Does Lifting Weights Burn Fat?

It's a common question for every newbie at the gym. No worries, you have come to the right place.

If you're looking to burn fat and lose weight, the first and foremost thing you need to keep in mind is that burning fat depends on the number of calories you're consuming and calories you're burning. Any kind of exercise can help you lose weight as long as you're burning more calories than you're eating.

Hence, the answer to the question 'does lifting weights burn fat' is slightly more elaborate than you would imagine.

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Lifting Weights can Burn Fat

Lifting weights has a distinct weight loss benefit over other forms of exercise. It can indeed help you burn fat and gain muscle. As muscle tissue burns more calories at rest than fat tissue, the body burns more fat at rest than before, as you've gained muscle.

Greater the amount of muscle tissue in your body, higher will be your resting metabolic rate (your metabolism while sitting or sleeping) and greater will be the number of calories burned per day. So, lifting weights does burn fat. You can learn more about that here: why is it important to lift weights.

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Does Lifting Weights Burn More Fat than Cardio?

Cardio and lifting weights are two different types of workouts that burn fat in different ways. Cardio is a type of aerobic exercise that speeds up calorie burning, raises breathing rate, and increases endurance in general. Cycling, dancing, jogging, running, and swimming are a few examples of aerobic exercises.

Anaerobic exercise, meanwhile, is a brief, intense physical activity that does not require the inhalation of oxygen and instead uses fuel from the muscles' internal energy reserves. Sprinting and lifting weights are two examples of anaerobic exercises.

Cardio exercises help burn fat by raising the heart rate during the exercise. However, lifting weights helps build muscle, which burns fat during exercise as well as when the body is at rest. So, liifting weights burns more fat in the long term than cardio.

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Does Lifting Weights Burn Fat and Improve Endurance?

Yes, lifting weights can definitely burn fat and improve endurance levels. Athletes generally lift weights along with following their rigorous training to improve their strength, stamina, and muscular endurance.

More than pure cardio, lifting weights can increase muscular endurance. When training for half-marathons, marathons, or adventure races, many runners engage in high-volume lifting (lighter weights, more repetitions). Running capacity can be significantly increased by weightlifting.

Anaerobic fitness classes with weights or plyometrics can also help you develop muscular and cardiovascular endurance. High intensity weightlifting regimens like CrossFit work towards the same goal.

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Best Weightlifting Movements

Now that you know that lifting weights do burn fat, you might want to start lifting weights right away. Hold your horses, though, and go through the following tips before you do so:

When choosing the weightlifting exercises to include in your routine, try not to get too bogged down in the details. Fundamental compound exercises like lunges, squats, deadlifts, and overhead presses can do the trick.

As you get stronger, you can start adding more isolation and accessory exercises to work out your muscles. Try these best strength training exercises with free weights if you're looking for inspiration.