How to build your metabolism and lose fat faster

Have you ever been in the following situation?

You feel like you’re giving 110% in the gym, doing cardio, and eating clean… but you’re still a little soft in the middle. What gives?

Well, what a lot of people don’t know about being really lean is that it’s really just a slow buildup of doing a lot of little things right. If you only get a few of them right, you probably won’t get there.

In essence, all effective weight loss methods do two and only two things:

1) They limit the amount of food you eat.

2) They increase the amount of calories and fat you burn.

#1 is pretty simple (follow your meal plan precisely), and #2 is a matter of speeding up your metabolic rate. In this article, I want to talk more about #2.

#one

Do cardio HIIT

Studies such as those conducted by Université Laval, East Tennessee State University, Baylor College of Medicine, and the University of New South Wales have shown that shorter high-intensity cardio sessions result in greater weight loss. fat over time than low intensity sessions. Research has also shown that high-intensity training spares more muscle than low-intensity cardio.

Therefore, I recommend doing HIIT for all cardio exercises and keeping your sessions to 20-30 minutes in length. Is that how it works:

1. You start your workout with a 2-3 minute low intensity warm up.
2. Then you do your best, as fast as you can, for 30-60 seconds (if you’re new to HIIT, 30-second intervals will suffice, but you want to try and work your way up to 60-second intervals).
3. You then cut it down to a low-intensity recovery period for the same period as your high-intensity interval. Again, if you’re new to HIIT, you may need to extend this rest period to 1.5-2 times longer than your high intensity interval. If you’re still short of breath and your heart is racing, you’re not ready to go back to high intensity.
4. Repeat this cycle of maximum and recovery intervals for 20-30 minutes.
5. You do a 2-3 minute cool down at low intensity.

You can apply the HIIT style to any type of cardio exercise that you would normally do. You can go out and walk and run, or you can get on the elliptical trainer or recumbent bike to do it.

#two

lift heavy weights

If you’re familiar with any of my work, you know I’m a huge fan of heavy weight lifting. Well, among the many benefits of heavy lifting is the fact that it helps speed up fat loss.

A study published by Greek sports scientists found that men who trained with heavy weights (80-85% of their one-rep maximum, or “1RM”) increased their metabolic rates over the next three days, burning hundreds more calories than men who trained with lighter weights (45-65% of their 1RM).

Another study showed that the increased energy expenditure after lifting heavy weights stems primarily from fat burning (and the researchers weren’t sure why).

So lift weights and lift them hard if you want to increase your metabolic rate and, in turn, speed up your fat loss.

And if you want to score extra points, focus on compound lifts like squats and deadlifts, because these are the types that burn the most calories post-workout.

#3

Avoid Consecutive Rest Days

Not exercising for two days in a row can slow down your metabolic rate.

Instead of training for 5 or 6 days in a row and then taking two days off completely, train 3 or 4 days and then take a day off, followed by another 3 or 4 days of training.

#4

Split your training with weights and cardio

Instead of lifting for an hour or so followed by 30 minutes of cardio, break them up. Lift weights in the morning and do your cardio after work, or vice versa.

Not only will this speed up your twice-daily metabolic rate, keeping it consistently elevated, but it can also help preserve muscle.

Researchers at RMIT University worked with well-trained athletes in 2009 and found that “combining resistance and cardio exercises in the same session can alter genes for anabolism.” In layman’s terms, they found that the combination of strength and resistance training sends “mixed signals” to the muscles. Cardio before resistance training suppressed anabolic hormones like IGF-1 and MGF, and cardio after resistance training increased muscle tissue breakdown.

Several other studies, including those conducted by the Children’s National Medical Center, the Waikato Institute of Technology, and the University of Jyvaskyla, Finland, came to the same conclusion: training for both endurance and strength simultaneously impairs gains in both fronts. Pure strength training or pure endurance training in one workout is far superior.

Cardio before weightlifting also saps your energy and makes it that much harder to follow tip #2.

#5

eat spicy food

Spices like red bell pepper and cayenne pepper can actually increase your metabolic rate and therefore help with fat loss. They also go great with chicken and other lean meats, as well as vegetables, making them perfect for making chopping a little more enjoyable.

#6

don’t drink your calories

Liquid calories are a mess when you’re cutting back.

They’re too easy to consume when you’re not even hungry, they don’t fill you up when you do, and most are full of sugar, which keeps your insulin high (which in turn leads to more fat storage). ).

Instead of drinking juice, sodas, sweetened teas or coffee drinks, etc., stick to water, plain tea (or sweeten with a natural sweetener like stevia or Truvia), black coffee, or other no-calorie beverages.

Resume

If you’re planning to lose weight or are currently struggling to do so, try incorporating each of the tips above. As long as your diet is in the right place, your body will not be able to do anythingobjective melt the fat!

Have these fat loss strategies worked for you? Do you have any that you would like to add? I would love to hear from you on my Muscle For Life site!