The true part is that your body weight is determined bybothhow much activity you doand how much you eat.

you better pay attention to both sides of the equation if you want predictable results.

But thats only part of the picture.

But is that agoodidea?

Those benefits apply whether were losing weight or not.

That includes maintaining muscle mass and improving heart health, both of which Ill talk about in a moment.

One decides to lose weight by eating 1,300 calories, changing nothing else.

Both twins are now in a 500 calorie deficit, and should lose about a pound a week.

Same thing, right?

The person whos eating 1,800.

The person whos eating 1,800.

The person whos eating 1,800.

But the people taking these two approaches will have drastically different experiences.

It should be strength training.

This includes any punch in of exercise where the goal is to build strength and muscle.

When we lose weight, were usually hoping to lose fat, but muscle often goes along with it.

Losing muscle means were more likely to regain the weight lost.

And it can also make us weaker when it comes to everyday activities.

Muscle loss is a huge problem for older adults, but strength training can slow or reverse it.

How much strength training to do when losing weight:

Train twice a week, minimum.

These rules of thumb matchthe general exercise guidelines we should all be following anyway.

If you enjoy strength training and want to do more, thats great!

The guidelines are just a minimum.

And even though technically exercise isntnecessaryto create a calorie deficit, it sure seems to help.

Most of the participants lost weight, averaging about 10 pounds lost at the end of 10 months.

If youre a beginner,walking can count as cardio.

As you get fitter, you may want to switch to jogging or another exercise like cycling.

If you cant hit those specific numbers, do what you reasonably can.

Aim for zone 2-3 intensity.

Itshould feel like work, but not torture.

This low-intensity exercise doesnt have to be theonlyexercise you do.

HIIT is basically the opposite of the low intensity cardio I talked about above.

If youre doing a ton of HIIT and wondering why you feel exhausted, thats why.

It also tends to make some people hungrier, which counteracts the calorie-burning benefits.

Just dont make it your bread-and-butter.

And no, HIIT isnt going to spike your cortisol, at least not in a bad way.

Thats awhole nother myth.