Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Does More Sweat Mean More Fat Burn?



When we exercise intensely, we usually sweat intensely. Sweat is a result of the body trying to cool its core temperature down due to heating. Since our body temperatures rise during exercise, you’ll find that that is one of the times that you sweat a lot. But it isn’t the only instance, right? When the weather is warm, or when you are sick, you also sweat a lot. So when people say sweating means you are burning fat, could that be true?

Do you have friends that do hot yoga or go to saunas because they feel like they are losing more weight when they do these activities? Well, the truth is that sweat is loss of water, and so it really has nothing to do with fat. Granted, you may weigh a little less after sweating profusely, but it is water weight and not fat. Water weight can always be replaced by drinking tons of water.

But does this mean you should not do hot yoga or work out intensely? Hell no! Hot yoga burns calories because of the pace and the intensity of the poses, not because it is hot. The same goes for any cardiovascular exercise. You burn calories because of the intensity of the activity; sweating just shows you how hard your body is working. So if you were thinking of going to the sauna to burn calories, sorry to burst your bubble. Sedentary action does not expend more energy than simply sitting down at your desk.

So what should you be doing? Focus on the activity, and not the sweating. You will sweat when you work hard. But the sweat is not an accurate reflection of the calories you are burning.

Cheers Eights & Weights!

Photo credit: Clutchmagonline.com

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