Best Exercises for Weight Loss, Numerous forms of exercise can help you lose weight by boosting the number of calories you burn. Depending on your age, nutrition, and beginning weight, you can lose different amounts of weight.
According to estimates, about half of all American adults make an effort to lose weight each year (1 Reliable Source).
Exercise is one of the most popular methods used by people seeking to lose extra weight, next to diets. It burns calories, which is important for weight loss.
Exercise not only helps you lose weight, but it also strengthens your bones, boosts your mood, and lowers your risk of developing several chronic conditions (2Trusted Source, 3Trusted Source, 4Trusted Source).
The top exercises for losing weight are shown below:
1. Walking:
One of the finest activities for losing weight is walking, and for good reason.
It’s a practical and simple approach for new exercisers to get started without feeling overwhelmed or having to buy equipment. Additionally, because it is a lower-impact workout, your joints are not overworked.
A 155-pound (70-kg) person walks at a humble 4 mph (6.4 km/h) for 30 minutes to burn about 175 calories, according to Harvard Health (5).
Walking for 50 to 70 minutes three times per week for a 12-week period reduced body fat and waist circumference by an average of 1.5% and 1.1 inches (2.8 cm), respectively, in 20 obese women.
Aim to go for a 30-minute walk three to four times a week to get started. As you get fitter, you can gradually increase the length or frequency of your walks.
2. Running:
Running is one of the best and simplest methods to burn calories, and you can do it without a treadmill whether you love it or hate it. Just put your shoes on and start walking. The minutes and miles will fly by if you run in intervals, increasing and slowing your pace. Run in fartlek, which is Swedish for “speed play,” when you quicken your pace after passing each consecutive street lamp or water hydrant and then calm down afterward.
Your body won’t be able to adjust if you perform the same exercise every week. undertake some sprints at a quicker pace during a workout, and switch up the types of runs you take on. Variety is the secret to ongoing adaptation, whether it is gradual and steady, comfortable and difficult, or interval training.
3. Hiking:
According to White, exercise is good for you whether you’re walking or trekking. However, hiking can be an improved choice if you want to maximize the number of calories you burn while walking and the associated weight reduction advantages. Compared to walking, White says, “hiking will be more helpful to you in aiding in that calorie deficit that is essential in losing weight.” This is due to the fact that trekking is a little more difficult than flat-land strolling. Your body will work harder when hiking over the tougher terrain, hills, and altitudes, which will aid in building stronger leg and core muscles, improving balance, and stabilizing you while you burn more calories.
4. Cycling:
Cycling is a well-liked workout that improves fitness and may help in weight loss.
So, Cycling is typically an outdoor exercise, although stationary bikes are common in gyms and fitness facilities, allowing you to exercise indoors.
According to Harvard Health, a person weighing 155 pounds (70 kg) may expect to burn roughly 252 calories per 30 minutes of moderately paced stationary cycling or 288 calories per 30 minutes of moderately paced cycling at a speed of 12-13.9 mph (19-22.4 km/h).
Cycling is great for weight loss, but research additionally shows that regular cyclists are physically fitter in general, have higher insulin sensitivity, and have a lower risk of heart disease, cancer, and death than non-cyclists.
5. Weight training:
People who want to lose weight frequently choose to lift weights.
A 155-pound (70-kg) person exercises for 30 minutes while burning about 108 calories .
Additionally, weight training can increase your resting metabolic rate (RMR), which is the amount of calories your body burns while at rest (12 Trusted Source).
One 6-month study found that performing strength-based workouts for just 11 minutes, three times per week, led in an average 7.4% improvement in metabolic rate. According to this study, that improvement amounted to an increase in daily calorie expenditure of 125 (13Trusted Source).
Another study discovered that men’s metabolic rates increased by 9% after 24 weeks of weight training, which equivalent to burning approximately 140 more calories per day.
6. Swimming:
A wonderful approach for losing pounds and tone up is through swimming.
It seems that the speed at which you swim affects how many calories you burn. According to research done on competitive swimmers, the breaststroke burns the most calories, followed by the butterfly, backstroke, and freestyle (19Trusted Source).
Swimming for 60 minutes three times a week for a period of 12 weeks significantly lowered body fat, increased flexibility, and decreased many risk factors for heart disease, such as high total cholesterol and blood triglycerides.