The benefits of resistance training are substantial, but many people focus on cardio when they’re trying to lose body fat. Strength training helps with fat loss in a variety of ways. When you have more metabolically-active muscle tissue it slightly speeds up fat burning at rest. But what about when you’re actually strength training? Does training with weights, resistance bands or body weight burn significant amounts of fat while you’re doing it?
Resistance Training to Burn Fat
A study published in the Journal of Applied Physiology looked at the effects of resistance training on fat burning. To do this, they used special probes inserted placed into adipose tissue and indirect calorimetry to measure fat burning while eight male volunteers resistance trained and when they were sedentary. The participants did three 10-rep sets of five different weight training exercises lifting 85% to 100% of their 10-rep max. They rested for 90 seconds or less between sets.
The results? The participants burned fat at a rate that was 105% higher after resistance training. Not only were they building strength and lean body mass, but they also burned greater amounts of fat as fuel during their training. In addition, the participants expended more energy for a full 40 minutes after their resistance training session was over, confirming that resistance training causes an afterburn. So much for resistance training not being effective for burning fat.
Researchers in this study believe the increase in fat burning can be explained by a rise in levels of fat-burning hormones like growth hormone, epinephrine, and norepinephrine brought on by the stress of weight training. Would fat-burning have been as great had they used lighter weights and more repetitions, more of an endurance workout? Growth hormone increases proportionally to the intensity of the exercise, and using lighter weights even for longer periods of time probably wouldn’t burn as much fat or give the same degree of afterburn. So, lift heavy to build lean body mass and burn more fat.
Other Tips for Burning More Fat During Resistance Training
To burn more fat, lift heavy, and focus on working larger muscle groups like those in your lower body. Compound exercises that work more than muscle groups simultaneously also increases the amount of fat burned during a resistance training workout. Think deadlifts, push-ups, pull-ups, bench press, squats, lunges, standing military press and barbell rows rather than isolation exercises that don’t recruit as many muscle fibers like biceps curls and triceps kickbacks.
Another way to boost fat burning during a resistance training workout is to add short periods of cardio between resistance-training sets. Jump rope, do jumping jacks or high knees for two minutes between sets. To do this, you may have to reduce the weight since you’ll feel fatigued from the short bursts of cardio.
The Bottom Line?
The key to burning fat during a resistance workout is intensity since intensity is what maximizes the release of growth hormone and other fat-burning hormones. Lift heavy to burn fat, and reduce the amount of rest time between sets or add short segments of cardio. Can resistance training completely replace cardio? No, you still need to do cardio but don’t underestimate the benefits of resistance training for burning fat before and after a workout.
References:
IDEA Fitness. “Yes! You Do Burn Fat During Resistance Exercise”
Canadian Journal of Applied Physiology. 30(4), 475-99.
Journal of Applied Physiology August 1999 vol. 87 no. 2 498-504.
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