I always emphasize that the most effective way to reduce excess body fat and maintain your overall health and fitness is to moderately reduce your daily calorie consumption while engaging in cardiovascular (cardio) exercise and resistance (weight) training programs. Cardio exercise training is one of the most effective methods for increasing your daily calorie expenditure, which is an integral component of weight management. By burning excess calories and preventing/reducing fat storage, cardio exercise also improves your body composition—the makeup of your body in terms of the relative percentage of body fat to fat-free mass (i.e. muscle, bone, water, etc).
An ideal body composition encompasses a high proportion of fat-free mass and a lower level of body fat (click here for more information on body composition and body fat percentage guidelines). With just 45 minutes of cardio exercise (i.e. brisk walking, jogging, cycling, swimming, etc.) you can burn anywhere between 300 and 500 calories. Now, you won't typically burn as many calories during weight training sessions, but this type of training is an absolute must since it is the only method of preserving muscle mass. Weight training also improves muscle tone and boosts metabolism, which will ultimately lead to increases in calorie burning potential and weight loss over time.
If you want to lose weight, your primary focus should be on losing body fat. Attempt to lose fat at a maximum rate of...
