How to use resistance training for maximum fat loss.
Cardio isn’t necessarily king when it comes to losing weight, or more specifically, fat. While traditional methods would have exercisers sweating through hours in the low intensity “fat-burning zone”, modern thinking and a demand for greater results in the shortest possible time has led trainers and exercise physiologists to re-examine the science - with many turning to resistance training as the new gold standard.
In addition to high-intensity interval training, resistance training, in its many forms, has been found to be one of the single most effective weapons in the fight against fat.
Resistance training facilitates fat loss in a number of ways. For one, it aids in the creation of more lean muscle mass. Increased lean muscle mass leads to an increased demand for energy expenditure, both during exercise and at rest. Simply put: those with more lean muscle burn more calories - all day long.
Resistance training has also been found to increase the amount of oxygen the body requires to recover after an exercise bout. Referred to as “EPOC,” Excess Post-exercise Oxygen Consumption is a physiological phenomenon that increases the net caloric expenditure after a workout. In simple terms, you continue to burn calories at an accelerated rate even after you’re done exercising.
So how do you make sure you are getting the maximum fat burning benefits from your resistance training?
The good news is that almost any resistance-training program will be effective for decreasing body fat if combined with a healthy diet - in the short term at least.
To see long term results, it’s important to understand how your choice of exercises, training volume, and training intensity all contribute to long term fat loss, and how to manipulate these variables for maximum gain.
The “hormonal environment”, induced in the body by intense resistance training, is favourable for both muscle formation and fat burning
Exercise Choice
Nearly every popular resistance-training exercise can impact the body positively in some way. However, some exercises are better than others when it comes to fat loss. The best are “compound exercises”. These are exercises that require the coordination and movement of multiple joints, such as squats, lunges, pull-ups and push-ups. Known as compound exercises, they utilise a large amount of muscle, requiring elevated oxygen use and hormonal response, and should be prioritised in any effective resistance training program for fat loss.
To prevent overuse and also allow for new ways to stimulate muscle growth and fat utilisation, switch up the exercises you do every few weeks or months. For example, include dumbbell lunges as an exercise in your routine for four to six weeks, then switch to another lunge or lower-body exercise for the next four to six weeks.
Training Volume
The body responds to progressive overload. A steady increase in training volume will create growth in lean muscle mass (i.e., muscle hypertrophy), which will in turn increase the body’s ability to metabolise calories and fat.
Training volume refers to the total number of sets, reps or time under tension, and the level of resistance (or weight) used. This is calculated with the following simple formula: Volume = sets x reps (or time under tension) x weight (or resistance)
As you can see in the above equation, training volume can be increased by manipulating either the number of sets, the number of repetitions or the weight/resistance used during exercises. Additional training days can also be added to increase overall volume.
The standard guidelines for achieving muscle hypertrophy recommend three to six sets of six to twelve repetitions at 50-85% of your 1RM (the maximum you can lift for one rep). This formula has also been found to be the most effective for losing excess fat.
Aim to start at the lower end of that range in each training block so you have room to steadily increase the volume while staying within those parameters.
Note: The body’s tissues and central nervous system are finite in their capacity to handle more and more overload. Steadily increase the volume over a defined period of weeks or months, then follow it with a defined period of decreased training volume. This undulation in training load, known as “Periodisation” aids in preventing training plateaus, injury and boredom. More on Periodisation later.
Training Intensity
Training intensity is the sum of effort over time. Just as with volume above, progressively increasing training intensity provokes a hormonal response in the body that prompts the growth of lean muscle and increased EPOC. All good news for fat burning.
In strength training, ample recovery time (two minutes or more) between sets is often recommended. However, it appears that a significant contributor to fat loss during resistance training comes from increasing training intensity by decreasing rest time between sets.
When rest time is decreased, significant metabolic stress is placed on the body. The result is a dramatic hormonal response that triggers the utilisation of fat and the creation of muscle. Shortened rest times also appear to have the most significant impact on EPOC, which means more calories burned.
“Super-sets” (performing two exercises in succession with opposing muscle groups) and “Circuits” (exercises performed in close succession with limited rest) are good ways to utilise short rest times to increase training intensity and maximise fat burning.
Note: Resistance training with shortened rest periods can cause significant fatigue over time. During prolonged training blocks, this can decrease strength and overall training intensity, which negatively impacts fat loss and increases the likelihood of injury. To observe continual long-term fat-loss, training blocks should alternate between longer and shorter rest periods between sets. For example, for four to six weeks you might include two minutes of complete rest between sets. Then do super-sets for four to six weeks - or simply shorten the rest period between sets.
Periodisation
Developed by Soviet sports scientists in the ‘50s and ‘60s, “Periodisation” is the process of dividing your training program into blocks of time (lasting days, weeks or months) and varying the exercises, training volume and training intensity between them. Training stimulus is strategically varied to maximise the positive impacts of a program and minimises the unwanted effects such as fatigue, injury and stagnation.
If you are training to lose fat, training blocks of four to six weeks will provide your body with enough stimuli to trigger adaptation and should ward off excessive fatigue or boredom. Within each training block, keep the exercises relatively consistent from session to session. Then switch it up for the next block. Likewise with training volume, intensity and rest periods.
Key Points
Top tips for effective fat loss:
- Periodise your training. Train in four to six-week blocks. For each block, vary the volume, intensity, choice of exercises and rest times.
- Prioritise compound exercises. Aim to complete three to six sets of six to twelve repetitions of each exercise, lifting 50-85% of your 1RM for maximum fat burning and hypertrophy.
- Progressively increase training volume over the course of each training block
- Training should be combined with a healthy, calorie-restricted diet for effective fat loss.
