Best exercise for fat loss in the obese?

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Bettyanne77
Bettyanne77 Posts: 42
in Fitness and Exercise
I am at the start of my weight loss currently 233 and looking to get down to 147lbs. I would like to know what the best cardio type exercise is for fat loss. I do understand that strength training is important and I intend to do at least 2 sessions of weights a week to begin with wokring my way up (another thread mentioned "New Rules of Lifting for women which I will get). However what is the best cardio I hear conflicting arguments one side seems to suggest doing long periods of slow cardio in the Fat Burning zone of your HR i.e. walking for 60 mins, this type of cardio burns the most calories from fat while you work out. The other side advocates HIIT so 30 minutes of alternating between maximum exersion and a more managable pace, this type of exercise burns energy stored in the muscles as well as some fat but supposedly raises your metabolism so that you continue to burn more calories after you have finished your work out, HIIT also is better for improving cardiovascular fitness.

I believe that most people today advise HIIT as the accepted gold standard cardio but is this still the same when you are in the obese catagory with 80lbs + to lose? I'm doing a lot of reading at the moment and what I really want to be able to do is to lose fat while building muscle at the same time as this will give me a better result when I reach my goal weight. If I do HIIT (especially if I am cutting a lot of calories) then will I also be losing muscle?

To stick to pure fat loss (as much as possible) is it better for me to work out using the long slow fat burning cardio (apparently even more effective if done in a fasted state in the morning) and regular weight training at least initially? I can totally see the benefits of HIIT for improving fitness and in weight managment but for someone who is pretty much a fatty blob at the moment who needs to hold on to all the muscle I can and then get more wouldn't it be counter productive at least in the early stages?

This is just what makes most sense to me from what I have read but I'd love to hear what others have to say, especially those with experiance of the different types of cardio?

As an aside I actually think that an exercise programme for obese people losing weight is missing from the market. Most programmes I see in books and magazines don't seem to be aimed at obese people at all they are too hard for someone who is 80lbs + over weight. I have tried them but mostly my body is too fat to be able to peform them well if at all. It is frustrating and I've given up. In the past when I have lost weight I lost fat though tons of cardio and starving myself (bad I know and it never lasted) and then done more difficult exercise like weights, HIIT etc when I was lighter. I'd really love to see a programme which took the obese persons limitations into account but still challeneged them so that you built up over time as you lost weight all the time improving your shape and building muscle.
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Replies

  • qtgonewild
    qtgonewild Posts: 1,930 Member
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    all i can say is walking is awesome when you are obese. basically any exercise that you will ACTUALLY do will be your best bet.
  • RLDeShazo
    RLDeShazo Posts: 356 Member
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    I have nothing to go on but my opinion, but I wouldn't jump straight into the HIIT unless you are already used to working at a pretty high cardio level.

    I would try several different types of cardio, and find the one you enjoy the most. I myself like to do a variety of different cardio machines. The more you enjoy it, the less likely you are to get bored or burned out.
  • RaspberryKeytoneBoondoggle
    RaspberryKeytoneBoondoggle Posts: 1,349 Member
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    The best exercise for you to do is what you like to do and can do. I would not worry about HITT causing muscle loss, especially if you intend to lift. Success in reaching your goal will come from eating at a calorie deficit, exercising how you like to, keeping it as SIMPLE as possible, faith in the principle of calorie deficit = weight loss, and patience
  • loriemn
    loriemn Posts: 292 Member
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    try everything you can think of,,find what you like to do,and just start doing!!! everything else will build from that point.
  • BlueBombers
    BlueBombers Posts: 4,065 Member
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    Walking
  • shrewd1983
    shrewd1983 Posts: 23
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    It seems like you are a little lost, you should definitely do more research, a good place to start for a newbie such as yourself: http://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/wiki/faq

    One thing you will want to do before you start an exercise program is check with your doctor to see if you are in good health before you start!

    Good luck.
  • Bettyanne77
    Bettyanne77 Posts: 42
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    I would ideally like to lose 2lbs a week (on average), my eating plan gives me 1200 calories but I intend to work out enough to burn at least 600 cals a day (also includes increasing my daily activity in general) and then eat those calories back as 1200 is too low for me, 1800 is managable food wise in fact I can't even see how it is possible for people to get really good quality nutrition eating only 1200 a day. That said I understand that as I lose I will need to readjust my diet and exercise to keep the same deficit and willhave to drop some food calories to get down to my goal weight.
  • SairahRose
    SairahRose Posts: 412 Member
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    The best exercise is one you love doing, especially if you have all those plans in place too.
    You sound like you've done loads of research already, and your approach is brilliant!
    Yeah, my answer isn't particularly helpful, but I just wanted to wish you luck on your journey *hugs*
  • PDisbennet1
    PDisbennet1 Posts: 3 Member
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    I don't know what the best exercise is for fat loss but I do know what I can do. You and I are the same weight. I am 45 and have arthritis but I have learned (from trying) that I can do a lot more than I thought I could. For example: swimming, bikie riding, walking my dogs, volleyball, and most surprisingly, hiking. I live in Phoenix and have learned that I can hike Thunderbird Mountain in about 2 hrs. That's a 4 mi. hike. I like what the other post said about whatever exercise you will actually DO. Honestly, for me, it has been more of a mind over matter. The more I do the better I feel, including the arthritis. It hardly troubles me at all anymore and when I started I could barely climb stairs.
  • usmcmp
    usmcmp Posts: 21,220 Member
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    Paying attention to diet is best for fat loss. Cardio is just a bonus. Do whatever you enjoy and will stick to.
  • tibby531
    tibby531 Posts: 717 Member
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    I started with walking. nice and slow, at first, then with more intent and speed. then I was ready for the elliptical machine (low impact, but full body). but, like others are saying, whatever you feel comfortable doing and enjoy is the ABSOLUTE best work. :)
  • pain_is_weakness
    pain_is_weakness Posts: 798 Member
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    walking is nice, I prefer bike riding burns a lot more calories in a less amount of time, I still walk and mix it up but most days just don't have time to burn a ton so I hop on the bike, dancing is fun, running . . .eek not there yet
  • tworthen79
    tworthen79 Posts: 1,173 Member
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    I walked. One lap, lead to two, so on and so on. I lost my first 35lbs just by walking 3-5 days a week.
  • jlederman71
    jlederman71 Posts: 47 Member
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    I would suggest getting a heart rate monitor to track your calories. That way you have a better idea of how many calories you are burning and can eat back. Using MFP calories for exercise can be misleading.. Sometimes I went way over what they gave me, other times way under.. for cardio, it was the best investment I have made.
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,326 Member
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    newbies of any size shouldnt be doing HIIT.

    focus on first doing something that you can keep up for 30-60 minutes several days a week. get into the habit of exercise

    then once you have the habit and a baseline of fitness to build upon (ie being able to walk a certain distance) then start worrying about more details of things like interval training.

    if you have issues with joints, then maybe try swimming, the exercise bike, the elliptical or the rowing machine a go.

    as for strength training, baseline levels that you might want to be able to start with are correctly performing a squat, bench pressing, bent rows and shoulder press. in case you can't yet do the body weight versions of those yet, maybe start off with machines like the leg press, the chest press and the shoudler press
  • DeadliftAddict
    DeadliftAddict Posts: 746 Member
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    Whatever you can do consistantly without injuring yourself. Myself personally don't believe in "best" when it comes to the masses. What works for one may not work for the other. You will need to find what is "best" for you. Meaning what will be most enjoyable and you will continue to do over a long period of time. I'm not sure what you can do being 80 pounds over weight. I'm not one to tell a person what they can't do. You may want to stick to the slow steady stuff till you get a little bit more in shape to start doing some HIIT stuff.
  • Bettyanne77
    Bettyanne77 Posts: 42
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    Thank you all for your replies! I do have a Polar HRM which I have just recently reset so that it should be accurate. I am able to do some cardio already such as walking on the treadmill briskly at an incline, do the eliptical machine (which is easiest for me) and the stationary bike (which I like least because its pretty uncomfortable for my fat bottom). I can do all these for 60 minutes not easily but I'm not dying at the end either. I can't really run for more than a minute or so at a time, that is even if your could call it running, it's more of a lumbering jog. I really cannot do things like intense aerobics, body combat or circuits because my own body weight is just too much I'm exhuasted in minutes. I've seen some people who are big like me do things like the beach body insanity programme and be transformed in 3 months but while that does appeal I think I would need to be at the half way point before I tried something like that.

    I just really wanted to know if you lose more fat over all if from the off set you do the HIIT or the long slow cardio method? I guess what people are saying is that in the beginning for someone like me at my weight it doesn't really matter. I do tend to over think things a bit but really I have been struggling to lose weight for years now and have really tried in the past to lose by cutting calories and really going to the gym a lot and getting the weight off was like getting blood from a stone. Nothing is more disheartening than feeling like you are wasting your time. I just really want to see consistant results this time to keep me motivated.
  • Elleinnz
    Elleinnz Posts: 1,661 Member
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    The best exercise is the one you actually DO consistently - so if walking is something you will do - walk.
    If you have access to a treadmil, elliptical - and you will do the exercise - go for it...

    My advise - dont overthink the "what will burn the most fat" initially...just get moving - and then increase both effort and duration gradually.

    Get a routine going - and be consistent..... and then figure out how to "tweak" and optimise fat burning....

    HIIIT will give you some great benefits - but some people really struggle initially to really push themselves hard enough - you really need to feel as if you are going to die ;-)
  • Bon48801
    Bon48801 Posts: 6
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    Walking.......I lost 60 pounds once by walking. When I first started I couldn't make it around the block, before i knew it, I was up to 45 minutes. It worked for me;-))
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
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    The best "exercise" for fat loss is eating at a caloric deficit over time.

    While doing that, I'd strongly recommend any kind of strength training/resistance exercise that you enjoy doing a few times a week. If you still have the time and energy, do any kind of cardio exercise that you enjoy doing also.

    However, the only *essential* requirement for fat loss is the caloric deficit thing.

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