When you lose weight, you want to lose fat, not water and metabolism-boosting lean muscle mass. A slow rate of weight loss, usually about 1 or 2 lbs. per week, encourages fat loss and prevents feelings of starvation and deprivation. The true amount of fat you burn at any given time depends on your starting weight and body composition. Leaner people need to approach fat loss more slowly so as to be sure to preserve lean muscle mass.
Eat Specific Foods
Cayenne and black pepper, ginger, green and black tea and caffeine all raise your metabolism slightly and encourage your body to burn more fat daily. In the article “Metabolic Effects of Spices, Teas and Caffeine,” published in the journal “Physiology & Behavior” in 2006, Margriet Westerterp-Plantenga, of Maastricht University in The Netherlands, calls these ingredients functional in the sense that adequate servings have the potential to produce significant effects in your body’s rate of calorie burning and fat oxidation.
Dairy and Calcium
Low-fat dairy products high in calcium, like 1 percent milk, cottage cheese and yogurt, affects your body’s tendency to store fat. In 2001, University of Tennessee researchers reported in “The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Journal” that high calcium diets facilitated the reduction of fat tissue mass in mice. A 2009 study out of Curtin University in Australia found that dieters consuming five servings of dairy per day lost more fat at their mid-section than dieters who consumed just three servings of dairy daily.
Do Intervals
If you have limited time to exercise, do not waste your time focusing on the fat-burning zone which is considered to be between 55 and 60 percent of your maximal heart rate. Twenty to 30 minutes of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) performed two or three times per week burns significant calories and a greater total number of fat calories than the same length of time in a steady-state “fat-burning” zone. A study in the October 2009 issue of the “Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research” reported that the only way to determine a person’s individual maximum fat-burning heart rate “zone” was through clinical means. Because this is not feasible, the researchers maintained that a person can work between 60.2 and 80 percent of maximal heart rate to encourage maximum fat oxidation.
Strength Training
Strength training with free weights, selectorized machines or body weight exercises builds lean muscle mass which helps burn calories and fat while you rest. The journal “Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise” reported on a study in May 2009 demonstrating that a short, 11-minute resistance training session, when conducted three times per week for six months, caused a 24-hour increase in the participant’s overall energy burn. Researchers from Southern Illinois University’s Department of Kinesiology and Health Education hypothesized that this additional energy expenditure leads to greater fat oxidation and weight loss.
About this Author
With degrees from Princeton and Columbia University, Andrea Cespedes is also a professionally trained chef and has focused studies in nutrition. With over 20 years of experience in the fitness industry, she coaches cycling and running and teaches pilates and yoga. She is an American Council on Exercise certified personal trainer.
