level is much higher and thus they have a certain level of pre-requisite fitness to achieve their full potential and results.
Variable 3: What is the Weight Loss Goal? How much time do we have to achieve it?
The third variable is arguably the most important, what is the weight loss goal? Much like our car ride or travel plans are determined by our destination, our exercise plan and weight loss journey will be dictated by the goal we have set.
If the goal is to lose 5 pounds in two months, that is a fairly modest and achievable goal for most and would not require much additional exercise. If you were a sedentary person prior to your goal you would only need to exercise 20-30 minutes a day for 3-4 days a week to achieve this goal.
Conversely, if you goal is to lose 30 pounds in two months, the equation is radically different, and it would take an extreme amount of exercise, multiple hours every day at high intensity to achieve that same goal.
Putting it All Together: Finding the Right Number
Now that we have examined the variables, we can think about how to more effectively answer the question of how much exercise we need per day to lose weight. If you have a low caloric intake generally speaking, are planning on utilizing low intensity aerobic exercise and have a modest goal than you might be ok with 30-45 minutes of aerobic exercise a day.
However, if you love to eat, love to lift weights and also have an ambitious goal for weight loss, you’re going to have to spend hours per day working out to reach those goals.
The ultimate recommendation would be to accurately assess your starting point as compared to your goal, look at how much time you have to reach that goal, and then make a plan accordingly to reach it rather than rely on a standard number or cookie-cutter approach that doesn’t apply to every person.
Weight Loss Tips For Burning More Calories
Weight Loss Tips for Burning More Calories
How fast you can lose weight depends on several factors, including your metabolic rate. You’ve probably seen people who eat all day long without getting fat. Some are very skinny despite eating huge amounts of food. There are also people who barely eat anything all day long, but still gain weight. The ones in the first category have a fast metabolism. Those from the second group have a slow metabolism. This complex process affects the way your body uses, stores, and burns energy.
As you age, your metabolism slows down.
Boost metabolism to lose weight
This process is also influenced by lifestyle factors such as your diet, smoking habits, and overall fitness.
Active people have a higher metabolic rate than those with a sedentary lifestyle.
Most dieters complain about having a slow metabolism. This is particularly true for those who skip meals and follow strict diets. The explanation is quite simple.
When you’re starving yourself or skipping meals, your body enters into starvation mode. As a result, your metabolism decreases. This means that you’ll burn fewer calories throughout the day.
The good news is that there are several ways to boost your metabolic rate.
Eat more protein.
Beef a source of protein
This essential nutrient speeds up your metabolism, strengthens your bones, and helps build lean muscle. A protein-rich meal will keep you feeling full longer than one rich in carbs.
Strength Training
Instead of doing cardio for hours, you should start lifting weights. Stick to a regular workout routine. Aim for at least three exercise sessions per week.
Eat Less More Often
Another easy way to burn more calories is to eat smaller, more frequent meals.
This helps control your hunger and prevents a crash in your energy level.
Have three main meals and two snacks. Don’t go for more than three or four hours without food.
Remember – when you don’t eat, your body enters into starvation mode.
Stay Hydrated
Regardless of how busy you are, grab a quick snack between meals. This could be a protein bar, some low fat cottage cheese, yogurt, canned tuna, or nuts. Protein shakes are a great alternative to regular snacks, so you should include them in your diet.
A final important point is the importance of staying well hydrated.
Staying hydrated will keep cells functioning properly so that your metabolism
can work at optimal performance to burn calories to help you lose weight.
Exercise and Health Trends
Exercise and Health Trends
There are certain exercises that always make the top of the list. One of these would of course be walking. It is so easy to start and doesn’t require any special equipment at first. Once you get into walking and decide this is your favorite exercise then investing in a good pair of walking shoes would be a worthwhile investment.
Spinning is an exercise that is becoming more popular each year. It is a great overall exercise that is relatively easy on your joints. Physiotherapists actually recommend that people with a knee injury use a bike on very low resistance to get their knee moving again.
The great thing about spinning is that you can join a class and meet other people. During the class you can increase or decrease your resistance level to match your ability. So you don’t have to worry about falling or lagging behind.
Plus spinning is a wonderful way to burn calories. Depending upon your weight and body size you could burn anywhere from 350 up to 550 calories per hour of spinning class. Remember that after the class your metabolism is still fired up and you will continue to burn additional calories.
Concentrating on Wellness is a fitness trend that is becoming more noticeable. People are becoming more consciousness of their health and are taking steps to become healthier. These types of people may not have a weight or health issue but they understand that their lifestyle affects your body eventually. They accept that they must make changes now in order to lead a healthy life as they mature.
There will always be those trendy exercises that become popular for a while and then phase away. Some of these trends do stay popular for the long term. Check out some current trends such as Kangaroo jump, Aero jump and Belly fit.
Turning traditional exercises into something less stringent and more fun is a new exercise trend. A great example of this is Zumba dance classes. Dancing to the sounds of rhythmic Latin music is motivating and fun. Yet at the same time you are burning tons of calories. There are Zumba classes for seniors, kids and even aqua classes are popping up.
Fitness for kids is another increasing fitness trend. This ties in well with families being concerned about their overall wellness. Schools don’t always offer enough sports and fitness programs. Plus with all the new fangled technology kids are too busy playing with video games and being on the computer. Obesity in children is on the rise and a major concern in North America.
The same applies for seniors. Senior fitness is a growing trend as baby boomers are aging. More gyms and clubs are catering to this new group of fitness goers. Seniors don’t want to lose their zest for life and want to keep mobile and active.
Functional fitness classes are aimed at senior and anyone with a disability. A functional fitness class is aimed at getting a person mobile again. Allowing them to do daily life activities including carrying your groceries home, doing your household chores and being able to play and hold your grandkids.
If you look closely you can see these trends almost follow your life’s pattern. This enforces the thought that exercise and fitness is for life and should be done on a continuous basis.
Workout Routines from Home
Workout Routines from Home
For many people starting a new exercise routine they want to work out from home. This can be due to many reasons. You may not feel comfortable going to a gym yet. You may not have the correct equipment or no clothes to wear. Or you just could have time constraints that keep you at home.
If this is the case for you then there are plenty of exercise choices for you. You can easily pick up an exercise DVD and pop this in at home and then exercise when you can.
When choosing an exercise program think about what you are interested in. Do you want to learn yoga, Zumba dance or even belly dancing? Exercise can and should be fun!
If you follow shows like the Biggest Loser then grab one or two of their DVD’s and follow along. You can even combine this with signing up for an online program where you can record your exercise and keep track of your goals.
You don’t even have to go out and purchase anything to start exercising at home. You can design your own fitness routine by combining some cardio with strength or resistance training.
Here’s an example:
Cardio – 20 minutes
Jumping jacks
Jumping rope in the basement or outside
Walking up and down your basement stairs
Dancing to music
Strength training – 2 times a week for about 20 minutes
Sit ups
Push ups against the wall
Wall squats
Leg raises
Lifting light weights – use soup cans or water bottles
You can mix and match the exercises until your find a routine that works for you and are comfortable with. As the exercises become easy add some more or increase your weights. For cardio try to increase the length of time or your intensity level as it becomes easier.
Working out from home has a couple of benefits with the main benefit being that you don’t have to pay for a gym membership. You also don’t have to worry about buying fancy gym clothes either. On the downside you may find that it is harder to make yourself motivated each day and you might get lonely working out alone.
As you can see there are many workout routines that you can do from home. You definitely have no reason not to exercise. Dig down deep inside you and discover why you want to start exercising and write these reasons down. Post them in a place where you can read them every day and use your reasons as a motivator.
Top Trends for Exercise and Health
Top Trends for Exercise and Health
There are certain exercises that always make the top of the list. One of these would of course be walking. It is so easy to start and doesn’t require any special equipment at first. Once you get into walking and decide this is your favorite exercise then investing in a good pair of walking shoes would be a worthwhile investment.
Spinning is an exercise that is becoming more popular each year. It is a great overall exercise that is relatively easy on your joints. Physiotherapists actually recommend that people with a knee injury use a bike on very low resistance to get their knee moving again.
The great thing about spinning is that you can join a class and meet other people. During the class you can increase or decrease your resistance level to match your ability. So you don’t have to worry about falling or lagging behind.
Plus spinning is a wonderful way to burn calories. Depending upon your weight and body size you could burn anywhere from 350 up to 550 calories per hour of spinning class. Remember that after the class your metabolism is still fired up and you will continue to burn additional calories.
Concentrating on Wellness is a fitness trend that is becoming more noticeable. People are becoming more consciousness of their health and are taking steps to become healthier. These types of people may not have a weight or health issue but they understand that their lifestyle affects your body eventually. They accept that they must make changes now in order to lead a healthy life as they mature.
There will always be those trendy exercises that become popular for a while and then phase away. Some of these trends do stay popular for the long term. Check out some current trends such as Kangaroo jump, Aero jump and Belly fit.
Turning traditional exercises into something less stringent and more fun is a new exercise trend. A great example of this is Zumba dance classes. Dancing to the sounds of rhythmic Latin music is motivating and fun. Yet at the same time you are burning tons of calories. There are Zumba classes for seniors, kids and even aqua classes are popping up.
Fitness for kids is another increasing fitness trend. This ties in well with families being concerned about their overall wellness. Schools don’t always offer enough sports and fitness programs. Plus with all the new fangled technology kids are too busy playing with video games and being on the computer. Obesity in children is on the rise and a major concern in North America.
The same applies for seniors. Senior fitness is a growing trend as baby boomers are aging. More gyms and clubs are catering to this new group of fitness goers. Seniors don’t want to lose their zest for life and want to keep mobile and active.
Functional fitness classes are aimed at senior and anyone with a disability. A functional fitness class is aimed at getting a person mobile again. Allowing them to do daily life activities including carrying your groceries home, doing your household chores and being able to play and hold your grandkids.
If you look closely you can see these trends almost follow your life’s pattern. This enforces the thought that exercise and fitness is for life and should be done on a continuous basis.