Try this exercise combo to burn fat fast!

Resistance training + HIIT for the win

First, let’s talk about body composition…

We’ve all been guilty of it — you see a number you don’t like on the scale and you fixate on how to bring it down. The problem is that weight loss shouldn’t be the goal…instead, you want to improve your body composition, or the percentage of body fat to muscle, by losing fat and gaining muscle.

We all lose muscle mass as we age, and that starts as early as 35–40. The more muscle we lose, the more likely we are to gain weight, and the less efficiently our bodies can burn fat and carry out day-to-day functions. Thankfully, we can rebuild (and then maintain) what we’ve lost through resistance/weight training! More muscle means more energy, strength, stability, and a healthy metabolism. And one pound of fat takes up three to four times as much space on your body as one pound of muscle. So even though muscle “shows” on the scale, if you’re losing fat, you’ll still be losing inches and improving your physique!

The power duo — Resistance training and High Intensity Interval Training (or HIIT)

These are the two most effective types of exercise, hands down, to burn fat and build muscle. In fact, it’s how I lost all my weight and transformed my body.

We’ll explore these different types of exercise below, but first a few things to keep in mind:

• If you have cardiovascular disease or a previous injury or concern, always check with your doctor before beginning a new exercise program.
• If you experience discomfort while exercising don’t simply push through it — stop!
• To avoid injury, concentrate on maintaining proper form throughout your workout. Complete a short warm up and keep your body tight while you perform the exercises (never bounce).
• Start SLOW and build up your endurance, and make adjustments to account for your personal limitations or physical condition.

Resistance / Weight Training

Weight training can be done using resistance bands, free weights or gym equipment — whatever you have available to you. I personally love free weights, as they require you to work even more of your muscles to stabilize — but they are all effective! Resistance bands are especially easy to get at a local sporting goods store or online and are very affordable.

Resistance bands are affordable and easy to obtain!

When you weight train, you’ll be doing sets of exercises, and each set will consist of a certain number of repetitions (or “reps,” meaning how many times you do the same exercise over and over to complete a full set). To begin I recommend doing one set of 10–15 reps, then work up to two or three sets of 10–15. When you get to the end of your set the last rep should be hard to complete — that’s how you know you’re really working your muscles effectively.

Here’s how I break up the body into manageable exercise segments:

• Monday: Work your “pull muscles,” your back and biceps.
• Wednesday: Work your “push muscles,” your chest, shoulders, and triceps.
• Friday: Work your lower body with squats and lunges.

Choose the type of resistance you’d like to use (i.e. bands, free weights, or gym equipment) and look around for YouTube videos that demonstrate resistance exercises for the muscle group you’re focusing on. Here are a few of my favorites:

Upper body

1. Chest press

2. Overhead press

3. Row (for back)

Lower body

1. Squats

2. Deadlifts

3. Lunges

*Bonus tip: If you’re wondering why no specific ab exercises were included, it’s because ALL of these exercises will engage and tone your core muscles. If you do want to perform an ab exercise, however, do crunches or planks, never sit ups — sit ups are terrible for your spine!

People often think they need to spend an hour or more working out, but that’s simply not true — if you focus you can easily finish in 20 or 30 minutes. And you don’t need to perform tons of different exercises; keep it simple! The three exercises for each body group that I mentioned above are really all you need.

High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)

In combination with weight training, high intensity interval training, or HIIT, is unmatched in its ability to burn fat and revitalize your metabolism. Do these intervals two or three times per week, either on the days you do your weight training or alternate days.

Any type of cardio exercise can be used for HIIT circuits, so choose something you enjoy!

HIIT is exactly what it sounds like…short bursts of intense cardiovascular exercise followed by a period of rest, and another burst of exercise, then rest, on repeat. These short bursts of exercise stimulate two hormones needed for muscle growth and fat burning: testosterone and growth hormone. Your body burns more calories and has higher levels of those two hormones for at least a day and a half post workout! Any kind of cardio works, indoors or out — you can utilize a stationary bike or treadmill, elliptical or step machine, outdoor track or stadium steps, jumping jacks, knee kicks, the possibilities are endless.

Before you begin this type of training, make sure you can perform 20 minutes of consecutive, moderate cardio exercise. Once you can do that, you’re ready to add high intensity intervals to your workout…but remember, start slow and work up!

When you’re just starting out, push yourself to a point of exertion where you’re breathing heavily and it’s hard to hold a conversation, then decrease the intensity of your exercise to ‘rest’ for three or four minutes. If, for example, you’re on an elliptical, increase the tension / intensity on the machine to a difficult level for several minutes, then decrease the difficulty level back to a minimum to ‘rest’ for three to four minutes before increasing the intensity again. Repeat for 20 or 30 minutes.

Get started on an exercise routine today and I can promise you…your body will thank you for it!