Fat Loss For Idiots - Do You Really Have To Exercise

Do you really have to exercise? No...if you do not want to lose weight or stay healthy. If you need to lose weight and have a healthier lifestyle, then you must include exercise. You are probably saying "I do not have time to exercise," "I do not know what type of exercise I should be doing" or "I do not have enough money to join a gym." Well, never fear. There is an easy answer to all of these concerns. Read more.

When first starting a fat loss program, it is confusing to try and decide which exercise is best and how much to exercise. It is a lot simpler than most people think. Relax, you do not have to join a gym or have a personal trainer. Should you do aerobics, lift weights, walk, jog or maybe cycle? Well, that depends on the results you are looking for. Let us take a look at each and discover which is best for you.

If you are interested in bulking up or getting ripped, then free weights are probably the best choice for you. Watching those hulks and beauties on TV with the 6-pack abs or large pecs makes us all drool! Are you really willing to do what it takes to get that type of look or, even more important, is that how you really want to look? Maybe you just want to lose weight and tone up some.

- Bulked 6-packed buns of steel look.

This will take free weights and determination. Hitting the weights 3- 5 days per week working different parts of the body on different days with heavy weights and short reps will put on muscle mass. Adding some cardiovascular exercise will also be beneficial. Heavy weights and short reps build mass while lighter weights and more reps tend to tone and firm. Take it easy by starting off slow and working your way up in weight. Make sure you get plenty of sleep and allow time for your muscles to recover. Make sure you drink plenty of water as hydration is very important.

- Weight loss only.

If you want to just lose weight, then walking, jogging, cycling or swimming would work best. Again, start slow and work your way up. Walking burns more calories than most people think. Walking at a steady pace will burn more calories than cycling, golfing, tennis, skiing, etc. It is best to walk at a fast pace, but not faster than you can walk and carry on a conversation at the same time. If you are huffing and puffing, then you are walking too fast and are not in the fat burning zone.

Try walking shorter distances at first 3 days a week. Walk to the end of the block on a nice sunny day. Then work your way up to 2-3 miles per day, which should take 30-45 minutes walking at a steady pace. You will want to walk 3-6 days per week. Remember, short distances 3 days per week starting off and then work your way up.

- Weight loss and tone up.

In order to lose weight and tone up, you will need to add some form of aerobic exercise to your regime. First, let us look at aerobic exercise to see what it is and what it does for you. Aerobic exercise is any exercise that raises your heart rate and causes you to breath harder. This would include jogging, running, cycling, swimming and very fast walking. This causes you to breathe harder to replenish the oxygen levels back into the blood as the heart rate increases.

You may want to do exercises using exercise bands or free weights two days per week while taking a fast walk three days per week. You could also fast walk and carry hand or leg weights at the same time giving you aerobic exercise and weight lifting at the same time. Aerobic exercise burns fat faster and helps to increase the metabolism while the resistance training tones and builds muscle.

No matter what your fat loss goals are, the most important issue is to get started now. No more waiting!