Exercise Tips on Losing Weight With Expert PJ Striet

PJ Striet

About the Expert

PJ Striet is a personal trainer and exercise physiologist based in Cincinnati, Ohio. He serves as the Fitness Correspondent for 700 WLW radio, the largest radio station in the Midwest and has presented on behalf of respected organizations, including the American College of Sports Medicine. He owns FORCE Fitness and Performance in Cincinnati, where he and leads a team of fitness professionals. FORCE Fitness and Performance offers a private fitness training studio and fitness services. Mr. Striet boasts well-known clients, such as Bob Castellini, owner of the Cincinnati Reds, as well as various local radio and television personalities.

Mr. Striet and his staff also hold certifications from nationally recognized fitness organizations, including the American College of Sports Medicine, the National Strength & Conditioning Association and The American Council on Exercise. Mr. Striet also authors a popular fitness blog and offers free video training via his YouTube channel.

Exercise Tips On Losing Weight with PJ Striet

Bright Hub: Besides helping a person to look and feel better, what other health benefits can weight loss offer people who are obese or overweight?

PJ Striet: If one is classified as overweight or obese, losing weight can impact the following health conditions favorably (according to the Centers for Disease Control website):

• Coronary heart disease
• Type 2 diabetes
• Cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon)
• Hypertension (high blood pressure)
• Dyslipidemia (for example, high total cholesterol or high levels of triglycerides)
• Stroke
• Liver and Gallbladder disease
• Sleep apnea and respiratory problems
• Osteoarthritis (a degeneration of cartilage and its underlying bone within a joint)
• Gynecological problems (abnormal menses, infertility)

Bright Hub: As a general guideline, how long and how often should workout sessions be to promote healthy weight loss?

PJ Striet: This entirely depends on one’s adherence to proper diet and nutrition. If one is adhering to their weight loss calorie needs, people can get great supplemental weight loss results from exercise in as little as 30 minutes 5 days per week.

If one is not paying much attention to their diet, and is eating a surplus of calories, no amount of exercise is going to make a significant impact on weight loss.

Bright Hub: How important is aerobic exercise for someone who wants to lose weight?

PJ Striet: Aerobic exercise burns calories, so this type of exercise can obviously make a supplemental impact on weight loss. But, again, you cannot “out train” or “out workout” a poor diet which is providing too many calories for your current bodyweight. The thing about aerobic type activity (most types anyway) is that they do not do a very good job of maintaining or increasing lean muscle mass.

Holding on to your muscle mass as you age is of paramount importance if you want to fight the “battle of the bulge” successfully. If you lose muscle as you age, your resting metabolic rate (RMR) will suffer, and your RMR accounts for up to 70% of the energy your body expends on a daily basis.

Bright Hub: What about strength training? Is it necessary for someone who isn’t trying to get that bodybuilder look?

PJ Striet: Like I said before, most people need to just be concerned with maintaining the muscle tissue they already have versus trying to gain significant amounts, which is a very difficult thing to do anyway. This objective can be reached easily by performing 2 to 4 full body strength training workouts per week at a modest intensity…you don’t have to kill yourself.

Bright Hub: Why do you think so many people skip strength training when they’re trying to lose weight?

PJ Striet: Many people steer clear of strength training because they think they might get “too big or bulky”. This isn’t going to happen unless you are between the ages of 16 and 30, you train very, very hard, are eating a lot of calories, and, most importantly, have the right genetics. Worrying about getting too muscular through weight training is analogous to not playing golf too often because you might get “too good”…it’s not going to happen.

Bright Hub: What other exercise tips would you offer one of your clients who wanted to lose weight?

PJ Striet: Exercise is supplemental to diet and nutrition-not the other way around-when it comes to weight loss. You should judge the effectiveness of your fitness/exercise program based on improvements in performance (muscular strength, conditioning, etc.) and on how you feel and function—not on how much weight loss is occurring or not occurring. Diet and nutrition is your main weapon when trying to lose weight.

Bright Hub: Any final thoughts?

PJ Striet: Again, don’t overestimate exercise’s contribution to weight loss. Many people will start exercising 3 days per week for a half hour, won’t modify their diet, and, after a month, they’ve only lost a pound or two, if any weight at all.

They will then say “exercise doesn’t work”, and stop the program.

The reality is that the exercise portion of the program is probably doing what it is meant to do-getting you stronger and in better condition. People’s expectations about what exercise can and cannot do for them do not match reality. Exercise is marketed as a great weight loss method, which is unfortunate…and false. However, this sets people’s expectations, and, consequently, is responsible for a person’s lack of adherence to a regular program of exercise.