"I just want to tone up and lose some fat."

Over my eight years of being a personal trainer, I have heard that line more times than I can count.

Some people are starting from scratch, while others have tried this routine or that diet. Regardless of the methods they had or had not tried, they all had one thing in common, the ability to achieve the body they wanted if they worked out the right way for themselves.

Each body is different and therefore, needs its own way of being "taught" on how to lose body fat and gain muscle effectively and efficiently. Here is some helpful information on finding out what's best for you!

A common misconception is that doing just cardiovascular exercise (biking, running, the elliptical, etc.) will make you lose body fat. This is true, but only to a certain degree. You see, your body is a pretty intelligent machine that constantly adapts and changes to whatever you may throw at it. Whether the change is climate, time zone or workout routine, it will level itself off to where it becomes most effective if you don't vary the outside factors.

For instance, when you first start your routine you will notice differences. Weight will come off, muscles will become more noticeable and your energy level will go up. However, with your body being as smart as it is it will slowly adjust internally to make it easier for you. At the six to 12 month range your body actually begins to level out, or "plateau" in gym slang, because it becomes more efficient. It can actually become so efficient at burning your body's fuel for energy it might actually lower your metabolism. Now don't panic on me here and think that all hope is lost. This is easily avoidable with the proper knowledge or guidance, so relax and read on.

Keeping your body a lean, mean, fat fighting machine just takes a little know-how and hard work - and resistance training. Resistance training could be working out with weights, weight machines, resistance bands or even body weight exercises (pushups, squats, etc.).

I know a lot of people looking to just lose weight are adverse to using resistance exercise for fear of gaining weight or "bulking up." To the worry warts out there - relax!

The way your muscles respond is by the way you train them, not by the weight you use. Also, from resistance training you will get a stronger core, improve your balance, greater bone density, more structurally sound joints and, most importantly, a greater ability to burn calories. To be quite honest, whenever you say, "I would like to lose some weight" you mean body fat.

I don't want to go as far as saying weight is irrelevant, but it is your body composition (lean muscle to body fat ratio) that is important. I have seen people gain weight in the beginning of a program but lose inches as well. By adding some sort of resistance training to your cardio routine your body won't be able to plateau because of the constant change in the methods of your exercise routine. This way, you'll be able to continue on the workout routine you can become comfortable with and keep consistently losing body fat. Who doesn't like that?

Whether it is going out and being active with the kids, preparing to do your first triathlon, or simply shedding those few extra pounds, combining cardio and resistance training is the way to go. The key is finding out how much resistance training and cardio you should do to get the most out of your routine. Life happens so vary the length and amount of days you do each type of exercise until you find out what works best for you.

If you find your routine isn't working as well as you would like or it starts to become a little boring, then contact an educated fitness professional to give you a boost. Whatever you choose to do have fun doing it. If it isn't fun, you aren't doing it.

Now go out there and "lose some weight."

Erik Hroncich is a professional personal trainer in Ballard and my be reached at 782.1505 or erik@edgepersonaltraining.net