Doing Cardio vs Eating Less

[Ahri22]

I know in some people cardio increases hunger and can thus negate the positive effect of burning the calories, by causing the person to eat more to compensate!

Ultimately, you have to do what works for you. Do you like cardio? Can you stick with it? Then do it... If you loathe cardio then don't do as much (I think it's a good idea to do SOME cardio activities, for general health... but find something you like to do, instead of forcing yourself to do something you hate).

If you're doing too much cardio and feeling drained, then maybe it's better to ease off on it and do more calorie restriction instead.

[conceptions]

I seem to be doing much better without cardio.

-I don't like doing cardio
-I can lift with more intensity when I'm not doing it
-I seem to be more satisfied with the food I eat when I'm not doing cardio, and I still eat a lot

But this is just my own experience.

[Macaile]

My best experience for fat loss has been through strength training, high intensity interval cardio, and, surprisingly, making sure I am eating ENOUGH. The thing is, your body needs calories in order to function. If you want to build muscle, it's not going to grow out of thin air. You've got to fuel yourself with the nutrients needed in order to build muscle. The best part about this is that muscle is metabolic tissue, which means it burns more calories simply by existing. The more muscle you have, the more calories you can consume in a day and still maintain a low body fat ratio. In the past, I've actually found that when I eat less and do long amounts of cardio, I get squishier, softer, and feel a lot less firm and fit. This is because lots of cardio and not eating enough will cause you to lose muscle, and you are left with the body fat that you had before. I perform HIIT cardio, because it has been shown to be more muscle sparing than long duration cardio, and it also has a longer after-burn than long duration or moderate intensity cardio. I also love this form because it gives you the endorphin rush in a less amount of time. In fact, the longest I ever do cardio is around 20 minutes at a time. My favorite HIIT is either on the treadmill or on a spin bike. I will do 1 minute at a very casual pace, and then 30 seconds in a balls to the wall sprint (or really high level on spin bike). It's amazing how much you can spike your heart rate and then allow it to recover in the time in between. I've seen a lot of results with this, and you don't have to spend endless hours on cardio machines like a hamster
Strength training is truly the way to go if you're looking for a lean, sculpted, curvy appearance. The weight room is your friend!!! Hope this helps xoxo

[viccles007]

I like the cardio route, but I find it sometimes makes me irritable, tired etc. I think a mix of both is good