For those of us who love 
to lift weights, cardio training is often an excruciatingly boring endeavor. Whether it is HIIT, steady state, or anything in between, when it is time to jump on the treadmill, stationary bike or elliptical the majority of us iron warriors cringe in disgust. But isn’t it this very type of mundane cardio that allows us to most efficiently burn off body fat and reveal the details of our hard earned muscles underneath? Not necessarily! Utilized correctly, the same BB’s, DB’s and machines we use to induce hypertrophy can also be extremely effective tools for melting fat like butter in a flame! The keys lie in choosing the right exercises, incorporating the proper rep range, and arranging your workouts in a manner that encourages the body to tap into body fat for energy.
The Exercises: When utilizing weights to burn fat it is most beneficial to perform mostly compound lifts, especially when it comes to larger muscle groups like back and quads. These movements will most effectively raise the heart rate, burn calories, increase natural growth hormone production (note: GH is a powerful fat burner), and enhance metabolic rate.
The Rep Range: Since we are focusing on burning body fat you want to keep reps in the medium to medium/high range, or about 10-12 for upper body exercises and 12-20 for the lower half. By doing so you will again burn more calories, push out more lactic acid (which increases GH production), and stimulate the metabolism, while still giving your muscles a challenging enough workout to still foster growth.
The Exercise Arrangement: Most of the time when concentrating our efforts into build pure muscle mass we utilize a “straight sets” approach, with 2-3 minutes rest in between. However, when looking to get “shredded” enough to display that wicked 6-pack and deep separations/cuts through every body part it is far more effective to use specific types of supersets, circuits, and mega-fast paced training.
Below are three examples of the types of weight training workouts you can begin using right now to “rip up” your physique without ever stepping foot on a treadmill, bike or stepper (hallelujah)!
Workout A: The Fast Paced Body Fat Burner
BB Squats 4 x 12-15 reps (60 second rest between sets)
Alternating BB Lunges 3 x 12-15 reps each leg (60 second rest between sets)
Stiff Leg Deadlift 4 x 12-15 reps (60 second rest between sets)
Underhand Grip BB Bent Row 3 x 10-12 (45-60 second rest between sets)
Narrow Grip Bench Press 3 x 10-12 (45 second rest between sets)
Standing Military Press 3 x 10-12 (45-60 second rest between sets)
Close Underhand Grip Pull-up 2 x max reps (45-60 second rest between sets)
Incline Bent Leg Hip Raise 3 x max reps (30 second rest between sets)
Workout B: The Upper/Lower Superset Scorcher
Superset: Hack Squ
ats/Weighted Dips 3 x 12-15/10-12 reps
Superset: Leg Press/WG Bodyweight Pull-up 3 x 12-15/max reps
Superset: Walking DB Lunge/Seated DB Press 2 x 12-15 per leg/10-12 reps
Superset: DB Stiff Leg Deadlift/Standing Alternating DB Curl 2 x 12-15/10-12
Superset: Hanging Straight Leg Raise/Bench Dips 2 x max reps on each
**Rest between supersets should be no longer than 2 minutes
Workout C: The Circuit Incinerator
Deadlift 12-15 reps
Incline BB Press 10-12 reps
Leg Press 12-15 reps
One Arm DB Row 10-12 reps
Smith Alternating Reverse Lunge 12-15 reps per leg
WG BB Upright Row 10-12 reps
Lying Leg Curl 12-15 reps
Upright Torso Dips 10-12 reps
Cable Crunch 12-15
CG Underhand Grip Pull-up max reps
**Move from one exercise to the next as rapidly as possible.
**Do not go to failure on each movement, but perhaps 1-3 reps short.
**If attempting to perform multiple circuits rest about 3-5 minutes in between each by slowly walking around the gym until ready.
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