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Strength Conditioning

Train to Increase Muscle and Decrease Body Fat

By Contributing Author, Edited by Gina Jackson,

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Published in : Strength Conditioning Articles, Strength-Stamina

Through strength training, muscles get larger, or hypertrophy. This increased muscle mass has many advantages, for men and women. First it yields a stronger, tighter athletic body that is resistant to injury, and is healthy. Second, increased muscle mass usually increases muscular strength. Third, the more muscle you have on your body the higher you metabolic rate. We all know, the higher the metabolism, the leaner the body mass.

Metabolism

Your metabolic rate is how many calories you can burn at any given time. Muscle itself is very metabolic in the sense that it requires a lot of calories to not only function, but just exist. This is why many men can seemingly eat anything, and not gain a pound, while many women are careful about how many carrots they eat. Women often carry on long bouts of cardiovascular endurance exercise in the hope of burning calories and subsequently lose the muscle tone they seek to create. The truth is that cardio alone does not selectively burn fat off the body. Losing body fat and getting that "coke-bottle" figure or those washboard abs is a mixture of the right diet, cardio and resistance training.

Approximately 80% of the results that you experience (positive or negative) are a direct result of your diet. Think about it, if you want to gain muscle mass but you aren't eating enough, how you can do that, if when you do eat, its nothing but protein shakes and fast food? You will put on weight, but the kind that jiggles when you touch it, i.e., more body fat. So the first thing is to change your diet. Depending on what your overall goal is, your eating habits may change.

Vitamins & Nutrients

In general a multi-vitamin is suggested because most people don't get all the vitamins and minerals that they need in their regular diet. Water consumption is also another area of concern. The body cannot perform at its peak when it is dehydrated. And, most Americans are constantly dehydrated to a certain degree. Remember, By the time that you feel like you are thirsty, you are already partially dehydrated. When working out, it is recommended that you consume at least 1liter of water at least about an hour before you workout.

Water hydrates the cells, and also thins out the blood, so the heart doesn't have to work as hard to pump it. If you are dehydrated the body will pull water from the extra-cellular fluid (water surrounding the cell), the pull water from inside the cell, and finally remove water from the organs. So no matter what you are doing in the gym, stay hydrated.

When losing weight, you cannot spot reduce. In other words, point to an area and say that "I want to lose fat here". When you lose fat, you lose it over the entire body. Cardio will help you do this and by establishing your Target Heart Rate (THR) and staying within its range, the body will use fat as the predominate fuel for cardio and strength training work. By exceeding the target range, you will begin to break down the muscle (protein) which is counter productive to your goal.

You can lose fat and gain muscle at the same time, it's just a matter of controlling your heart rate. Working under the THR will not benefit you at all. After we have changed our diet, and prescribed to a particular cardiovascular regimen, its time to hit the weights.

Training With Weights

Hitting the weights now will help to fill in the areas that were encased in fat. This is when we can lift up the gluteus muscles, create better defined abs, and those nice defined arms. You can also begin body sculpting. Pick an area of concentration and try visualizing the results while sculpting your body. Increasing your muscle mass and strength means you burn more calories throughout the day. When combined with the right diet and cardio, you have the right recipe for success.

Remember, whenever you work-out there needs to be a system and a plan. Identify a goal, then augment your diet, cardio and resistance training. All of these factors together well help you achieve the vacation body you have always wanted.

Article Source: http://www.articles4meandu.com. This articles was provided by Vacationbodies.com, an online resources for helping readers creates a health conscious lifestyle, and reach fitness goals. The article was edited by Gina Jackson for TheStrengthClub.Net.