How to Lose Weight Using Weights

Using weights to achieve weight loss is far more rewarding than losing weight through calorie reduction alone. Working out with weights transforms your body into a calorie-burning machine, making it healthier, stronger and leaner. Eating a healthy diet provides you with the nutrients needed to hasten the progress toward your ultimate goal.

Things You'll Need

• Dumbbells
• Home gym
• Elastic tubing

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Instructions

• 1

  Get advice on proper form and technique from a personal trainer, recommends MayoClinic.com. If you are new to using weights, even if you have previous experience, discuss your weight-training goals with a professional and learn how to avoid injury and reduce the potential for sprains, fractures and the possible development of future physical problems.

• 2

  Choose an alternative method for learning proper form and technique without the expense of visiting a personal trainer. Purchase weight-training videos developed by popular physical fitness experts, like Jillian Michaels' "Shred-It With Weights," or Tom Venuto's ebook, "Burn the Fat," to learn correct form and avoid injury while working out. Another alternative is Exercise4WeightLoss.com, which offers free fitness videos online.

• 3

  Use weights to increase your basal metabolic rate (BMR), the minimum number of calories required to keep all bodily processes functioning in a state of rest. Working out with weights enables you to increase lean tissue mass (muscle), which is what stimulates the increase in your BMR and the number of calories burned each day -- without dieting. Even at rest, you will continue to burn more calories. Metabolically active tissue (muscle) burns more calories than any other type of body tissue. Tom Venuto, in Iron Magazine online, says, "Low calorie dieting and aerobic training without weight lifting can make you lose muscle," which slows down your metabolism.

• 4

  Use weights to increase and prolong fat burning. In 2007, the "Journal of Applied Physiology" published a study that linked elevated fat loss to weight-training exercises. Tests performed on study participants following performance of weight-training exercises, such as chest presses, lateral pull downs, leg presses, shoulder presses, leg extensions and leg curls, revealed that increased fat burning continued for 40 minutes after the participants had finished their workouts.

• 5

  Choose weights you can lift 12 to 15 times without incurring muscle stress, recommends MayoClinic.com. Begin with one to three sets of 12 repetitions. Increase the size of your weights and the number of sets as your strength increases. Exercise two to three times a week, with each session lasting 20 to 30 minutes. Use free weights, such as dumbbells, home gyms, which provide resistance weights, and elastic tubing to force contraction of your muscles and increase lean tissue mass as you continue your workouts.

• 6

  Perform a full-body workout for each session or work specific muscle groups on alternate days. For example, you may choose to work your upper body muscles -- arms and shoulders -- on Monday, your abdomen and back on Wednesday and your lower body muscles -- legs and buttocks -- on Friday. Allow one day in between sessions to give your muscles a rest.