Many people judge their workout by the number of calories burned that the simulator shows. Research Don’t Get Burned by Calorie Counters the sports medicine clinic in San Francisco proved that this is unjustified, since exercise machines greatly overestimate the calories burned.
During the study, participants were engaged in various cardio simulators, and scientists tracked their breathing patterns using special masks and measured the level of VO2max (the maximum amount of oxygen consumed).
Based on these data and taking into account height, weight, age and body fat percentage, the scientists calculated how many calories the participants actually spent and compared these data with the indicators of simulators.
On average, the exercise machines overestimated the number of calories burned by 19%. Here are the indicators for specific simulators:
Don't believe the simulators. Evaluate the effectiveness of the workout according to your feelings.
It is believed that fitness bracelets help to better monitor the expenditure of calories and introduce a healthier lifestyle. However, some studies have questioned the effectiveness of these devices.
In the study Effect of Wearable Technology Combined With a Lifestyle Intervention on Long-term Weight Loss: The IDEA Randomized Clinical Trial. The University of Pittsburgh found that the presence of fitness bracelets has no significant effect on weight loss.
For several years, the study participants followed a diet and engaged in fitness. People from one group controlled their nutrition and activity on the site, while others used fitness trackers for this. As a result, people from both groups lost weight and improved their physical shape, while no significant differences were found between the two groups.
In addition, fitness bracelets do not count calories well. In one study Accuracy in Wrist-Worn, Sensor-Based Measurements of Heart Rate and Energy Expenditure in a Diverse Cohort The indicators of seven well-known fitness bracelets were compared with ECG data and masks that count the amount of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the breath.
Scientists have found that fitness trackers track heart rate well - they make mistakes in no more than 5% of cases. However, the situation with calories is much worse — the tested devices showed from 27.4% to 92.6% inaccuracies. That is, the most inaccurate devices were deceived in 92.6% of cases.
Moreover, the percentage of errors depended, among other things, on the weight of the participants — in people with a high body mass index, the devices were mistaken more often. It turns out that fitness bracelets are more likely to deceive those who want to lose weight and most of all need correct data.
The figure on your scales speaks only about the total body weight, and to judge progress, you need to know the percentage of fat and muscle.
As you can see in the picture below, with the same weight, the volume of fat will be greater than the volume of muscle. Therefore, when you gain muscle mass and get rid of fat, you can weigh even more than before diet and exercise, but look and feel much better.
After you start training, you can gain a little weight, as the number of muscles will increase, but the fat will remain. It may be different - there will be no significant changes in weight, but the number of muscles will increase, and fat will decrease.
To track your progress, measure volumes with a centimeter tape or use special scales that show the percentage of fat, muscle and water in the body.
Because of this myth, many people prefer protein shakes instead of the usual high-protein meal, which can be drunk immediately after a workout.
However, some studies show that such a rush in protein intake is unjustified. In the study Effect of protein-supplement timing on strength, power, and body-composition changes in resistance-trained men. In 2009, it was found that the time of taking protein supplements — immediately after training, in the morning or in the evening, does not affect strength, muscle hypertrophy and body fat percentage.
Other research Nutrient timing revisited: is there a post-exercise anabolic window? found that the anabolic window remains open for 1.5-2 hours after training, so there is no reason to immediately drink a protein shake or eat right in the locker room.
Some people come to the gym with a specific goal — to pump up big biceps, abs cubes or sexy buttocks. They choose two or three exercises for the right muscle groups and perform them for several weeks in a row.
This approach will lead to a rapid stop of progress, as the body adapts to the same loads and will spend fewer calories on the same actions. In order not to get stuck on the training plateau, you need to periodically change exercises and simulators, try different free weights and training methods.
In addition, by excessively straining one muscle group and ignoring others, you risk creating a muscle imbalance, which entails limitations in joint mobility, back pain, and posture disorders.
The body needs the harmonious development of all muscle groups. You can focus on some muscles, but we should not exclude the study of the rest from the program.
If your goal is to lose weight, you will not be able to achieve it without a review of nutrition. We have already written why workouts are not effective for weight loss without a diet — our body has been learning to survive in conditions of hunger and high physical exertion for many thousands of years, and it is perfectly able to adapt and retain fat.
Therefore, without a calorie deficit, you will not be able to get rid of excess weight, no matter how intensively you train. In addition, for a good figure, it is important not only the quantity, but also the quality of nutrition.
For muscle growth, rapid recovery and health, you need a large amount of protein , and if your diet consists of saturated fats and fast carbohydrates, it is unlikely that you will be able to achieve your fitness goals.
It is often possible to see overweight people running for a long time or even just walking on a treadmill, instead of working out with dumbbells. It is believed that strength training is needed to gain muscle mass, and for weight loss — only cardio.
In fact, cardio workouts have a good effect on the cardiovascular and respiratory systems and develop endurance, but if you want to burn more calories, both during and after physical activity, choose strength or interval (HIIT) workouts.
Research EPOC Comparison Between Isocaloric Bouts of Steady-State Aerobic, Intermittent Aerobic, and Resistance Training. A 2011 study found that after these types of training, resting metabolism remains elevated for 21 hours. It turns out that you burn more calories almost the whole day after strength or HIIT training.
Sweat secretion and fat splitting are two different functions of the body, unrelated to each other. Sweat is released through the pores in response to an increase in body temperature, evaporates and takes heat, cooling the body.
The breakdown of fats occurs when the body needs energy. Fats stored in lipocytes for a rainy day are broken down into glycerin and fatty acids, which are used by cells as energy.
If you work out in a hot room or wrap yourself in warm clothes, more sweat is released, but this does not mean that you lose more fat. To lose fat, you need an intense load, which will create a shortage of energy and force your body to take it from fat reserves.
Therefore, it is not necessary to specifically create conditions for excessive sweating — it is not only useless, but also dangerous to health. The loss of a large amount of sweat threatens dehydration, which can negatively affect your health.
