The best exercises for losing weight are aerobic ones, like brisk walking, running, jumping rope, swimming, or cycling. In a single session, these can raise your heart rate and burn a lot of calories.
However, it is also crucial to combine weight training exercises, a balanced diet, and aerobic exercises in order to effectively lose weight and sustain results. Muscular hypertrophy, which is facilitated by weight training, raises your resting metabolic rate.
Exercise recommendations can vary based on each person’s goals and medical history, so it is best to follow a physiotherapist’s or personal trainer’s advice when doing weight loss exercises. A family physician or cardiologist should be consulted before beginning any new exercise program in order to evaluate your overall health.
List of weight loss exercises
The best exercises to lose weight fast include:
1. Weight training
When paired with aerobic exercise, weight training, a strength and resistance workout, can optimise fat loss and raise resting calorie expenditure. Weight loss may be accelerated by this combination.
Since muscles require more energy than fat cells, increasing muscle mass can aid in weight loss by increasing metabolism.
However, maintaining a healthy, balanced diet and being regular and consistent are crucial for weight loss.
Calorie expenditure: A weight training session can burn anywhere from 300 to 500 calories per hour, depending on a number of variables, including intensity, training style, and personal characteristics like height, weight, genetics, and health.
Gains in muscle mass encourage greater energy expenditure up to 48 hours after exercise, even when at rest, which can increase the number of calories burned. Workouts should be moderate to intense, consistent, and linked to a healthy diet in order to reap this benefit.
2. Brisk walk
Walking quickly is an aerobic activity that strengthens the heart. It aids in weight loss by burning calories and enhancing physical conditioning.
You can perform this kind of exercise at home, on a treadmill at the gym, or outdoors. Walking or other moderate physical activity should be done on a weekly basis for 150 to 300 minutes. This is equivalent to five times a week for 30 to 60 minutes.
Calorie expenditure: A brisk walk can burn around 400 to 500 calories in 1 hour.
3. HIIT training
HIIT training, also known as high-intensity interval training, is defined by a series of high-intensity exercises meant to increase metabolism and burn fat.
Since these exercises are performed vigorously to raise the heart rate considerably, they are better suited for people who regularly participate in physical activity. Nonetheless, beginner-friendly HIIT workouts can be created with simpler sets of exercises.
Calorie expenditure: 400 calories can be burned in an hour during HIIT training. However, HIIT training needs to be supervised by a personal trainer in order to reach this calorie target and for the body to continue burning calories after exercise. Maintaining a high level of intensity throughout the entire workout is something that a trainer can guarantee.
3. CrossFit
In addition to being very demanding, CrossFit training calls for increased cardiorespiratory capacity and ideal joint mobility. Training is best suited for individuals who are already physically active because it is done in a circuit with minimal rest periods in between high-intensity exercises.
Various weights, ropes, and tires are used in this kind of training, which can take place indoors or outdoors.
Calorie expenditure: An hour of CrossFit can burn up to 700 calories. It’s crucial to have a personal trainer lead your training to increase calorie burning, support weight loss, and increase muscle mass, particularly if you’re new to the sport, sedentary, or have any joint restrictions.
4. Dancing
Dance classes are a fun, calorie-burning, weight-loss method to enhance cardiorespiratory capacity, tone and strengthen muscles, and increase flexibility.
Hip-hop, ballroom dancing, and Zumba are a few types of dance classes.
Calorie expenditure: An hour-long dance class can burn between 500 and 800 calories, depending on the style. However, a high level of intensity is required to burn this many calories.
5. Muay Thai
Because it works multiple muscle groups and demands physical stamina, muay thai is an extremely demanding and comprehensive physical activity.
Your cardiorespiratory capacity, physical conditioning, muscle strength, and endurance can all be enhanced by muay thai training. It can result in weight loss, calorie burning, and even an increase in self-esteem.
Calorie expenditure: With each workout, you can burn about 700 calories. The intensity of the training and the individual’s level of physical fitness, however, affect how many calories they contain. Intense training combined with a high level of physical fitness can cause some people to burn up to 1500 calories per workout.
6. Spinning
In the gym, spinning classes are conducted on an exercise bike with varying intensities.
In addition to burning calories and encouraging weight loss, these classes help build muscle and increase cardiorespiratory endurance.
Calorie expenditure: Between 600 and 800 calories can be burned in an hour. When taking a spinning class, make sure to heed the advice and recommendations of your instructor to increase caloric expenditure.
7. Cycling
Similar to spinning, cycling is an aerobic activity that raises heart rate and burns calories, both of which can aid in weight loss.
This kind of workout is performed outside on a bicycle with gears that ideally don’t require a battery. You should pedal at different speeds and intensities to maximise weight loss.
Calorie expenditure: Cycling can burn around 500 calories in 1 hour.
8. Swimming
Swimming can strengthen muscles, increase physical conditioning, and encourage fat burning, making it a complete workout. Given that swimming is regarded as a low-impact activity that protects bones and joints, it is an excellent first choice for people who are new to an exercise regimen or lead sedentary lives.
When weight loss is the goal, you should keep up a steady and vigorous pace. You can use a forward stroke to swim the entire length of the pool and a backstroke to get back to where you started.
Calorie expenditure: As long as the swimmer keeps up the pace and stays moving, swimming can burn up to 400 calories.
9. Water aerobics
Additionally, water aerobics are excellent for increasing cardiorespiratory capacity and weight loss. Additionally, it is regarded as a low-impact workout that spares the joints.
Anyone just starting out in physical activity can do this exercise, as can people who are overweight or have joint issues that make it difficult for them to do other types of exercise.
Calorie expenditure: Up to 500 calories can be burned in an hour, but you must be moving at a high intensity all the time.
10. Running
Running, which can be done outside or in a gym, is a great way to increase fat burning and calorie expenditure.
To set new personal records that align with your objectives, you can begin more slowly and pick up the pace each week.
Running might not be the greatest way to burn calories at first for people who are not accustomed to running or who are just beginning to engage in physical activity. It is ideal to begin with brisk walking and then progressively add running bursts.
Caloric expenditure: Running can burn 600–700 calories per hour, but you should keep up a good pace and take few breaks. You should be unable to carry on a conversation while running, and the intensity should be high.
11. Body pump
Because they use steps and weights, body pump classes are a great way to burn fat. These exercises target the major muscle groups and can help build endurance and muscle strength.
Because the exercises require more physical conditioning, body pump also increases cardiorespiratory capacity.
Calorie expenditure: Up to 500 calories can be burned in an hour, but you must follow the instructor’s recommended pace and level of intensity.
12. Step class
Step classes are an excellent aerobic exercise choice for weight loss and belly fat reduction because they are conducted on a small, elevated platform.
This exercise improves your strength, balance, resistance, coordination, and cardiorespiratory system. It is an excellent method for burning calories and encouraging weight loss.
Calorie expenditure: 1 hour of step class can burn 400 to 600 calories.
13. Jumping rope
Because it raises your heart rate and increases fat burning, jumping rope is a great weight loss exercise.
Because it is regarded as a high-impact activity, people who are obese or have a history of bone or joint issues should avoid this exercise.
Calorie expenditure: It is possible to burn around 650 calories in 1 hour of exercise.
14. Boxing
Because boxing works the cardiovascular system, it is an exercise that helps burn a lot of calories. It encourages muscle growth and fat burning.
Calorie expenditure: Depending on how hard the exercises are, a one-hour class can burn anywhere from 600 to 1000 calories.
15. Functional training
Because it works multiple muscle groups simultaneously, functional training is an excellent choice for weight loss exercises. It can increase stamina, encourage muscle growth, and speed up metabolism and calorie burning.
High-intensity functional training should be carried out under a personal trainer’s supervision.
Calorie expenditure: In a 1-hour session, you can burn up to 500 calories.
No matter what kind of exercise you do to reduce weight, it’s critical to stay properly hydrated by sipping water as you work out.
How to start?
You should have a physical examination to determine your weight, body composition, and blood pressure before beginning any kind of physical activity.
Determine your health objectives, such as weight loss, toning, or hypertrophy, so that the personal trainer can choose the exercise that will work best for you.
Exercise for weight loss usually starts with aerobic activities like cycling or using a treadmill, which can also include strength training. The exercises and intensity can increase as your strength and endurance increase, putting more strain on your heart and muscles.
Ideally, you should work out five times a week for at least half an hour each day, with moderate to intense intensity.
To ensure that all exercise is done safely, it’s also crucial to see a cardiologist before beginning any kind of physical activity so they can evaluate your cardiovascular system and general health.
Which exercise makes you lose weight the fastest?
You must exercise for an hour while keeping your heart rate within your ideal range, which is between 60% and 75% of your maximum heart rate, in order to burn the required number of calories.
However, your age, level of physical fitness, and exercise intensity will all affect this capacity. While exercising below these thresholds won’t help you lose weight, it can improve your cardiorespiratory capacity and other health outcomes.
Exercises to lose weight at home
Muscle-strengthening and aerobic exercises can also be done at home.
You can buy basic equipment like bands and dumbbells, take online courses, or go for a daily brisk walk or run outside.