Category: Training

Before I go on I will say there is no single best form of exercise. Lets just say there are forms of exercise that contribute more than others to you reaching your goals. So if you’re exercising multiple times per week, how important is the type of exercise you do? Incredibly important.

I always hear people let out their frustrations with their exercise routines. “I workout X amount of times per week and my body hasn’t changed.” Or, “I work out so much, I’m just naturally a bigger person.” They then proceed to either add more, or they quit all together. More isn’t always better, better is better.

So whats the best form of exercise for getting the body you want? Let me first use two clients of mine as examples. Mandy, who’s goal was fat loss, and Donnelly, who’s goal was to build muscle.

Mandy Before                                                                       Mandy -40lbs After

 

Donnelly Before        Donnelly 20lbs more muscle

These two individuals had different goals, however they used the SAME training program to achieve these results. 3-4 days/week of intense strength training. Although their nutrition plan was incredibly different, their exercise was identical.

People tend to associate training for fat loss with higher heart rate and more sweat, and muscle gain to heavy lifting. It’s not that simple. Here is a simple way to look at it. Compare your body to a Car.

-Your Muscles are the engine, the carlories you eat are the fuel.

-The bigger the engine, the more fuel it burns. The more muscle you have, the more calories you burn.

-The stronger and more powerful the engine, the faster the vehicle drives, which will burn more fuel. The stronger your muscles are, the more intensely you can exercise, which will burn more calories.

-If an engine is running, even if the car is not driving, it’s burning fuel. Your muscles are burning calories even if you’re not exercising. If you gain 5lbs of muscle, you’ll burn 250 more calories each day, while resting.

So if your goal is to get in shape, it is of utmost importance your exercise is focused on intensity, becoming strong, and maintaining if not gaining muscle. And the ideal form of exercise for that, is Strength Training.