TV Doctor Michael Mosley has revealed the top exercise to build muscle and burn calories. If you’re feeling a bit slow after enjoying too many festive treats, starting small with your health kick is the way to go.
Dr Mosley suggests prioritising squats for weight loss and overall health. On his podcast Just One Thing, he and Professor Marie Murphy agreed that squats are one of the best exercises for strength and heart rate increase.
“I was told by a number of people that the squat is probably the single best exercise you can do. It works on the biggest muscles in your body. There is also research that suggests it leads to increased blood flow to the brain,” he said.
The movement is about dropping your hips and bending to a 90-degree angle, then standing up again.
“You are getting your cardiovascular system going because the big muscles that require a lot of oxygen,” said Professor Murphy, who also noted: “So if you employ two of the biggest muscles in your body – your quads and your glutes – you’re going to challenge your cardiovascular system as well as your muscular system – it gets a vote from me too.”
Professor Murphy from Ulster University says keeping muscles strong is “hugely beneficial” for staying healthy and managing weight.
She explained that building muscle helps “boost calorie burning” because “Muscle is really your furnace in the body so it takes fuel, it burns fuel and it uses energy. And so if you have more muscle mass than your metabolism stays higher.”
She added: “So if you have two people same weight but one has more muscle and the other has more fat, then the person just sitting still, not doing anything is burning more calories. So there’s a real benefit if you’re thinking about trying to maintain a healthy bodyweight, or your trying to keep your blood sugar under control, then having well-charged furnaces gives you the benefit of the metabolic boost.”
Professor Murphy suggests “finding a form of exercise you enjoy that you will look forward to and as such, are less likely to quit,” to make the most out of working out.
She believes people who only work out to lose weight won’t get very far – and working out should be for a number of reasons, including weight loss.
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