Weights only vs Weights/Cardio

deanadimples

I'm recently getting back into the fitness routine. I have about 60-70 to lose.

I lost about 40lbs last time by doing Supreme 90 Day. I lost over an inch off hips etc a month and could do push-ups off my toes by the end of the 90 days. The workouts were a mix of cardio and weight training with body weight and free weights.

I've recently started seeing a friend. He went to a personal trainer who set him up on a 3x a week full body weight training only with cardio just for warmup. He started in May and has lost quite a bit though I don't know exactly how much.

My plan this time was to do 5x a week workouts doing a hybrid of Supreme 90 day and T25. Working lower and upper different days with cardio mixed in throughout.

My question is this...is one of these approaches to fitness a better route? Would I be better off doing only full body weight lifting 3x a week or will I see better fat loss and muscle gains by a blend 5x a week.

I guess I'm questioning my approach because his is based on what a trainer has him doing. We both have the same goal. Fat loss and muscle growth.

middlehaitch

It really comes down to what you prefer to do and what you will stick with, short and long term.
You could start with your intended programme then transition to what your friend is doing once you feel no longer challenged, or want a change.
To start with go with what you want to do. There are no rules saying you can't change your mind and switch programmes.

Cheers, h.

arditarose

Cardio is great for heart health. Lifting is great for maintaining lean body mass (not building muscle, in a deficit). Personally, I preferred to focus on lifting throughout my deficit. I preferred it, and I also prefer the aesthetics/body composition as opposed to a program based mostly on cardio, with little weight training.

Regardless, if you are going to weight train, especially as a beginner-a 3 day full body routine is ideal.

KathyApplebaum

middlehaitch wrote: »

It really comes down to what you prefer to do and what you will stick with, short and long term.

This. The best exercise is the one you'll actually do.

You'll find people here who will say weights only, people who say cardio only, people who say do both. I think in part it depends on your goals -- some of my running friends are great runners, but can't pick up a heavy bag of dog food. Some of my lifting friends can't keep up with my slow run for even a mile. I run and lift (and bike), but I realize that means I won't excel at any one thing.

No matter what you do, you need to challenge yourself. If you lift, lift heavy. If you do cardio, do interval training at least once a week and don't settle into a rut where you always do the same pace.

LKArgh

deanadimples wrote: »

I'm recently getting back into the fitness routine. I have about 60-70 to lose.

I lost about 40lbs last time by doing Supreme 90 Day. I lost over an inch off hips etc a month and could do push-ups off my toes by the end of the 90 days. The workouts were a mix of cardio and weight training with body weight and free weights.

I've recently started seeing a friend. He went to a personal trainer who set him up on a 3x a week full body weight training only with cardio just for warmup. He started in May and has lost quite a bit though I don't know exactly how much.

My plan this time was to do 5x a week workouts doing a hybrid of Supreme 90 day and T25. Working lower and upper different days with cardio mixed in throughout.

My question is this...is one of these approaches to fitness a better route? Would I be better off doing only full body weight lifting 3x a week or will I see better fat loss and muscle gains by a blend 5x a week.

I guess I'm questioning my approach because his is based on what a trainer has him doing. We both have the same goal. Fat loss and muscle growth.

Weight loss comes mainly from diet changes. Exercise if for general health and fitness. And it can give you more calories to eat.
The trick with relying on exercise to lose weight is that you better be prepared to stick with it. Say you are used to eating 2500 calories and that makes you maintain at 50 lbs above ideal. Then you get crazy with exercise for 3 motnhs, still eat the same, but burn 1000 calories per day, so naturally you are losing and fast. What happens when this program is over? You gain everything back.
So, if the goal is exercise to help with weight loss, focun on exercise you plan to keep doing. Whatever this is for you.

sijomial

My question is this...is one of these approaches to fitness a better route?

It would depend on how you define "fitness".
For my definition of fitness then just weights with a minimal amount of cardio as a warm up wouldn't fit the bill at all.
Yes you will get some CV benefits from lifting but that's just scratching the surface of your potential.

But your primary goals don't appear to be fitness.

Fat loss and muscle growth.

Fat loss comes from your calorie deficit over time, muscle retention/growth comes from your training.

I like your 3x week, full body training but why not cardio on at least some of the non-lifting days?

deanadimples

As far as goals I would like to lose the excess fat and increase my strength. And not be so flabby lol. I want CV health but don't plan on doing endurance sports like marathons etc.

I guess my question is...,is 3x full body weight lifting better for results than 5x of something like T25 that does cardio with strength exercises? It's not a "which one do I like better" question. It's a which yields better results question.

As for my diet, caloric intake goal is deficit and I'm increasing my protein intake in what I do eat to help to muscle health.

Nikki10129

deanadimples wrote: »

As far as goals I would like to lose the excess fat and increase my strength. And not be so flabby lol. I want CV health but don't plan on doing endurance sports like marathons etc.

I guess my question is...,is 3x full body weight lifting better for results than 5x of something like T25 that does cardio with strength exercises? It's not a "which one do I like better" question. It's a which yields better results question.

As for my diet, caloric intake goal is deficit and I'm increasing my protein intake in what I do eat to help to muscle health.

For your goals I would say yes, a progressive full body lifting program is better than things involving a lot of cardio and body weight exercise. But like was mentioned, why not follow the 3x a week lifting program, and then on a couple of the off days do some cardio.

Also, which one you like better is an important aspect, because if you don't like the exercise routine you are following you will not stick to it long term, and then you don't get any benefits.

piperdown44

That's a difficult question you pose.
Not sure there really is an answer to which one is better as it's just too subjective based on personal perspectives.

With lifting on a progressive program you'll hang onto more LBM than with cardio alone. With cardio (assuming cals are inline) you'll burn more fat (in a general sense wrt cals) and increase CV health (never a bad thing).

But as sijomial said, why not both? Lift heavy 3x per week and do a cardio program 2x (or 3) on the non-lifting days. Best of both worlds IMO.

Me, I prefer lifting over cardio although I'll throw a day in a week where I'll do some cardio other than just walking around the job. Lost plenty of bf, gained strength and gained a bit of LBM. With the lifting program I follow, and certain volume workouts that only have 45-60 secs rest breaks, my lung function has improved a lot compared to previous years (spirometry tests every 6 months) in terms of overall capacity and the force of exhale.

jmule24

Agree with @piperdown44 . There is no "best" method for a group of people. Your workout plan should be dedicated around your specific goals.

Personally, I lift 3x/week full body. The higher frequency of hitting muscle groups give me the most bang for my buck and I don't spend a ton of time in the gym.

AllanMisner

What are your fitness goals? Fat loss comes from what and how much you eat. Exercise is about the other fitness modalities (cardiovascular, strength, endurance, muscle mass, balance, flexibility, speed, agility, etc.) Doing a mix of activities can cross-train you to accomplish multiple fitness modalities or you can focus on one to maximize it. Understanding what you want to accomplish will help you set the best program for yourself.

Allan Misner
NASM Certified Personal Trainer (Corrective Exercise Specialist, Fitness Nutrition Specialist)

ninerbuff

deanadimples wrote: »

As far as goals I would like to lose the excess fat and increase my strength. And not be so flabby lol. I want CV health but don't plan on doing endurance sports like marathons etc.

I guess my question is...,is 3x full body weight lifting better for results than 5x of something like T25 that does cardio with strength exercises? It's not a "which one do I like better" question. It's a which yields better results question.

As for my diet, caloric intake goal is deficit and I'm increasing my protein intake in what I do eat to help to muscle health.

T 25 is cardio and the "strength" exercises are more geared to muscular endurance and not strength increase. Being able to increase pushup reps is a muscular endurance improvement and not necessarily strength improvement. Especially if one is LOSING weight while increasing pushup reps.
Strength increase is defined as improving one's muscle strength (being able to move more weighted resistance) for any individual exercise.
As for what you should do, I too believe it's something that you'll stick to the rest of your life. Be it lifting, running, yoga, etc. Weight loss/fat loss is more about calories than the workout itself.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

robertw486

Agree with those stating to look at the big picture and overall goals. Then go from there to figure out your "best" diet, workout(s), schedule. etc.

Things to consider first IMO

1. Time constaints
2. End body composition desires
3. Budget limits/desires (could affect gym, trainers, or DIY, along with diet composition)
4. How much of your loss deficit can you handle without exercise
5. Desired time to goal

Probably a lot more to consider really, but the big picture is what matters. And that is usually very individual.


Personally I've never done just one and not the other. At least some minimal of your less preferred exercise to maintain either muscle or current cardio fitness makes more sense to me, unless you are already an absolute beast at one and can afford or desire to lose in that particular thing.

rileyes

I've done both. The difference is the compound lifts seemed to slim me up better than the circuits. The circuits seemed to help my agility and mobility as well as cv. I must say, though, that I was more consistent with adding resistance to the compound lifts than I was to the circuits.

I do both.

Mike32003

A couple years ago I had the opportunity to work with a trainer and he had me doing compound exercises where I was working larger muscle groups combined with smaller muscle groups at a fast pace. This resulted in me getting a fast paced, high intensity workout that increased my strength and gave me a cardio workout at the same time. It's been a couple years now, and I've gone back to the workout because it gave me the best results.

Yi5hedr3

Just do the full body weights 2 to 3 times a week. Best bang for the buck.

deanadimples

My goal is to not be overweight but at the same time I don't want to be "just thin". I want the firmness that comes with having muscles. If that makes sense

kwtilbury

IMHO:

Strength = lifting
Cardiovascular fitness = cardio (duh)
Weight loss = slight edge to cardio
Firmness/physique = lifting