The KEY to burning FAT...

Do you ever notice when at the gym that women tend to stick to the cardio machines, like the treadmill and the elliptical, and that the men are just about always in the weight room? That’s because somewhere along the line women got the idea that lifting weights would “bulk them up.” I am here to break that myth. Ladies, have no fear, that’s not true, you CAN lift weights! In fact, you should be lifting weights because the key to burning fat is by gaining muscle.
By lifting heavy weights you can improve your resting metabolism, which means you will be burning more calories when you are just hanging out than you normally would. According to Chalene Johnson, the creator of Turbo Jam and ChaLEAN Extreme, “Muscle is the fountain of youth. It’s what makes you look younger, it’s what makes you feel younger and it’s what makes you leaner.” When women reach their 30s it’s natural for their muscle strength and their metabolism to decline. To stop this decline you just need to add muscle to your body.
Fitness Magazine said, “Since muscle burns an estimated three times more calories than fat, adding two to four pounds of muscle can translate into an extra 100 calories burned each day. A high-intensity strength routine has been shown to bump metabolism by 20 percent for several hours post-workout.”
There are many other great benefits to adding strength training to your cardio routine. Fitness Magazine said, “Some of the benefits, like improving muscle tone, bone density, athletic performance, and strength (about 30 to 50 percent more after three to six months of training), are obvious. But there are a few surprises: Resistance training helps women fight the aging process by maintaining lean muscle tissue. Women who regularly lift weights have better self-esteem and get sick less often. Others have found weight training improves the way the body processes sugar, reducing the risk of diabetes.”
So why won’t women get bulky muscles like men? Here is the shocker, men and women are different! Women do not have the same kind of testosterone to get big muscles like the men do. Men will get bigger and stronger muscles while women get stronger and leaner. Chalene repeats this throughout the ChaLEAN Extreme DVDs as she points to one of the fabulous looking ladies on set to show that they lift heavy weights and they are not bulking at all.
Next time you are at the gym pick up a weight or two and try adding strength training to your routine. And don’t be shy about using the machines either, ask someone for help on how to use them, that’s what they are there for. Remember the key to burning fat is by gaining muscle.


If you would like to try strength training I would recommend P90X or ChaLEAN Extreme. Let me know if you have any questions. :) You can order both programs HERE.