Best exercises to help you burn calories faster

When it comes to losing weight, any exercise is better than none at all. Ten minutes of walking is better than sitting all day. The body loses weight through burning calories and any form of bodily movement helps burn some. A less known fact is that the body burns an average of about 1,500 to 2,000 calories a day just by being alive. We put on weight when we eat more calories than we burn. We lose weight by burning more calories than we eat. 

In order to lose one kilogramme of weight, you must burn 77,000 calories while making sure you do not regain them through over eating food, according to several studies. Depending on which exercise you chose, working out for an hour may help you burn between 400 to 1,000 calories. 

Other than the exercise you choose, the other factors that determine how much you burn is your age, intensity, duration and pace, among others.

Understanding that any movement helps you burn calories is the beginning of a great weight loss journey according to experts. This knowledge will inspire you to walk to the neighbourhood supermarket instead of driving there. Instead of taking the lift at work, you might get inspired to take the stairs and instead of watching TV at the weekend, you may feel inspired to go dancing with your bestie. 

However, for all this effort to pay off, one must make sure that they eat less calories than they are burning. If you burn 500 calories and gain them back through food, you will not lose any weight. If you burn 400 calories but gain 800 through food, you will gain weight. Only if you burn more calories than you gain will you start to see results. 

Sources of calories

According to experts, the calories in food come from carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. For example, one gramme of carbohydrates has four calories, one gramme of proteins has four calories and one gram of fats has nine calories. This means that a serious reduction in these three foods combined with your regular workouts may give you the results you seek. In other words, less meat, less rice and posho, and less fats.

Great calorie burning exercises

It’s important to note that whether you need weight loss or not, regular exercise prevents the onset of chronic health disorders so it is a win-win situation. The following are some of the great calorie burners that you can try out:

Swimming

Swimming, while it helps burn calories is one of the least effective on this list. It is a low-impact workout that improves cardiovascular health, builds endurance, and increases strength. Online fitness guru Daniel Saltos says in just 30 minutes of swimming, an average person can burn 200 to 300 calories. 

Strength training

Strength training is more effective at building muscle but it also one of the efficient ways to burn calories. According to sports doctor Ntegge Ssengendo, one hour of strength training can burn up to 300 calories on average. The special thing about strength training is that it triggers more calorie burning after the workout because of the excess post-exercise oxygen consumption, according to Ssengendo. 

“Because strength training injures muscles, the body is forced to consume large amounts of oxygen after the workout to help restore the muscles and in doing so, the body burns more calories,” he says.

Cycling

Cycling, whether using a stationary bike or an actual bicycle is a great calorie burner according to experts. Dr Ssengendo says a long, steady bike ride can burn up to 700 calories within one hour. He adds that it a very good cardiovascular exercise, which means it great for your heart. Cycling is also known for engaging several muscle groups and this is always good for overall fitness.

Boxing

While boxing is known to improve balance, building upper body strength, boxing is one of the greatest calorie burners. According to Dr Ssengendo, an average person can burn up to 800 calories in one hour of boxing. The reason for this, he says, is because it works the whole body simultaneously and is suitable for any body weight. 

Skipping rope

Skipping rope beats all the great calorie burners to the number one spot. This playground activity favourite can actually do wonders for your health. Saltos, says, “Jumping rope is great for strengthening the lower and upper body while improving endurance and cardiovascular fitness. It also improves your coordination, because your mind has to work while you jump. Jumping rope can burn 600 to 1,000 calories in an hour,” the online fitness expert says.

Whichever workout one chooses, calories will be burned. Choosing one exercise you enjoy goes a long way in ensuring that you will keep at it longest which is very important when it comes to losing weight. Eating less calories on top of exercise is the trick to losing weight.