Find Your Fit - Lift to be Lean
Health and fitness expert, Clare Stobart
We are all blessed with 24 hours in a day, and as many of you can relate, we need to make sure each of them reach their full potential. Efficiency can often be key to this, and that principle can be extended to your workouts. Squats, lunges and deadlifts are all known as compound movements and exercises. They help target and work the biggest muscle groups in your body including your glutes, quads, hamstrings and core - at the same time! By incorporating them into your workouts, you can see some amazing results, fast. It is one of the quickest ways to get in shape, make your body lean and burn body fat. It also helps you to keep fat off and maintain a healthy body weight.
Here’s why:
This form of exercise can even speed up your metabolism, as muscle is the type of tissue in your body that burns the most calories. Strength training develops “fast-twitch” muscle fibres which provide bigger and more powerful forces. Which in turn, can keep burning calories up to eight hours after you’ve worked out (Women’s Fitness).
Building muscle works differently depending on gender. Testosterone and growth hormones are a huge part of muscle building, therefore it is easier for men to build muscle or “bulk” more quickly due to having an overall increased muscle mass. In the female body, building muscle works differently due to lower testosterone and higher oestrogen levels. Thus resulting in women developing muscle tone and definition as opposed to bulking up.
By engaging more muscle groups, squats, deadlifts and other compound exercises contribute to burning more calories, encouraging a lean body. In turn, the more muscle you have, the quicker your metabolism will work. Strength training also maintains your overall fitness. It is great for your vital organs such as your heart because it gives your cardiovascular system places to send the blood being pumped, which reduces the pressure on your arteries, therefore, improving your overall heart health. Lifting weights for under one hour per week can reduce your risk of a heart attack or stroke by between 40-70% (Iowa State University). With consistent strength training, you’re likely to stay heart healthy for years to come.
Lifting burns calories efficiently, decreases abdominal fat and can help you feel leaner. It reduces visceral fat which can be found around your internal organs and is great for your posture. Through strengthening your bones and joints, coordination and flexibility, compound movements really are the way forward. The health benefits are unrivalled, as they even increase your bone density and reduces the risk of osteoporosis.
By following my step-by-step guide on how to perform weighted squats, you can ensure you get the very best out of all your hard work. Now let’s go!
Step 1: Safely rest the barbell onto the fleshy part of your back (onto your traps and shoulders). Stand straight, feet hip-width apart, toes turned very slightly out, the barbell on the fleshy part of your back with head up, chin facing forward and elbows facing forward, core engaged and chest up.
Step 2: Lower down, as though you are sitting on a chair. Go to 90 degrees (if you have no injuries) pause for a moment, and push the knees out.
Step 3: Drive up through the heels, keeping the core engaged, shoulders back, chest up - and don’t forget to squeeze the glutes
Step 4: Repeat.
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