Because of the end of summer, the holidays, the rest, and outings to eat and drink with carelessness, the idea of how to lose the extra kilos taken in this period and resume or start, is likely to be looming. In addition to a healthy diet, an exercise routine to lose weight that you can incorporate into your day-to-day life. So take good note, because we give you some important tips. Let’s get started!
What type of exercise is most effective for losing weight?
When defining an exercise routine to lose weight, our advice is that you opt for a combination of aerobic exercises, cardio exercises, and strength exercises (this as long as health conditions allow).
To lose weight, the exercises that burn the most calories in less time are aerobic or cardio exercises such as walking, running (which everyone now calls running), or swimming. But to lose weight efficiently and consolidate the results it is preferable to combine these activities with strength or resistance exercises to exercise the muscles.
The practice of aerobic activities increases the heart rate and causes the body to burn more calories. In the case of running, for example, it should always be done at the same pace and with moderate or high intensity. It is possible to go from less to more each week to accustom the body to progressively increasing rhythm and intensity.
For its part, strength exercises promote muscle hypertrophy, which increases muscle, as well as endurance, strength, and flexibility. In this way, the increase in muscle mass will achieve a greater capacity to expend calories at rest and will promote weight loss.
How to start an exercise routine to lose weight
In general, the evaluation and follow-up of a professional are always recommended to determine what physical condition we are in and what our needs and objectives are. This must be taken into account both for training and to include adequate nutrition. Typically, the plan starts with aerobic exercises, followed by a muscle workout routine.
As the person gains resistance, the activity has to increase, which will require a greater effort of cardio and strength. The ideal frequency is 5 times a week, at least 30 minutes a day, and with moderate to strong intensity.
Exercise routines for all ages
Regarding the recommended physical activity for health, the World Health Organization (WHO) indicates several guidelines to take into account depending on the age range.
Youth (5 to 17 years)
- Children and youth ages 5 to 17 are recommended to spend at least 60 minutes a day in moderate to vigorous-intensity physical activities.
- Physical activity for more than 60 minutes a day will have an even greater health benefit.
- Daily physical activity should be, for the most part, aerobic. It would be advisable to incorporate, at least three times a week, vigorous activities that strengthen, in particular, the muscles and bones.
Adults (18 to 64 years old).
- It is recommended that you spend at least 150 minutes per week in moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity, or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic physical activity each week, or an equivalent combination of moderate and vigorous activities.
- Aerobic activity will be practiced in sessions of at least 10 minutes in length.
- For even greater health benefits, it is recommended that adults in this age group increase their moderate aerobic physical activity to 300 minutes per week, or up to 150 minutes per week of vigorous aerobic physical activity, or an equivalent combination of moderate and vigorous activity.
- Twice or more a week, perform activities to strengthen large muscle groups.
Older adults (65 years and older).
- It is recommended that they spend 150 minutes per week in moderate aerobic physical activities, or some form of vigorous aerobic physical activity for 75 minutes, or an equivalent combination of moderate and vigorous activities.
- The activity will be practiced in sessions of at least 10 minutes.
- That adults in this age group with reduced mobility engage in physical activities to improve balance and prevent falls, three days or more a week.
- Activities that strengthen major muscle groups should be done two or more days a week.
- When older adults are unable to perform the recommended physical activity due to their health condition, they will remain physically active to the extent that they are allowed to do so.
Example of exercise routine to do at home
Getting in shape without having to join a gym is possible as long as we do not lose discipline.
Start by warming up your muscles:
- Continue doing 10 minutes of aerobic exercises (step, bicycle, rope, etc.)
- Incorporate 3 sets of 10 sit-ups into your daily routine, with a 1-minute break between sets.
- Work on coordination and balance. In a quadruped position, with your knees resting on the ground, raise and straighten your leg at the same time as you raise the opposite arm, and repeat with the other leg and the other arm.
- Strengthen your lower body with squats, do 3 sets of 10 squats each.
- Lower pulsations while working the waist. Rotate on your waist, with 5 repetitions on each side of the body.
And last but not least, breathe and stretch! - As you can see, this exercise routine to do at home is very simple and will allow you to start properly working your body. You can complete this information by adding some more tips:
Weekly Workout Routine Example
Next, we propose a series of standard exercises that progressively increases the intensity week by week so that we finally incorporate this activity into our daily routine and it will help us lose weight and keep fit. Achieving this weekly exercise routine is that easy:
- First week. For starters, it is enough to train for three days. Starting with cardiovascular activities such as cycling, rowing, or elliptical. To avoid overloading, the ideal would be 15 or 20 minutes on each device until you get about 40 minutes of total exercise.
- Second week. At this time you should start with muscle conditioning, stretching, and joint mobility, with 2 or 3 sessions of strength training during this week. They can be performed in the form of a circuit, working four large muscle groups: quadriceps, femoral, dorsal, and pectoral.
- Third week. From here, it is already recommended to carry out about 4 weekly training sessions. Cardiovascular work can already be more intense, so you can choose to introduce continuous running or group spinning and cardio classes, for example.
