In the modern world of automobiles, computers and telecommunication, lifestyles are becoming increasingly inactive. Studies have shown that lack of exercise is directly linked to fat gain, especially when calories have been restricted. Low calorie intake deprives the body of its daily energy requirements causing it to hold on to stored fat. Instead, it gains energy by burning away muscle tissue. Over the course of a lifetime, people have been found to lose up to one half of their muscle mass and gain it back in fat. Even individuals who experience little or no change during this time experience their muscle slowly turning to fat.

Through the process of muscle turning to fat, the body experiences a gradual slowing of the metabolism, which decreases the amount of daily calories being burned. Gaining weight becomes easier than ever. Losing weight is more challenging than ever. When someone in this condition goes on a calorie restricted diet and loses the weight, and then returns to their normal eating habits, they usually end up weighing more than when they started because of a slow metabolism and decreased fat burning ability.

Cardiovascular exercise is usually the focus of those attempting to shed the pounds, but this type of exercise combined with weight training and a healthy diet will provide additional benefits needed for long term weight loss. Weight lifting sessions do not have to be a painful and exhausting or require long workout sessions achieve significant results. Performing a mild workout thirty minutes a day, three times a week can greatly increase muscles strength and size in only eight weeks.

The combination of weight lifting and aerobic exercise produces a synergistic effect on the development of endurance and strength. One study was conducted between two groups. The first group performed only aerobic exercise and the second performed aerobic exercise with weight training. The group performing the aerobic exercise only had an eleven percent increase in endurance but no increase in strength. The group doing both aerobic exercise and weight training had over one hundred percent increase in endurance and an average of thirty five percent increase in overall strength.

High impact aerobics without any weight bearing exercise may even cause the loss of muscle mass because the body turns to muscle mass as a fuel source. The benefit of weight loss through exercise is achieved through during and after low impact exercise. A workout session should always be started with weight lifting. This will send just the right stress response to cause the body to activate fat as the main energy source for your aerobic workout. Another benefit of combining weight training and cardiovascular exercise is the removal of excess glucose from the bloodstream, which significantly reduces the risk of type 11 diabetes.

After you have completed your workout you will experience a major calorie burn as long as you avoid junk food and high carbohydrate energy drinks. When the muscles are exercised, the tissue is broken down and has to be rebuilt. This activates the rebuild and repair hormones, which will burn almost two thirds of the total calories being burned. Studies have shown that this increased fat burning ability lasts for many hours.

Calorie restricted diets are not the answer to effective, long term, weight loss. In fact, they only compound the problem. Diet alone, even a healthy one is not enough to combat weight gain brought on by inactivity. A combined exercise program of weight loss lifting and healthy diet will not only help you reach your ideal weight, but your increased muscle mass will make it even easier to maintain it long term.