Unweighted Squats for Weight Loss

When you decide it's time to lose a few pounds to build a healthier physique, don't feel you have to race to the gym and buy a membership. Exercises you can perform around home can be effective ways to burn calories and build muscle. Unweighted squats fall into the latter category. But while this exercise will strengthen your lower body, it won't burn calories fast enough to significantly contribute to fat loss.

  1. Body-Weight Squat

    • Often called body-weight squat, the unweighted squat is an equipment-free version of a simple exercise. Unlike traditional barbell or dumbbell squats, your body serves as the form of resistance during body-weight squats. To perform this exercise, stand with your feet parallel at hip-distance apart and hold your arms in front of you so they're perpendicular to your body. Keep your back straight and bend at the waist and knees to lower your torso until your thighs are parallel to the ground. Return to the upright position to finish your first rep.

    Fat Loss

    • Fat loss occurs when you create a calorie deficit -- that is, burn more calories than you consume. To lose a pound of fat, you must create a deficit of 3,500 calories. Harvard Medical School reports that calisthenics, which is the term that describes general body-weight exercises such as squats, burn calories slowly. A 155-pound person who performs moderate-intensity calisthenics for 30 minutes will burn just 167 calories.

    Burning Calories

    • If you wish to use exercise to create the calorie deficit needed to see significant fat loss, developing a circuit-training workout that includes squats is an effective strategy. Circuit training involves short periods of aerobic exercise and strength training, alternated in a rapid rhythm. For example, try a minute of jumping jacks and then a minute of squats. Continue this pattern for 20 or 30 minutes. Circuit training will help a 155-pound person burn 298 calories in 30 minutes, but this form of exercise also boosts your metabolism to burn more calories after your workout. Traditional aerobic exercises are effective ways of burning calories. Harvard notes that a 155-pound person will burn 409 calories during a 30-minute run at 6.7 mph.

    Muscles

    • Although squats alone aren't an effective way to burn calories, don't discount this exercise. Squats target your quadriceps muscles, and having strong quads can help you perform in sports and exercises such as jogging, skating and cycling. The exercise also involves your glutes, calves and hamstrings. Building muscle can play an important role in helping you reach your fat-loss goals. For every pound of muscle you add, your body will burn an extra 50 calories per day at rest.