Norman Regional Health System
You indulged all holiday season -- sweets, turkey, cookies. Now you're facing hours on the treadmill to get the pounds down, right? Wrong. Using a few simple and underused tools you can beat the battle of the holiday bulge easily, said Jack Carter, supervisor at The Health Club and certified personal trainer.
People have been using the same tools to fight their waist line. While cardiovascular training is a good way to burn calories, there are other options available.
Here are a few other workout tools most people may not be aware of, Carter said.
Intensity of exercise is a great tool to use, Carter said. Simply put, the harder you work, the more calories burned. "When time is a factor -- and who has three hours a day to exercise? -- you need to maximize your time and work on burning the maximum number of calories," he said.
Resistance training is a great way to burn fat. Where is fat utilized in the body? Muscle. If you train with weights to build and/or maintain muscle, you will be doing a service to your fat burning ability, Carter said. So do yourself a favor and start lifting weights.
Journaling your food intake is one of the most underrated tools you have at your disposal.
"It never fails, someone comes in and complains about gaining a few pounds. My first question is, 'How is your diet?' The answer I get is always, 'Nothing different.' I then ask them to journal their food intake, clients are surprised to find out how much they snack throughout the day," Carter said.
Those couple hundred calories you eat throughout the week add up. Journaling keeps you honest with yourself.
"I hope next time people are in a time crunch, they realize that with limited time, you could still get in a great workout," Carter said.
Calories per minute is the important variable in helping to fight an expanding waistline. Utilizing resistance training and a good diet will help you get your goals into super-drive.
