burn baby burn
Running in, she burst into the gym. ‘Simone! What should I do? I have to try on my dress tomorrow, should I spend an hour lifting weights or an hour spinning with you?’ And off she went, into the changing room. A glimpse from my diary during the time I was still in front of the group. Yes really, it happened. Of course, I made it clear to her that those 24 hours wouldn't mean much more for her. It turned into an hour of strength training.
Of course, there are sports that burn more calories than other workouts. If you need to fit into a dress in three weeks (I'm mentioning a Fashion Week in London, Elkie?); here’s a list of the most effective workouts. But make sure to steer clear of the McDonald's bikes, okay?
1. Kickboxing
The best thing after a day at work? Hitting that punching bag. But besides the fact that you can really vent your frustration, you burn a decent amount of calories. Kickboxing is the perfect full body workout: your abs and glutes are engaged because you have to be ready to defend yourself (core stability), and your arms, shoulders, and back deliver those powerful punches. An average of 700-900 calories are burned during a session of hitting. That's a hefty pizza with a good amount of cheese...
2. Spinning (or of course an hour of ROCYCLE)
The perfect workout for your endurance. During an hour on the bike, you burn an average of about 500 calories. Besides being the perfect cardio workout, your legs and glutes also get a good workout.
3. Strength round
If you want to lose a few pounds as quickly as possible, you don't immediately think of strength training. Yet this is actually a very effective way to lose weight. Your muscle mass requires up to ten times more energy to maintain itself than your fat mass. When you have developed muscles, a large part of the energy – which you get from food – goes to your muscle mass. Muscle mass also increases your metabolism. The best part? After the workout, you continue to burn calories for several hours while just lying on the couch. Hooray.
4. High 45
Want to go all out in less than an hour? I did it and I survived. During a High 45 training, you combine strength with cardio, which is a match made in heaven. Your breaks can hardly be called breaks, as they last no longer than twenty seconds. In that time, you can barely catch your breath three times. If you really push yourself, you can easily burn 900 to 1000 calories per session. And just like with your hour of strength training, you burn about a hundred calories after the workout. It's tough, but it's worth it!
5. Rowing
Rowing is the perfect full body workout: no less than nine muscle groups are engaged on this machine. Your glutes, hamstrings, back, and arm muscles. And especially with a tabata (a little interval), you set your muscles on fire.
6. Jump rope
If you click on any random US workout, there's a very good chance that a jumping angel will fly by. If you jump vigorously, you burn about 700 calories in an hour. And you can do it anywhere. Come on, drop that rope in your bag.
7. Bootcamp
By combining running with various functional strength exercises like squats, lunges, and push-ups, bootcamp is a workout that doesn't get boring quickly. And the combination of cardio and strength (and short breaks) makes your heart rate shoot up in no time (and it will stay high). With an hour of racing outdoors, you burn an average of about 750 calories per hour. Blink twice and your hour of jumping is over, especially if you have a workout buddy with you.
