Questions:
1. When someone is strength training, can they gain weight?
2. Is strength training an effective way to weight loss?
3. If I have a cup of rice everyday , will that affect my weight loss negatively? (I know this question is just too specific lol)
Answers:
1. When someone is strength training, can they gain weight?
Yes in the beginning there is a slight increase in weight due to muscle mass returning to original mass. But don’t let this scare you. When a female weight trains she will not get bulky like a man due to oestrogen levels. Rather, weight training allows for more muscle gains which burns more calories even when you are resting. This increase in metabolic rate is due to the new muscle mass requiring more nutrients to sustain itself. This is the magic of weight training for women that results in a toned and slimmer body.
Also, you may notice one thing, as you continue weight training, you may not lose weight on the scale but your body will slim down and get toned. This is again due to more muscle mass. Don’t forget that muscle weight more than fat but is less voluminous as easily seen in the below cool photo.
Personal experience – when I started weight training 6 years ago, I weight 69 kilos. AFter a few months my weight shot up to 73 kilos. Normally I panicked! As I continue training my weight came down to 63 kg within first 12 months of training. And now after 5 years I am still at 63 kilos. Yes the same weight for 5 years. Does this mean I have no results? Hell no, I am gaining muscle and losing fat simultaneously. Muscle gains can be confirmed by my strength gains and me being able to lift more weights. And I am losing body fat becasue I see my body toning out and clothes feeling lose.
So the point of the story, don’t focus on the number on the scale. Your aesthetic gains are enough to see how far you have come along on your journey.
2. Is strength training an effective way to weight loss?
HELL YES. The same reason that you gain weight at first then quickly lean out is a great way to explain that weight training is the best form to burn fat. Think of your muscles as engines for burning fat. Larger muscles are larger engines for burning more fat. Strength training coupled with diet and cardio burns fat far more than cardio and diet alone.
Professional fitness models strip away the fat through diet and training, which consists of weight training at higher reps with shorter rest periods. This sort of training induces a large increase of growth hormone (GH) in your body. GH is a potent fat loss hormone and a very mild anabolic.
Larger muscles also burn more calories when activated. So you are looking at working on your daily workout routines which involves all the large muscle groups in your body:
Upper body –
- Arms
- Shoulders
- Upper, mid and lower back
- Chest
- Traps
Lower Body –
- Quads
- hammies
- Glutes
- Calves
Working these muscles means you are pushing your central nervous system into the next gear. Your entire body is now working to help you lift and perform better. Couple this with proper nutrition plan and smart cardio and you are turning your body into a fat burning machine.
But don’t forget to do some smart cardio. Smart Cardio is what I call doing your cardio effectively where it burns only fat and saves the muscle. So does this mean that other forms of cardio may not be burning fat? Yes that’s right. Cardio is notorious for burning fat and muscle at the same time – and if you didn’t already know then muscle if your best friend that you don’t wanna lose. Smart cardio is basically HIIT which targets fat burn and saves the muscles – scientifically proven too. HIIT sessions are short, sweet & sweaty and you can expect to see results in 3 weeks. Don’t quit then tho, keep going and see what your body can do!
3. If I have a cup of rice everyday , will that affect my weight loss negatively? (I know this question is just too specific lol)
Rice is carbs, and based on your goals you can either ruin your journey or make it better through carbs. Carbs are not bad. Some carbs are very useful and we should have it. Carbs that are harmful include inflammation causing carbs such as gluten containing foods, processed foods, sugar, junk foods etc.
Rice is a moderately slow digesting carbs, and having it in the right time of the day is going to help you. If you weight training, have your carbs before weight training which is going to give you the energy you need. If you go heavy then have a small amount of carbs right after training. Don’t delay your carbs and have them at night. Eat as quickly as you can after your workout, and be sure to eat adequate amount of protein to help you get gains.
Over eating your carbs will lead to fat gain. carbs will get digested and when too much is in the blood stream it gets stored inside fat cells. So it is a good idea to spread your carbs out throughout the day and eat smaller portions. On days you are not weight training or working our, eat less carbs to balance out.
How much carbs you need depends on your specific body type, hormones, medical history, lifestyle etc. You can check out Lean Out Programme if you need help setting specific goals.
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Marina Farook 