Weights vs Cardio

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  • Maxxitt
    Maxxitt Posts: 1,281 Member
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    I do both, although as the weights get heavier, the cardio gets lighter. My warmup before weights at this point (I am just starting back at the gym after a few months of lay-off) includes 15-20 min walking at a brisk pace with some "hill" intervals on the dreadmill followed by specific warmups for shoulders and hips. Then after the lifting (compound mostly), I do 12 minutes of walk/run intervals and a couple of minutes of farmer walk, followed by foam rolling and various stretching.
  • azzeazsaleh5429
    azzeazsaleh5429 Posts: 77 Member
    edited February 2019
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    Would it be a problem if you did both? 3 days full body strength and 2 days cardio
  • z4oslo
    z4oslo Posts: 229 Member
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    kimtpa1417 wrote: »
    There is so much different information out there and depending on who I talk to I get different answers. I have alot of body fat I'd like to loss. Right now I'm killing myself in the gym doing cardio and weights. Some people say ditch the cardio and some say ditch the weights until the scale comes down. I hate cardio but do it trying to lose weight. So which is better?

    I would say stick to what you enjoy doing. Its like eating. Do you eat things you dont like because someone else says you should??

    Changing lifestyle is about making changes that you can do for the rest of your life. I would say a vital part of that is eating things you like, and do exercise you enjoy doing.

    Doing something you doint enjoy doing will not last for very long, and dosnt make much sense to me.
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
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    Neither is strictly necessary for weight loss, you can do it all with diet, if necessary. Given that, I'd stick with whichever one you enjoy the most.
  • J72FIT
    J72FIT Posts: 5,948 Member
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    jennifer_417 wrote: »
    Neither is strictly necessary for weight loss, you can do it all with diet, if necessary. Given that, I'd stick with whichever one you enjoy the most.

    You can but without some form of strength training you risk losing too much muscle which is not a good thing...
  • kodiakke
    kodiakke Posts: 379 Member
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    Maxxitt wrote: »
    ...includes 15-20 min walking at a brisk pace with some "hill" intervals on the dreadmill

    OMG this is AWESOME.

    I tried to be a gym rat before. It didn't work. I preferred to be outside. Now I'm enjoying running (okay, jogging), and I bought a kettlebell and am incorporating bodyweight exercises because I like what weight lifting does for me, I just ... prefer to be outside.
  • rosiorama
    rosiorama Posts: 300 Member
    edited February 2019
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    So much good information here!

    I prefer weights! I do not do cardio at the gym. Blech to the hamster wheels! I do my walking and biking outside, thanks... but the cardio I do is secondary to doing weights - of the heavy kind - with a focus in compound movements.

    I have found over the years that I prefer the results I get from lifting. I used to be a cardio bunny but I found that I had to be so careful with counting calories in order to lose anything. And lifting those 2 pound weights a million times (with Jillian Michaels etc) did nothing for my muscle mass.

    “Killing yourself” at the gym isn’t sustainable, if you don’t enjoy what you’re doing. And you will likely regain your lost weight as soon as you stop. I would LOVE to kill myself at the gym - but that’s because I love lifting and my work/life schedule makes it hard to go to the gym as often as I feel is ideal for me and my goals. When am at the gym, I have to be super focused and use my time well to get the most out of my workout.
  • Running2Fit
    Running2Fit Posts: 702 Member
    edited February 2019
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    I do both. Running 3x a week and then 2 days of light cardio and strength training. I have two rest days a week, sometimes I’ll do yoga on my rest days.

    I didn’t enjoy working out at first. I decided to sign up for a half marathon and that’s made a big difference for me. Just the mental shift between working out just to workout vs actually training for a specific event has made me enjoy my workouts a lot more. Plus, following a plan I feel like my workouts are more purposeful and effective.

    I don’t really workout for weight loss though. Exercise is important for health, it will help with your body composition when you get down to your goal weight but weight loss happens in the kitchen.
  • cheryldumais
    cheryldumais Posts: 1,907 Member
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    AoifeFitzy wrote: »
    This probably isn't the answer you want to hear, but I'm a huge proponent of the idea that the best kind of exercise for you is the kind that you enjoy.

    In the long run, do you want to be grimly dragging yourself to the gym a few times a week to endure another eternity on the treadmill?

    Me, I hate cardio machines at the gym. (I know other people are different- and more power to ya all!) But y'know what I love? Getting outside and cycling. Swimming, anywhere. Lacing up a pair of skates and spending hours at the rink. Putting my hiking boots on and exploring.

    If I thought 'cardio' was just a thing to do on machines at the gym? I'd last a few weeks. Couple months, tops. And then I'd be doing zero cardio. But it turns out that as long as the weather isn't completely woeful, I'm happy-out outdoors, where I don't even have to convince myself to do cardio 'cause I'm too busy having fun.

    For some people the cardio they like is in the gym. Others, the outdoors. Others, it's playing sports. None of these are intrinsically better than others- again, the best kind is the kind that you'll want to keep doing over and over and that makes you feel good.

    Same with weights. What do you like doing? Do you like machines? Do you think the TRX is neat? Do you get a kick out of loading up a barbell with a ton* of weights and deadlifting it like a bawsssss? Or would you rather be, say, getting your resistance training halfway up a climbing wall, or doing a tricky move on an aerial hoop?

    What I'm trying to say here is: weights are good. Cardio is good. Moving your body is good. But if you hate doing a thing, you're not gonna keep doing it. So at the end of the day, the best kind of exercise isn't "cardio" or "weights". It's the kind you'll look forward to doing, even when you're not trying to get the number on the scale to go down.



    *ok, maybe less than an actual ton

    Outstanding answer! I agree wholeheartedly. The only way to change your lifestyle is to find something you like otherwise you won't stick with it.

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