The two most desired goals by most people are to lose body fat and to increase muscle tone. While the right diet and a solid workout plan are going to put you on the path to success, far too many people focus solely on cardio when they could be exercising their muscles in order to burn some extra calories.

‘Exercising your muscles’ doesn’t just mean doing endless bicep curls either. While lifting weights is a great way to do this, there are plenty of options to get similar results, such as crossfit, pilates and even yoga. It’s the science behind all of this is and what happens when you achieve muscle breakdown where the secret path to losing fat exists.

Let’s take a bodybuilder, for example. Many people assume that the development of muscle happens when they’re in the gym. The more weight they lift, the bigger their muscles are. This isn’t the case. A bodybuilder’s aim while lifting weights is to achieve muscle breakdown, or to tear the muscle apart. Almost like a controlled injury, it’s the reason weightlifters get a ‘pump’ after a set: the body rushes blood to the area to try and compensate for the ordeal it’s just gone through. This is also why delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) occurs a day or two after working out. The body is trying to repair itself.

In this state, however, your body uses calories in order to recover which means, in essence, you will be burning energy even if you’re sat in front of the TV. Getting on a treadmill for an hour straight is a fantastic way to spark fat loss and increase endurance, but as soon as you step off of it your body stops working. Here, you’re leaving it in a constant state of productivity.

So next time you’re working out, think how it’s affecting your muscles and how you can incorporate such a method into your training regime. You don’t have to lift weights to achieve muscle breakdown. You just have to make sure you hit them in the right way, and when you do, results are right around the corner. Guaranteed!