Is it ok to lift weights if you are overweight and wanting to lose weight?
I just joined a new gym, my instructor there believes that I need to lift weights and work out with weights as this accelerates weight loss. I have been to other gyms who advised AGAINST working out with weights if wanting to loose weight as I would just beef up and said I should just to cardio!!Can anyone advise if weights are ok (5kg is max I lift) if trying to loose weight?
Best Answer - Chosen by Voters
5K should be fine, it will help tone up your muscles as well as loose weight. You shouldn%26#039;t bulk up with weights as low as that, they more constitute general exercise than weight lifting.
GP for more years than I care to remember
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Other Answers (9)
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Lifting weights will help you retain muscle mass while losing excess body fat. Otherwise, you will lose more muscle than fat if you are losing weight.
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Yes its a good idea to lift weights when trying to loose weight, when you do high intensity training like doing weights, your body%26#039;s metabolism increases, meaning that you burn more calories every day by just sitting down. Even for another hour after weight training, your body is still burning calories. Keep your rep range high 15-20 reps. Hope this helps
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No lifting weights makes the fat melt like crazy!!! I know this from personal experience. You don%26#039;t really bulk up that much... the muscle really eats up a lot more calories and it keeps that fat burning even when you%26#039;re at rest
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it really depends on your exsisting fitness and age, if you are not that fit then just use v v vsmall weights to begin with but in sets of 30 then as you get fitter u canincrease weight and decrease sets. if its a mutigym that u r using then just take the pin out and use only the weight of the mechanism. not a good idea to just go straght in to weights if u have been away from the gym for a long time as the muscle repair will take a v v v long time
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Do high rep and low weight and you won%26#039;t %26quot;beef up%26quot;.
Resistance training is essential to weight loss because your muscle requires a LOT of calories to maintain... the more muscle you have, the faster your body will burn through calories - even if it is at rest!
Yes, it is ok, and you should do it!
In my weight loss journey, if I ever hit a plateau, I will really focus on resistance for a while... and it almost ALWAYS works.
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yes muscle burns more calories, and in the long run will help you lose weight.
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Work out with weights, but not too intensely. Do cardio and weightlifting, it will really help you lose weight quicker, and you will look better too when your muscles get more toned.
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The guy in your new gym is 100% correct.
The instructors in your last gym were clearly confused (just because they are instructors, doesn%26#039;t mean they are qualified or know what they are talking about).
More muscle = a higher metabolism. This is because muscle cells have a far higher maintenance demand than fat cells. For this reason, the more muscle you have, the more calories you naturally burn off during the day. It is therefore beneficial for weight loss. I have explained this in quite a simple manner, but this is basically the gist of it.
Now, why would your old gym instructors tell you that more muscle (if you are trying to lose weight and so are obviously a bit lardy) would beef you up even more?
Easy. Because the bigger your muscles, the further it pushes your fat out. Therefore, you%26#039;ll look more %26quot;bulky%26quot;.
However, this will not effect you because a) you are a woman and so it is physically impossible to get big muscles without taking steroids, etc and b) unless you are pushing weights which are very heavy, you WON%26#039;T increase your muscle mass by much.
We want fat loss, so do your weights first (30-60 mins per session). This will burn off part of your calorie intake for that day. Then hit the CV - running, biking, rowing - at a high intensity. Get your heart rate in the fat burning zone, which is 150-170bpm. Keep it there for the duration of your CV workout. You should begin to burn off your fat reserves as your body looks to metabolise energy as fast as possible thanks to the energy demands (weights and CV) which you have placed on it.
So long as you are eating healthy and lean, this means fat loss.
If you look at that big bonehead pushing the big weights down the gym, he is usually %26quot;bulky%26quot; rather than ripped. This is because the dim-witted moron does weights and no CV, so his muscles are hidden under a nice layer of fat. He thinks he looks good, I think he looks fat.
