lifting heavy weights burns more calories and fat does not make you bulky

Want to Lose Fat, Burn Calories, and Get Smaller? Then Lift Heavy!

I see the “lift light/Gwyneth Paltrow/Tracy Anderson celebrity workout” is making it rounds again(hmm which is it? Iron Man opening in May or Tracy’s new studio opening in London?) today:

Gwyneth Paltrow On Her Body: ‘I Had To Work Hard To Get It Like This’

“Having sung the praises of fried chicken, eaten her way through Spain with Mario Batali, and posted numerous recipes on her lifestyle site Goop.com it’s clear that Gwyneth Paltrow is a bona fide foodie. “I can eat what I want, as long as I exercise,” she tells British Vogue, “which is just as well, because if I put the word ‘diet’ into my brain, I immediately gain a stone [about 14 lbs].”

In fact, the Oscar-winning actress is so wrapped up in culinary delights, she even has a cookbook in the works. “I have this whole other passion, which is home-making,” explains the magazine’s May cover model. “As silly as that sounds–it’s not 1955, after all–it’s really important to me, all that stuff, sitting round a table as a family.”

So how does Paltrow stay so svelte in the face of the calories that come with recipe-testing? “I had to work hard to get like this,” says the 37-year-old mother-of-two, who lost 20 lbs. after the birth of Moses, her second child with husband Chris Martin of Coldplay, by working out intensively with celebrity trainer Tracy Anderson.

“.…To read the full feature, pick up a copy of the May issue of British Vogue. — Marissa Patlingrao Cooley”

For those of you unfamiliar with the Tracy Anderson workout back-story – the videos above are pretty useful. Tracy also has home versions of her workout available on DVD. I do happen to own both the Dance Cardio DVD and the Mat Workout – I bought both back when they first came out in….2008. Looks like both are now out of production and have been replaced by Tracy Anderson Perfect Design Series and Beginner Dance Cardio. If people want a specific review of these products let me know by leaving a comment.

Here’s the deal

I like Gwyneth Paltrow. I watched her show on PBS touring around with Mario Batali and for the most part I found her really down to earth and undeniably intelligent. I also like the fact that she is really honest about working hard.

The problem? The system she advocates for other women is highly inefficient and deceptive. Sure she lost 20lbs of fat over a year working out a minimum of two to three hours per day (of which a huge portion was high intensity dance cardio) in addition to pilates-style personal training sessions (which utilize intense body weight exercises on apparatus) and her daily Ashtanga yoga practice.

Plus, don’t forget people are copying her workout because they want to LOOK like Gwyneth Paltrow. But guess what, she’s 5ft 9in tall! I am not trying to say that tall people have a genetic advantage for looking good (although they will naturally have a higher metabolism due to having more lean body mass), but because of their longer bones, they simply will look less bulky than a shorter person with the same build. Its true!

So technically, Gwyneth Paltrow could probably do any workout and look this way, whether she knows it or not is another matter.

So what about you?

Does this mean that to lose what is essentially a pound of fat per month or less than a half pound per week that you will need to exercise 2-3 hours per day (plus an hour of ashtanga yoga – don’t forget that)?

NO! This rate of loss is the equivalent of reducing your diet by 205 calories per day (click here to see an examples of what 200 calories looks like.)

Which would you rather do? Skip 205 calories or workout for three hours till you puke and your limbs are full of burning lactic acid?

The claim is that anyone can get her body type by doing an hour or two of high intensity dance aerobics plus an hour of modified pilates floor work with weights no heavier than 3lbs – 6 days per week.

Hold ON -

1) The average woman doesn’t have an hour period – and doesn’t need it! 40 min or less, three days per week is enough to lose fat!

2) The average person would suffer serious joint pain from an hour of bouncing and likely have to quit before ever seeing results (but I know you don’t care as I would try my hardest too if I thought this ONE workout was a magic bullet.)

3) Only lifting 3lb weights to prevent becoming bulky? That is NOT what Gwyneth is doing when she shapes and tones her body by dangling from a Cadillac (pilates equipment) so I feel this is deceptive.

Can lifting weight make you bulky as they argue?

Yes if – you are eating so many calories that you are not burning fat and instead begin to build muscle. This will add a layer of bulk under your fat. Simply not overeating would solve this problem.

Also, some women may also have trouble with unwanted thigh development when they workout – this frequently is the result of too many quad dominant exercises (spinning, stair climbing, squats….) A good trainer can show you how to do exercises that will not cause this effect.

Is there ever a place for doing high rep exercises?

Yes. Its called physical therapy. Now I am kind of joking but not really. When I go to physical therapy for my shoulder, we need to build strength in really weak muscles that are not recruiting (able to fire or contract normally.) Thus we do lots of reps to build strength and endurance. Then we move on to a more challenging exercise against gravity or add more weight.

If you are very weak and out of shape, by all means do some Tracy Anderson floor work if you enjoy it (I personally think Exhale Core Fusion videos are better, check them out) but be sure to understand that at a certain point – 6 weeks probably, you will need to move on to something more challenging.

And when you do – I think you’ll be shocked to see how much better the results you get.

What is a better alternative?

Lift heavy three days per week for no more than 40 min including warm up. Do your exercises circuit style with minimum breaks. Beginners would be fine just doing this for a few months while your body gets used to the intensity.

“Heavy” is also relative to you and your abilities. This could mean 5lbs in each hand while you do squats and then steadily increasing over time.

Change your weight lifting routine up every month to prevent your body from getting used to your workout.

Add interval cardio sessions – This is where you alternate between working hard and then working easier. Say one minutes jogging, two minutes brisk walking. The intensity of your “hard” session depends on how in shape you are. Work up to sprinting and then shortening the length of your “easy” times. Try20-30 minutes a couple days per week and see how you do.

Trust me – I bought both and used them religiously for over three months and while they were fun to do, and my muscles really burned – there results just were not there. Especially for the time involved. I have had better luck using Red Carpet Ready, the Female Body Breakthrough, or Tom Ventuto’s Burn the Fat Feed the Muscle.

Looking for Verification?

I rarely agree with the New York Times when it comes to fitness articles. Today I will make an exception:

The Claim: For Better Muscle Tone, Go Lighter and Repeat

By ANAHAD O’CONNOR

Published: April 4, 2010

Lifting heavy weights makes you big and bulky — or at least that’s the conventional wisdom. It’s the reason many women (and some men) who want slim and “toned” physiques opt for lighter weights, lifted more times.

But the notion is not supported by science. Producing bulky muscles requires not just heavy weights but heavy calorie consumption as well, typically far above the 2,000 daily calories recommended for many adults.

For people who lift weights to tone up and slim down, experts say, a regimen that includes a combination of challenging weights and fewer repetitions can help significantly. In a 2002 study, for example, scientists looked at what happened when women performed various resistance exercises at different weights and repetitions (85 percent of their maximum ability for 8 reps, versus 45 percent for 15). Subjects lifting more weight fewer times burned more energy and had a greater metabolic boost after exercise.”

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