Does Weight Lifting Burn Fat? – Hiking Alternatives

It’s winter here in Newcastle, it seems that being back in the UK from 8 years living in Spain has it’s drawbacks, the weather being one of them. The weather has been awful for weeks now with strong winds and driving rain not really making me too enthusiastic about hikes, although I have still done a few.

I’ve always been a multi activity type of guy. I Hike, Trail Run, Backpack, Camp, Swim, Go to the Gym, Kettlebell Train, do Circuits at Home and do stretching and Yoga (but I’m laughable at it).

Lately I’ve been doing some heavy weights in the gym to manage my weight and I have been seeing some excellent results, so I thought I’d do a bit more research on the effects of weight lifting on Fat Burning.

So, Does Weight Lifting Burn Fat or Not?

Yes, weight lifting burns fat. But before we get too deep into this, we need to clarify what kind of weight lifting I am talking about here.

What am I talking about when I say I’m going Weight Lifting instead of taking a hike due to the weather. Well there are a few different ways to lift weights, but the way that I like to do it is to lift as heavy a weight as I can manage comfortably and safely for 8-10 reps and in 4-5 sets with 2 minute rests between. This would generally be defined as Strength Training.

You can lift lighter weights for more reps and sets and this would come under the heading of Cardio or Definition Training. Or you could go all out and lift unbearably heavy weights for 4-6 reps and 2-3 sets and go for Bodybuilding.

Read more...