fat burning zone

[kristicomstock]

Cathe or educated crowd-

I have a question concerning the fat burning zone. As many people already know, you need to exercise at a lower intensity in order to be in the "fat burning zone" vs. higher intensity which essentially burns more carbs vs. fat. In the higher intensity, closer to 85% MHR, many people don't know that you end up burning more overall calories in less time which also equates to more fat calories although the majority is still carb calories, thus focusing too much on low intensity and not doing enough higher intensity workouts. I highly recommend both for variety and to avoid burn out. My question is this though, experts recommend higher intensity because regardless if the calorie expenditure is from carbs or fat you lose weight. Of course, this is depending on your fitness level. What if I don't want to lose weight or my muscle mass and stricly want to lose the fat, does that mean I really should stick to fast paced walking or trotting in order to keep my heartrate in the fat burning zone. I know there is constant research and theories on this subject, but if it anyone knows what the current study on this topic is, I would find it very interesting and helpful. Thanks for the feedback everyone.

Kristi

 

[kristicomstock]

still hoping someone has an answer.

 

[RhiannonW]

My humble opinion would be to incorporate more weight training and most important eat clean.

 

[khuynh]

Kristi,

Funny you should bring this up. I’ve been doing some searches on this very subject with little success. However from the bits and pieces that I have picked up along the way. Unfortunately, there really isn’t a clean cut answer because of all of the variables that you’ve mentioned above.

I have picked up that diet is very important. For example, it will do you no good to be on a low fat diet if it doesn’t sustain you for the periods of time that you need to be at your best. It does you no good to be on a high protein diet if it causes side affects to your body. If you truly want to just loose fat, ensure that your eating patterns and choices of foods are appropriate to your goals. In order to loose fat, you cannot feel starved or intensely hungry. The body is a smart thing and it knows how to use that energy appropriately to support your metabolic rate and other actives. For example, generally the body does choose to use carbs as it’s first choice of energy. Once that is burned up, fat is the next choice of the body. Protein is the last choice because of its tissue building and repairing properties. Make sure that you have enough carbs and fat in your diet so your body has enough fuel to accomplish your goals and preserve the protein to rebuild later.

My diet is no more that a calorie count and a fiber count. I know that I need higher amounts of fat at certain times of the day otherwise I will suffer side effects.

As far as your exercise, I would agree, you need both its going to be an experiment as to which combination is actually showing you the results that you require.

Just my humble thoughts.

 

[are]

What you're saying makes no sense. If you want to lose fat, you want to lose weight. If you mean that you want more muscle and to be tighter, then cardio is irrelevant anyway and you should be doing weight work.

As for the carb-burning vs fat-burning intensity - most of that has been dismissed by the "experts" by now. If you want to lose weight, it won't make a difference, as you noted, so long as you burn the calories. And if, as you say, you're not looking to lose weight but to firm up, then it makes no difference, either. Focus on developing muscle with weight work, and don't worry about whether you're "burning carbs" or "burning fat."

 

[are]

Sorry - I posted this further down before but it should have been here - still getting used to how this forum works!
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What you're saying makes no sense. If you want to lose fat, you want to lose weight. If you mean that you want more muscle and to be tighter, then cardio is irrelevant anyway and you should be doing weight work.
As for the carb-burning vs fat-burning intensity - most of that has been dismissed by the "experts" by now. If you want to lose weight, it won't make a difference, as you noted, so long as you burn the calories. And if, as you say, you're not looking to lose weight but to firm up, then it makes no difference, either. Focus on developing muscle with weight work, and don't worry about whether you're "burning carbs" or "burning fat."

  

 

[newswoman13]

I got the best results by cross training.

I used weights with aerobic intervals, ran (max 9 mi. per week), interval classes, and finally, long low-intensity workouts. My diet was clean but not ultra, ultra strict. I did not starve.

As with anything, moderation. Don't get obsessed -- that's a long road to recover from...So, cross train, toss it up. Listen to your body. Someone mentioned earlier that's it's smart. Trust it.