How to Burn More Calories in the Weight Room

When the scale seems “stuck” despite doing regular aerobic exercise, it might be time to grab some barbells in the weight room.  What is the best routine to maximize the calorie burn?  That is what researchers at the University of Southern Maine decided to find out.  They compared the energy cost of performing a bench press exercise 2 ways: muscular endurance vs. strength routine.  Single-set bench press lifts of approximately 37%, 46%, and 56% (endurance-type) and 70%, 80%, and 90% (strength-type exercise) of 1 repetition maximum were performed.  Because a higher volume of reps could be done at the lowest weight (until failure), the best calorie burn was at 37% of maximum.  Subjects could perform 36 reps at the lowest weight and burned almost twice as many calories compared to the strength-type exercise routine, where only 8 reps or less could be completed.  Bottom line: for the most “burn”, go light and lift long.

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