Effective Workouts to Burn Fat Fast

Almost everyone wants to lose a few inches off their waistline. But not everyone understands the best ways to accomplish this goal. Some choose to engage in endless bouts of aerobic exercise, and remain baffled when this fails to yield substantial results. Others choose pilates or yoga. But for those who want to melt fat off their bodies as fast as possible, the weight room is the only real choice.

  1. Circuit Training

    • Circuit training is one of the keys to forcing your body to lose its fat reserves as quickly as possible. Circuit training may look simple in form, but do not make the mistake of confusing simple with easy. A "circuit" is merely a series of exercises performed back-to-back, with minimal rest in between. The keys to designing an efficient circuit are (1) use compound movements (in other words, movements that involve multiple muscle groups such as the squat, the deadlift, and pullups); and (2) pair antagonistic muscle groups.(This means to put exercises together that work opposing muscle groups. For example, if you start with a pressing exercise, pair it with a pulling exercise for maximum benefit.)

      A sample circuit would be as follows. Perform eight reps at the barbell squat, then immediately follow that up with a set of pullups to near failure. Rest for a minute, then repeat for a total of three times. After that, perform romanian deadlifts for eight reps, then go straight to single leg squats with dumbbells for another eight reps (with each leg). Rest for a minute, repeat that pairing for a total of three times as well, then clean the sweat off the floor.

      You can invent your own circuits, but remember that the more challenging the exercises are, the more fat you will burn.

    Tabata

    • For those looking for a truly insane way to destroy fat, tabatas are always an option. A tabata is a single exercise performed for four minutes straight with almost no rest. During the four minute period, the individual performs eight mini-sets of the exercise, each for as many repetitions as humanly possible. Each mini-set is 20 seconds long, followed by 10 seconds of rest. Tabatas work best when performed with a multi-joint compound exercise such as front or back squats.
      So to be clear, a sample tabata workout with squats would look like this:
      1. As many reps as possible for 20 seconds
      2. Rest for 10 seconds
      3. Repeat a total of eight times (in other words, for four straight minutes)
      That's it. While it looks easy on paper, Tabatas are a brutal exercise which can condition both the mind and the body, in addition to quickly reducing fat.

    Nutrition

    • While not a "workout" tip, per se, paying close attention to one's nutrition is key to maximizing results from any fat-loss plan. Many people want to convince themselves otherwise, but you simply cannot outwork a poor diet. Countless individuals are willing to work brutally hard in the gym, then completely sabotage their own efforts when they get home to the kitchen by indulging in junk food or sweets, thinking that they have "earned" it. No amount of exercise earns one the right to consume poor food choices without a negative impact on body composition. So to that end, stick mainly to fruits, vegetables, and lean cuts of meat. Buy organic wherever possible, and remember the golden rule: If anything in the list of ingredients would not have been available 500 years ago, you would be better off abstaining.