Best Workouts for Weight Loss: What should you choose Aerobic or Anaerobic exercises?

Best Workouts for Weight Loss: What should you choose Aerobic or Anaerobic exercises?

The exercises for weight loss workouts are broadly classified into two groups: aerobic exercises and anaerobic exercises. However, there has always been a little dilemma in people who want to lose weight fast. Which are the best workouts for weight loss? Aerobic workouts or anaerobic workouts?

One of the most popular goals that many people have when they start exercising is to lose weight or acquire a certain body fat percentage. This is why there are many workouts for weight loss programs in gyms and fitness centers. And more often than not, these programs are the most popular ones in those gyms and fitness centers. Gyms and fitness centers also offer both aerobic and anaerobic workouts for members to choose from.

This blog will see the pros and cons of both aerobic and anaerobic workouts and see which type of workouts work best for weight loss. Keep reading to find out more.

What are Aerobic and Anaerobic workouts?

Aerobic workouts are the ones that use oxygen to release the energy required to perform those workouts. Whereas, anaerobic workouts do not use oxygen for the completion of the workout.

The exercises that aerobic workouts include are running, walking, jogging, swimming, riding a bicycle, etc. On the other hand, anaerobic exercises include weightlifting, HIIT, sprinting, resistance training, bodyweight training, etc.

Both aerobic and anaerobic workouts can be done with or without external equipment. However, it is recommended to work out under the supervision of a personal trainer to ensure that you do not get injured or wounded while exercising.

With that said, let us first take a look at the advantages and disadvantages of Aerobic exercises followed by the anaerobic exercises to find out which are the best workouts for weight loss.

Advantages of Aerobic exercises

Aerobic exercises need oxygen to release the energy from the fat stored in your body. It burns off the fat with the help of oxygen and releases energy to help you perform better in your regular workout.

In a gym, you will find a treadmill, rowing machine, and similar other equipment that can help you with aerobic exercising if you are more comfortable doing them indoors. However, it is recommended to perform aerobic activities outdoors where the supply of oxygen is not obstructed.

Here are some of the advantages of doing aerobic workouts

-    It improves your muscle endurance.

-    It strengthens your respiratory system.

-    It is a great workout for beginners.

-    It improves your cardiovascular system.

-    It also decreases the risk of diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, blood pressure, etc.

-    It also helps you to keep your bone density maintained.

These advantages make aerobic workouts seem like a good choice for weight loss. But wait, we are yet to discuss the disadvantages as well.

Disadvantages of Aerobic exercises

Some of the disadvantages of doing aerobic exercises include:

-    Aerobic exercises are often high impact which means that if you keep doing them for a prolonged time, you may risk getting injured.

-    These workouts use slow-twitch muscles meaning that you will need more exercise to lose weight faster.

-    It has low to no impact on muscle building so, if you are looking to build muscles while you lose weight, you will have to add another workout in your schedule that works on building muscles.

-    It often works on only certain body parts at a time. For example, running or walking would only target your legs while other body parts remain unchanged.

Advantages of Anaerobic exercises

Anaerobic exercises are the ones that do not require oxygen to burn off the fat in your body. That is why the name anaerobic. Anaerobic exercises are often high-intensity exercises that can help you build muscles while also losing weight.

The external weights like kettlebells, barbells, and other gym equipment like weight benches, etc. can be used to perform anaerobic exercises. If you are working out at home without equipment, you can do bodyweight training to get similar benefits to resistance training.

The advantages of anaerobic exercises include:

-    It helps in building and toning muscles.

-    It increases muscle strength.

-    It boosts your metabolism.

-    Improves your lactate threshold.

-    It helps in protecting joints and improves bone density.

-    It also keeps your energy levels up.

-    It stimulates excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) to repair the muscle wear and tear hence burning off calories even after you have stopped exercising.

-    It burns off significantly more calories in the same amount of time as aerobic exercises.

Unlike aerobic exercises, anaerobic exercises do not need oxygen to break down your fat reserves and burn off calories. Anaerobic exercises like resistance training and HIIT help you to get muscles by repairing the wear and tear in them and building upon them by burning off the stored calories in your body.

Does that make anaerobic exercises a part of the best workouts for weight loss? Let us check out the disadvantages of anaerobic exercises before coming to a conclusion.

Disadvantages of Anaerobic exercises

At a glance, anaerobic exercises seem to be the best for weight loss, but it too has its drawbacks. Following are the disadvantages of anaerobic exercises.

-    Lack of oxygen leads to the release of lactic acid from muscles that make you sore faster.

-    Prolonged exercising may result in muscle failure.

-    Not a workout for beginners.

-    Performing certain anaerobic exercises such as HIIT with proper technique may result in injury.

So, now that you know the advantages and disadvantages of aerobic and anaerobic exercises, which type of workout would you prefer for weight loss? Let us know in the comments below.

Best workouts for weight loss

The correct way recommended by the experts is to start with aerobic exercises if you are a newbie to exercising. Once you have reached the aerobic level, you can slowly enter into anaerobic for muscle building and strengthening.

That is how you can make sure that your body is ready for high-intensity anaerobic exercises. While it may take time to lose weight with aerobic exercising, you can increase your muscle endurance with it. Later on, you can shift to anaerobic exercising to lose and maintain weight better.

Hence, the best workouts for weight loss are those that include both aerobic and anaerobic exercises.

FAQs

Can I lose weight by doing aerobics?

Yes, cardiovascular activities are a great way to decrease weight with low-intensity exercises. However, if you want to make sure that you lose weight faster, then choosing high-intensity anaerobic exercises is a better option.

Can I lose weight with aerobics at home?

Aerobic exercises include swimming, rowing, running, jogging, walking, etc. These exercises can be done outdoors to get the max benefits of the oxygen naturally available in the open.

Which burns more calories aerobic or anaerobic exercises?

In any given time frame, anaerobic exercises burn more calories as compared to aerobic exercises.

Final words

Based on your experience with exercising, you can choose whether you want to do aerobic exercises or anaerobic exercises. For beginners, aerobic workouts are the best for weight loss as they are low-intensity.

However, it is important to have an experienced person supervise your workout so that you don’t risk getting injured. If you do not have anyone experienced around you, then you can join a gym near you.

Tell us which are the best workouts for weight loss according to you? Share your thoughts in the comments below.