Originally published July 31 2005
Weightlifting alone will not lead to weight loss
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Although some argue lifting weights is a good way to lose weight, experts suggest weight lifting alone is not an effective way of burning calories, and a cardiovascular workout is necessary.
BARBARA WOODWORTH, 35, a social worker in Seattle, wanted to drop 40 pounds.
Alisa Rivera, 39, a college adviser at the University of California, Los Angeles, also wanted to lose weight.
She also wanted to build long, lean muscle.
So the two women routinely began to lift weights.
But like many of the other 36 million women nationwide who each year pick up dumbbells hoping to lose pounds or develop a sculptured body, both Ms.
Joe Fornabaio for The New York Times A strict regimen of light weights will build endurance but not muscle.
Building a Workout to Meet Your Goals (July 21, 2005) Personal trainers, fitness instructors, magazines and books have sold a double-barreled promise that any strength training builds muscle and that having more muscle dramatically speeds metabolism, increasing the calories a person burns while at rest.
"Even if weight training increases muscle and metabolism, there is little evidence showing that it is enough to cause weight loss," said Joseph Donnelly, the director of the Energy Balance Laboratory at the University of Kansas, who has extensively reviewed studies on the link between resistance training and weight loss.
They lift too light a weight, or they neglect to progress to heavier weights as they grow stronger.
A Google search using the terms "metabolism" and "weights" produces thousands of Web sites, many of which say that anyone can lose weight and build muscle through strength training, even doing routines that aren't particularly strenuous.
Before taking up weight lifting, she had already lost 15 pounds in about three months by cutting calories and walking and running for an hour three times a week.
Her trainer advised her to lift four times a week, cut her cardiovascular exercise to less than 30 minutes but still keep dieting.
All content posted on this site is commentary or opinion and is protected under Free Speech. Truth Publishing LLC takes sole responsibility for all content. Truth Publishing sells no hard products and earns no money from the recommendation of products. NaturalNews.com is presented for educational and commentary purposes only and should not be construed as professional advice from any licensed practitioner. Truth Publishing assumes no responsibility for the use or misuse of this material. For the full terms of usage of this material, visit www.NaturalNews.com/terms.shtml