If you have ever asked someone to explain how to burn body fat, the chances are slim that weight training came up in the list of responses.

But the fact is, resistance training has been scientifically proven to elevate our body's fat burning ability.

Those who are keen gym enthusiasts may already know this, but the majority of gym goers have no idea and often miss out on the many benefits hiding within resistance training because they mistakenly believe it's not for them. However, several key studies show weight based training to be even better than aerobic exercise for burning calories.

The specific type of resistance training referred to here is H.I.R.T., otherwise known as high intensity resistance training.

Before you go to the gym with ideas of lifting light weights for millions of reps in a Body Pump class, it's important to understand that high intensity resistance training does not involve going light at all. In fact, it's one of the most difficult weight lifting protocols in existence today. But that also makes it one of the most effective.

Whenever we lift weights we create an anabolic response which tells the body to use carbohydrates as our main fuel source during training.

Now, you could see that as a disadvantage if your main goal is fat loss - why wouldn't you want to burn fat as your primary fuel?

That's because this anabolic response creates a procedure within the human body known as excess post-exercise oxygen consumption. This flips the fuel burning rule book out of the window and places our carbohdrate stores on temporary lockdown, forcing us to use fat as our primary source of fuel in the hours which follow a gym workout. Now you should be beginning to see the real advantages of high intensity weight lifting...

While aerobic exercise uses fat as it's primary fuel, you stop burning calories at an accelerated rate when you stop training. However, intense lifting uses carbs as it's main fuel during the session then switches to burning fat for twelve to sixteen hours after the session!

But how do you actually do this style of training?



It's beauty is in it's simplicity. Or rather, it's simple to explain - it's not simple to do! The first step is to look at what other people are doing when they train with weights at your local gym. The chances are, they will lift for eight to ten repetitions then rest for a couple of minutes before repeating the process. This is pretty standard gym behavior.

But it is not H.I.R.T. and it is not the most effective training style for fat loss.

Try jamming a few exercises together into a circuit, keeping your rep range in the 10-20 range to allow all muscle fibers to be fully worked. By taking zero rest periods between each exercise you will get considerably more done in the gym in less time. You'll also force the body to utilize the monstrous fat burning procedure we explained above.

The myth that cardio is for weight loss and weight lifting is for bodybuilding should no longer plague gyms across the country. Yet it does. In discovering the numerous pieces of scientific research which prove just how effective weight training can be for burning unwanted body fat, you now find yourself in the minority of gym users who can use this knowledge to your advantage.