Steve Tansey MSc, Head of Research and Development, Les Mills UK reveals his top ten Best Exercises to Boost Weight Loss 

What will speed your weight loss along?

What will speed your weight loss along?

  1. Clean and press with a barbell – This works all major muscle groups for massive calorie burn.
  2. Push-press with a barbell – Again, this works all major muscles but reduces the pressure on the biceps and wrists when compared to the clean and press.
  3. Squats – The muscles in the legs burn more calories than the arms; squats also help to strengthen the lower back.
  4. Deadlifts – Strengthen the lower back and hamstrings which can be neglected in most people’s lifestyles.
  5. Dead row – Works the muscles in the back that will help us maintain correct posture in later life.
  6. Squat burpee – Full body exercise that requires the entire body to shift between a standing and a plank position.
  7. Squat jumps – As stated before the muscles in the legs burn more calories than the arms; landing with full bodyweight uses a large number of calories.
  8. Lunges – Essentially a single leg squat, this exercise can focus more on glute development.
  9. Tuck jumps – Explosive work to enable the knees to tuck requires the muscle fibers responsible for explosive work to activate, burning more calories.
  10. Push-up variations – The calorie expenditure depends on strength and variation, but working the chest is still a great way to strip the body of energy and reduce weight.

Bare in mind whilst performing the above exercising you cannot reduce fat stores in a specific area within the body. For example, squats will not reduce the fat around the legs and glutes specifically. Squats will require energy to perform and the brain decides the areas that this energy will come from. To lose subcutaneous fat (fat directly below the skin) in problem areas, it is advisable to attend a session that uses the exercises above (such as Les Mills BODYPUMP™ or LES MILLS GRIT™) to create the largest calorie burn in the smallest amount of time. In addition to the calories burned within the session you will also be burning more calories for up to 2.5 hours after the class due to the after-burn affect (the body’s natural need to recover after exercise).

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