How To Lose Weight When Already Active

Getting stronger is a beautiful thing. It’s what helps you see more definition and build more metabolism-boosting muscle. But according to new research in Current Biology, it also causes you to burn fewer calories during each workout.

For the study, researchers examined 300 men and women, specifically their levels of physical activity and the number of calories they burned each day. They found that while moderately active people burned about 200 more calories per day than the most sedentary participants, the most physically active people didn’t burn any more calories than those who were only moderately active.

If you're logging miles on the treadmill and hours in cycling class in the hopes of torching more calories, that's seriously sucky news.

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Here's how your body makes up for the major calories you torch at the gym: As you get used to your workouts, you might not burn more calories—even if you're consistently active, says California-based trainer Mike Donavanik, C.S.C.S., “Think about your job. When you first started, there were some learning curves, it took more energy and more time, but you became more efficient, ” he says. Exercise works the same way. Your body adapts to a specific demand. So you naturally become more efficient, and use less energy [a.k.a. calories] to meet that demand.

But that’s no reason to forgo exercise in the name of weight loss or, more importantly, fat loss. After all, you want to lose fat, not muscle. Right? One obesity study of 439 women found that those who ate healthy and exercised lost considerably more body fat than those who stuck with dieting alone.

So how do you make sure every sweat session helps you burn more? Follow these five rules of exercising for weight loss. (If you're ready to add more sweaty variety to your exercise routine, check out

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When it comes to making sure your body never gets too comfy with your workout, you’ve got to cozy up to the FIIT principle. It stands for frequency, intensity, time, and type—the four factors that determine the exact stress you put on your body during a given workout, says Donavanik. Changing up any one of them “surprises” and challenges your body in a new way. Remember, as long as your body is forced to adapt to progressively challenging workouts, it’s going to burn more calories during every workout. It’s when your body gets used to your current workouts that things start to plateau. “Look to change one to two of these variables every four to six weeks and you’ll keep losing weight, ” he says.

“High-intensity interval training is the way to go, ” Donavanik says. In one 2013 study from Human Performance Laboratory at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, people who performed a 20-minute HIITworkout torched 15 calories per minute—about twice as many as they did during long runs. Plus, with HIIT workouts, you benefit from the “after burn” effect, which a steady-state cardio just won’t give you. “So instead of burning 250 calories from your 30-minute session, you can burn up to 40 percent more throughout the next day or so as your body recovers, ” says Donavanik. Follow the study’s lead: Perform all-out effort for 20 seconds, rest for 10 seconds, and repeat until you’ve hit four minutes. Rest one minute, then repeat to complete a total of four rounds.

“If you don’t pay attention to your diet, you can work out every day as hard as you possibly can and not lose a single pound if your calories expended are equal to your calories consumed, ” says Donavanik. What’s more, eating junk can make your workouts feel more difficult, so even if you think you’re pushing yourself to the max, you’re not, he says. And sub-max workouts, as you might have guessed, burn fewer calories. He recommends limiting added sugar and focusing on eating lean protein, healthy fats, and whole carbs from fruits, veggies, and whole grains. 

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More muscle = more calories burned. After all, while a pound of fat burns only two calories per day, a pound of muscle burns six—and takes up a lot less room, he says. That’s why, in a 2015 Harvard School of Public Health study of 10, 500 adults, people who strength trained for 20 minutes a day gained less belly fat over a period of 12 years compared to cardio bunnies.

While everyone thrives on a slightly different pre-and post-workout nutrition plan, research published in Sports Medicine shows that eating carbs before you hit the gym improves your performance during HIIT and endurance workouts alike. And tougher workouts burn more calories—both during and after your workout, Donavanik says.

Found that downing coffee (or any caffeine) an hour before your workout can boost your post-workout caloric burn by 15 percent. After your workout, Donavanik recommends eating a meal that’s about 40 percent carbs, 40 percent protein, and 20 percent fat. The combination will help your muscles recover, get your energy levels up, and have you burning more calories as your body repairs…and, yes, adapts.

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Why Your Weight Goes Up and Down All the Damn Time 19 Ways To Lose Thigh Fat And Tone Your Legs 10 Ways To Lose Weight In Your Face 4 Sneaky Ways Protein Is Making You Gain WeightThe ability to shed weight quickly can be a desirable goal for many individuals. This process, however, may not always be the most beneficial approach to achieving optimal health outcomes. As such, it is essential to consider the potential benefits and drawbacks of a rapid weight loss regime. With so many fitness challenges out there it’s easy to see how people can benefit from short term weight loss – excess weight is a killer – but plenty of coaches and nutritionists will also tell you change isn’t sustainable unless other practices are brought in place to support proper long term weight management. So which is the right approach?

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Research has suggested that shedding excess weight can have numerous positive impacts on an individual’s overall health. For instance, studies indicate that rapid weight loss could improve cardiovascular function and reduce hypertension risk by reducing fat deposition in the arteries. Similarly, research suggests that rapid weight loss could also help lower cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of certain types of cancer. Additionally, short-term effects of a fast-paced weight reduction regime may include increased energy levels as well as improved mood and mental clarity due to the release of endorphins associated with physical activity. Depending on the amount of weight lost, it can also alleviate pressure on hips, knees, ankles, feet and the back and improve joint function.

Conversely, there are also some risks associated with dropping weight quickly that should be taken into consideration when deciding on an appropriate course of action. Unfortunately severe caloric restriction can cause the body to perform extreme adaptations in an attempt to preserve energy and stay alive. This means things like hormone production and menstrual cycles can tank. Many women have fallen victim to amenorrhea and been unable to recover, needing the assistance of endocrinologists and IVF to fall pregnant later in life. Those who were able to recover often required the assistance of a knowledgeable coach and a long period of time reverse dieting in an attempt to recover their metabolic rate and increase body fat levels to a level their body was comfortable with.

There are also other concerns, for example, sudden changes in dietary habits may result in nutrient deficiencies or dehydration if proper care is not taken to ensure adequate nutrition and hydration levels are maintained throughout the process. Moreover, extreme caloric restriction can cause fatigue or malnutrition and may even lead to serious health complications if continued over longer periods without proper medical supervision. Therefore, it is essential to carefully weigh up the potential risks versus rewards before embarking on any form of rapid weight loss program and undertake it with the proper assistance.

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Slowing down the process of losing weight is often seen as a more sustainable approach, providing many benefits. Seemingly sluggish steps towards shedding pounds can be associated with several positives. Firstly, it allows for more time to transition into healthier habits which are easier to maintain over the long-term. Secondly, it offers one the opportunity to become accustomed to the changes in diet and physical activity before pushing their body further.

Diet history matters a lot here. Those who have struggled with eating disorders in the past will benefit from a more measured approach to weight loss than the “average person” as many of these people will have done damage to their body that takes time to repair. Metabolic damage occurs to people in both a weight gain and loss environment. Someone who is obese may develop signaling issues with their ghrelin/leptin response whereas