Weight Training vs. Cardio for weight loss

[mymouthaintbig]

Hi!

So taking toning and muscle building off the table....I was wondering what your take was on weight loss through means of lifting or cardio....which one is more effective long term

From my understanding cardio increases cortisol levels in men, which in turn impacts mid section body fat - is this hormonal impact of cardio the same for women as with men?

Just wanted to see what your opinions are on the subject!

[Partyrocking]

Diet for weight loss
Weight training for fat loss (i.e. preserving LBM, fat loss won't happen without adequate diet)
Cardio for heart health

[EPolis13]

Control your weight loss via your diet. Continue to lift heavy to preserve mass. Do cardio for heart health, but you don't need to go crazy. Personally, when I'm trying to drop a few lbs, I just eat less. I don't change my cardio at all.

[kimm4]

A proper calorie deficit through diet is what controls weight/fat loss. Weight training will preserve the muscle when dieting down. Cardio is a personal choice and not needed for weight/fat loss.

Building/maintaining and fat loss is always better controlled through diet...never a specific training/cardio program.

[Watsonm5]

So how do women get cut?

[kimm4]

So how do women get cut?

Do you mean cut as in lean and showing definition? If so it will come down to having enough overall muscle and low enough bodyfat to support the look.

I know you've been posting about your wife and fat loss. She needs to create a calorie deficit though her diet. She needs to get a food scale to weigh, measure and track everything that goes into her mouth. As long as she's in a deficit there will be steady fat loss.

If there's a specific area she holds more fat it will be the last place to lean out. Longer dieting and going the distance will be needed.

The building and cutting process works the same for both men and women. The only difference is the amount of calories needed per individual stats.

[PBLift84]

Diet for calories /weight loss.
Weights for adding muscle and calorie burn.
cardio to manage energy flux.

You need all three to really be successful.

[kimm4]

Diet for calories /weight loss.
Weights for adding muscle and calorie burn.
cardio to manage energy flux.

You need all three to really be successful.

Cardio is a personal choice and it's not needed to be successful. There are plenty of us here that don't use it or barely use it at all.

[spradish]

I agree with Partyrocking and Kimm overall.

In my experience of losing weight, I lost weight more quickly before I started lifting weights. I used to walk/run for about 30 min 3x/wk plus do bodyweight training in a circuit 3x/wk. The latter was more like cardio just due to the program I was doing. Once I switched to lifting weights my loss rate slowed but my overall look improved more quickly. I think my loss rate slowed for a couple of reasons--I was hungrier (ate a bit more) and burned fewer calories during the lifting than doing the bodyweight/cardio circuit. For me, cardio suppresses my appetite a bit. The appearance improvement was in large part due to lifting but it may have also been partly due to me getting into a better weight range period.

Bottom line, though, is that losing fat comes down to eating fewer calories than you burn. I think you need to be honest about how active/inactive you are and if you're mostly inactive, getting up and moving makes sense for health reasons. But you can certainly lose without changing your activity level.

[camharthy]

Cardio or endurance exercises are more effective in losing weight, and weight training is more effective in toning or building muscles. Again it would depend on the intensity of your exercise. When you run, walk, cycle or swim, you burn more fat. Unlike with weight training, you gain more muscle, and muscle weighs more than fat.

So if you're looking to lose weight, cardio exercises may be best. But if you want a more lean look, but not necessarily weigh less in the weighing scale, then weight training is good for you. I hope this helps!

[Jodie10]

Cardio is a personal choice and it's not needed to be successful. There are plenty of us here that don't use it or barely use it at all.

Cardio kills my appetite and I already have to work at eating all my macros. I just give myself 10-20 minutes per workout for a quick warm-up and focus on the weights but I miss dancing so often I will save up those minutes and spend them taking one Zumba class per week.

It also depends on what you want your body composition to be like. If you want to be more muscled stop weighing yourself and start relying on measurements or how you look rather than your bodyweight in pounds. You can look a lot better carrying more muscle and more weight, than you might look if you diet/cardio down to a certain weight in pounds.

With a solid base of muscle you can weigh more and carry a little more bodyfat, but still look great. I started my lifting journey at 108 pounds and am up to 140+. I didn't look all that much bigger until I broke +/-25 pounds of weight gain.

[Partyrocking]

Cardio or endurance exercises are more effective in losing weight, and weight training is more effective in toning or building muscles. Again it would depend on the intensity of your exercise. When you run, walk, cycle or swim, you burn more fat. Unlike with weight training, you gain more muscle, and muscle weighs more than fat.

So if you're looking to lose weight, cardio exercises may be best. But if you want a more lean look, but not necessarily weigh less in the weighing scale, then weight training is good for you. I hope this helps!

No.

[Jodie10]

No.

LOL. Let's not beat around the bush or anything.

[EPolis13]

Cardio or endurance exercises are more effective in losing weight, and weight training is more effective in toning or building muscles. Again it would depend on the intensity of your exercise. When you run, walk, cycle or swim, you burn more fat. Unlike with weight training, you gain more muscle, and muscle weighs more than fat.

So if you're looking to lose weight, cardio exercises may be best. But if you want a more lean look, but not necessarily weigh less in the weighing scale, then weight training is good for you. I hope this helps!

So much nope. Muscle doesn't weigh more than fat, either.

[borislavsabchev]

So a ton of muscle weighs more than a ton of fat ^^