Hello Dear One!

Ok!  Do you believe that all exercise is created equal?  Or that you can do any number of activities regardless of the form and function that you wish to create??

I certainly hope NOT!

But if you weren’t aware about what does what regarding some main approaches to exercise, these explanations might be of use.

If you want to LOSE FAT, address your diet FIRST!

Getting your body in a fat burning mode is SO SMART if you want to get lean as fast as possible.

(If you’d like to learn more about the process of fat burning, please click here for a 5 day series.  And if you’d like to know about the 5 week Fat Burning Mastery program that will help you lose weight quickly and comfortably, please click here.)

Still wish to lose fat and NOT reinforce a sugar burning mode?

WALK!  Walk, walk, walk, walk, walk, walk.

Walking asks for fuel slowly which reliably enables the body to pull from fat.

Other steady state cardio can be great, but walking will also keep legs slim and not build bulk, should that be of importance.

High intensity interval training (HIIT) can also tap into fat, but it does indeed pull from sugar because it asks for fuel FAST!

If you do NOT want to reinforce a sugar burning mode OR you’re aiming to get into (and stay!) in a fat burning mode – DON’T do this OR do it less often than other things in your exercise line up.  Fat burners can definitely get away with a smattering of this weekly, but when it becomes the majority our biology flips.

If you want to get STRONG, move challenging weights.

If you want to be POWERFUL (and you’re happy with that coming with more mass), move heavier weights FASTER.

Lifts that involve larger muscle groups (squats, deadlifts, pushups and pullups – to name a few), done with challenging resistance will make you strong, and if you add an element of explosiveness or momentum – that will make you BIGGER and more POWERFUL.

And power is really strength in MOTION (think run faster, jump higher).

Awesome.

If you want to be SLIMMER (less muscle AND less fat), do steady state cardio like walking AND move less resistance for more repetitions AND even more SLOWLY.

Additionally you can add isometric holds within these lifts (lunges, planks...) that will REDUCE MASS, but also not build as much strength.

Yoga and pilates can be great outlets for this desire, but if you do have a lot of weight that you wish to lose, incorporating more cardio AND reevaluating your diet would probably be good moves.

So there’s a rough guide.

If you’re doing particular things that are NOT getting you what you desire, evaluate against this list and see if you’re coming up against a lost cause for your desired outcome OR if you can shift things slightly in order to get what you wish for.

OR be in touch with more questions, or check out this series of coaching programs that does involve personal training (in person or online) with customized plans to help you get the physique and performance ability that you hunger for,

Lastly, I have a new podcast that has an episode that speaks to this very topic.  Check out Train Different Gain Different here on the Unbound Podcast.

To getting you clearer on how the body works, and how to make it work for you.

xox, M