Exercises to lose weight

One doesn’t need to buy DVDs through infomercials or online stores in order to lose weight and gain/regain physical fitness. There are many celebrities and others touting their ‘revolutionary’ methods of weigh loss, but one can lose weight efficiently and, more importantly, for free, by pursuing one’s own approach to weight loss. You don’t necessarily need to pay for gym use either, so here are some exercises you can do at home that should help you to lose weight effectively and cheaply, using only your own body weight.

Exercises

First of all, expect some initial muscle discomfort after beginning these exercises. This discomfort may be a result of overexerting oneself with these exercises. Body weight workouts can be very effective, so try not to push yourself too hard in the first few weeks. Any pain felt is usually a normal result of lactic acid gathering in the muscles. One way to combat this pain is to run - this will help you get rid of the lactic acid.

Deep leg squats are an excellent natural workout. To perform this exercise, first of all ensure that you keep your backbone arched slightly backwards. Do this by thrusting out the upper body. The squat itself is basically a deep leg bend. Flex down at the legs and keep the backbone placed properly by keeping the butt thrust slightly outward. In order to maintain balance, hold out your hands in front of you.

Try to perform this exercise reasonably rapidly as this will increase the efficiency of the workout. Look to do a minimum of 50 squats in quick succession. Keep track of your breathing whilst exercising - breathe in through the nose and out through the mouth. Ideally, try to do sixty squats within two minutes.

Two other methods of exercising are chin-ups or pull-ups. These exercises are particularly relevant to the upper body as they work this area very hard. Mainly, with these exercises, you will be working on the ‘lat’ muscles (latissimus dorsi) as well as the biceps, forearms and abdomen. To perform these exercises, find a bar that will comfortably support your weight and, simply, see how many you can do.

Other Methods

Other forms of exercise that can give you a good workout include chair dips, pushups and jogging. Chair dips are easy to perform and work with the arms and chest. Find two chairs (with backs), place them together at a distance appropriate to your reach and place your hands on each one of the chair backs. Then, pull up your feet before letting your body dip. The arms should be bent at the elbows and should be the only support the body receives. Push up and dip once more, and repeat these steps a set amount of times.

Push-ups are another great way to exercise. This exercise deals mainly with the pectoral muscles as well as the triceps and abdominals. Initially, look to do twenty pushups in a row.

Jogging and walking are great ways to lose weight. Move at a pace that will raise your pulse rate whilst remaining at a proper heart rate if possible. When you get tired or breathless, slow the pace until recovered.