Burn more Fat, Faster
8 ways to Burn more Fat, Faster
Here are our eight simple ways for squeezing the most out of your everyday routine to score the body you’ve been sweating for. Most people think that they are working out effectively. But in order to achieve that optimal body you really need to work out hard and take your fitness to the next level.
#1: Workout Early
If you get in the routine of working out in the morning you will be less likely to miss a workout, due to being tired after work. In the beginning of the day, you have the fewest excuses for skipping exercise. You’ll go to work feeling focused and energized.
#2: Hit the metal before the pedal.
Instead of going from zero to 60 to sweat off the calories, consider this: Doing a quick sculpting routine pre-cardio could increase the amount of fat you melt. Exercisers in a study at the University of Tokyo who biked within 20 minutes of lifting weights tapped more of their fat stores than those who rested longer or didn’t tone at all. The firm-then-burn order is also good for your heart: Arteries stiffen during resistance training, increasing blood pressure, but a cardio chaser such as a 20-minute run counteracts these effects and expedites your arteries’ return to normal. Plus, strength training “takes coordination and good technique, so you get more out of it if you come to it fresh. Cardio is also rhythmic, low-skill activity that’s the easier of the two to do in a fatigued state.
#3: Push your pace, rev your metabolism.
Finished toning and ready to get sweaty? Gun it a bit for a bigger after-burn. “High-intensity exercise increases the release of growth hormones, which mobilize fat to be used as fuel, plus it causes your metabolism to stay elevated about 10 to 15 percent above its baseline, so you’re burning more fat for several hours post-workout. In other words, if you worked off 300 calories during your session, you’ll get a bonus burn of about 45 calories even after you’ve toweled off. Also try alternating between sprinting (race-walking, pedaling fast, swimming at top speed) for one minute and slowing down enough to recover for the next minute.
#4: Give up your seat to trim your bottom line.
Even regular exercisers could benefit from extra toning of their glutes, the largest muscle group in the body, which dozes all day at your desk job. When you’re walking or running, it’s your hamstrings, hip flexors, and calf muscles that get the most work. Unless you’re going uphill, your glutes don’t play a major role.
You can easily sneak in a workout targeting your glutes at work.
1. Stand up from your chair, feet shoulder-width apart.
2. Lower your bottom to the seat as though you’re going to sit, touch down, and then spring up, squeezing your glutes as you straighten.
Do three sets of 10 to 15 reps two or even three times throughout the day.
#5: Take a power walk to beat a midday slump.
As little as 20 minutes of low-intensity aerobic activity such as walking can give you a 20 percent surge in energy. Many people assume that they’ll get tired from exercise. But the opposite actually happens. Indirect evidence suggests that brain chemicals such as dopamine and serotonin are altered and cause the improved energy. A quick 20 minute recharge burns about 75 calories and sure beats adding 250 calories from candy to spike-then-slump.
#6: Do the two-step.
When you opt for the stairs, go at them two at a time. The quick bursts of power activate your legs’ fast-twitch muscle fibers, which burn more calories than slow-twitch fibers. Plus, you’ll be using a part of your muscles that commonly doesn’t get enough action. “Fast muscle cells are designed so you can jump far, kick hard, punch fast, all moves that you call on less and less in modern society.
#7: Stretch
Consistent stretching significantly decreases muscle soreness.
Here is a great stretching routine:
1. Warm up first with 5 minutes of brisk high-knee marching.
2. Toe-reach stretch (targets hamstrings, which remain shortened from sitting all day) Sit on the floor with your left leg straight in front of you, knee slightly bent, right leg bent out to the side and resting on the floor. Reach for your toes without bouncing and hold for 30 seconds; relax.
Do 3 stretches, then switch legs and repeat.
3. Hip-flexor stretch (targets tight hips): Lie faceup on the floor with your left leg bent, left foot flat, and bend your right knee out to the side so your right ankle is crossed over and resting on the lower left thigh. Grasp your left thigh with both hands and pull it toward you until you feel a comfortable stretch in your right hip, glutes, and outer thigh. Hold for 30 seconds; switch legs and repeat. Do 3 stretches per side.
4. Side stretch (targets upper back and waistline): Stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Raise arms overhead and interlock fingers with palms facing up. Keeping your middle centered, hinge at the waist to the right; hold for 30 seconds. Return to center and reach up; hold for 30 seconds.
Switch sides; repeat. Do 3 stretches on each side.
#8: Keep your Workout shoes Visible.
A recent FITNESS poll found that sneakers, (with sports bras being a close second) are the piece of gear that is forgotten most often, foiling workout plans. Clear that obstacle by, making your shoes an obstacle in front of the
door you exit in the a.m. Seeing them will remind you that you planned to exercise,and motivate you to move.


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