Building / Maintain Muscles
The main
confusion of choosing between walking, running and weight lifting stems from
the lack of understanding of how the human body actually works and the best way
in which you can burn excess fat. Many find it logical to assume that running
is better than walking because of your elevated heart rate and rapid breathing.
On the other hand, once you complete your walk you may feel like you haven't
done enough. For this reason, you may be tempted to run so that you can burn
calories faster.
We have already figured out that this is only
partly true because while walking you will be able to cover a much greater
distance.
However, your strategy should be to work on
building muscle as well as losing weight. You should understand that losing
weight usually includes losing muscles, which is a big mistake. Muscle is your
biggest ally in your fight against fat!
Here are
just a couple of benefits you will feel by building some muscles:
- A healthy,
slim and strong body looks always better than just a skinny one. Don’t fall for
those anorexic models. Men don’t actually like women that are just thin.
- You will
feel better, stronger and more energetic. Just being skinny doesn’t feel good
if you are not fit at the same time.
- You will
be heavier, without feeling so and more importantly, without looking bigger.
That last point might confuse you, so let me explain it to you. The calories
you burn basically depend on two things:
The distance you go and your weight.
You can
calculate the calories you have burned by using this simple rule of thumb:
For
running: 1 * your weight in kg * distance in km
For
walking: 0.9 * your weight in kg * distance in km
Or
For
running: 0.75 * your weight in lbs * distance in miles
For
walking: 0.675 * your weight in lbs * distance in miles
This
formula works pretty accurately for both men and women regardless of age.
As you can
see, your weight is a big factor when trying to lose weight. Note that not only
the calories burned walking and running but also your basal metabolism rises
with higher weight.
This is one
of the reasons why losing weight gets more difficult the more weight you have
already lost.
So simply put, the more muscles you have, the
easier it will be to lose your belly fat!
As such,
your priority should be on retaining your muscle mass and gaining more if
possible. By having more muscles, you will have a much higher metabolism, which
will enable you to burn fat faster.
With this
in mind, you should know that running breaks down muscles; hence it is just not
worth the risk for a person who is trying to lose weight since retaining every
ounce of muscle should be your prime objective.
Don’t be
afraid – you won’t have to do some kind of hardcore bodybuilding! Just try not
to lose your existing muscles and maybe try to add one or two pounds of muscle
if you can.
Even one
pound of muscle makes a big difference in the long run.
Also
remember that overweight people should avoid running since they could easily
get injured. Keep in mind that for each pound you are overweight, you are
adding at least four pounds of pressure on your knees and six on your hips. So,
clearly identify whether you want to lose weight or be a runner.
Once you
have accomplished your fat loss objectives and improved your strength,
conditioning and flexibility, THEN running and weight lifting would be great
exercises to improve your strength and endurance.
Essential
Tips for Getting the Most out of Walking
We have
learnt that, as much as people have a hard time believing it, walking is one of
the healthiest and simplest ways of losing weight. One of the best things about
walking as a mode of exercise is that it is very cheap and you can start at any
time, even now (keep on reading this book first though).
The biggest
'secret' with reaching your fitness goals is getting started and maintaining
the habit. The following chapters will give advice gleaned from leading experts
on successfully losing weight. Read on.
