To do are Not To do

catrinawhite142

Will someone tell me which exercise is better to lose weight and tone , cardio or weight training. so many people tell you do this do that, this will work but that wont. really don't know what to do. plus I'm doing all this at home live to far to go to a gym.

stumblinthrulife

Cardio : Will not make you look better, will burn a lot of calories short-term so you can eat more that day, will improve cardiovascular health.

Lifting heavy : Will make you look better, will build muscle (at least when you eat at a surplus) which burns a few more calories long term, will not significantly improve cardiovascular health.

Best plan for all round health and fitness - do both.

mummygettingfit

Both can't hurt =D

mummygettingfit

Cardio : Will not make you look better, will burn a lot of calories short-term so you can eat more that day, will improve cardiovascular health.

Lifting heavy : Will make you look better, will build muscle (at least when you eat at a surplus) which burns a few more calories long term, will not significantly improve cardiovascular health.

Best plan for all round health and fitness - do both.

This =D

stumblinthrulife

Oh, and friendly suggestion - strike the word 'tone' from your vocabulary, there's really no such thing. There are two things you can control to make your body look better - body fat, and muscle mass. Less body fat will make your muscles look more defined. Strength training while cutting will prevent muscle loss, and will make your muscles appear bigger because of the 'pump'. Strength training while bulking will make your muscles bigger.

'Toning' is simply fat loss with moderate lifting to maintain muscle mass.

stumblinthrulife

And another, to head the concern off at the pass. You won't get 'bulky' if you lift heavy. I promise*. As a female, you simply do not have the genetics for large growth without serious hardcore training.

*Promise null and void if you use steroids and/or growth hormones.

Unknown

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catrinawhite142

Thanks every one for the answers and i'll remember never to use the word Tone.

cindyhoney2

Mix it up, 3 days strength and 2 days cardio....it's a win/win! Building muscle will help you burn fat so at least three days of strength training. Good luck
You can circuit train too, I do this sometimes, ie...get your heart rate up w/say 50 jumping jacks, then do some push ups, maybe some sit ups, more jumping jacks or jump rope or running in place to keep the heart rate up and do more strength training. Shape has a nice site, full of recipes, exercises that don't need weights to do.

http://www.shape.com/fitness
feel free to send me an invite

CoachDreesTraining

Cardio : Will not make you look better, will burn a lot of calories short-term so you can eat more that day, will improve cardiovascular health.

Lifting heavy : Will make you look better, will build muscle (at least when you eat at a surplus) which burns a few more calories long term, will not significantly improve cardiovascular health.

Best plan for all round health and fitness - do both.

Cardio will not make you look better!? Pft! All a matter of opinion. Cardio will help you look skinnier. Cardio won't give you big muscles, but since when do women want big muscles? Lots of people just want to lose weight and look more slender in their clothes. Not everybody wants to be a hard body.

Since when do women get big from lifting weights?

Unknown

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Papillon22

Since you mention working out at home, I can recommend Chalean Extreme (which I'm following now). It combines weight lifting days with cardio days in between. And if you don't have dumbells, they show you how to modify the weight lifting using resistance bands. I love it.

ktsimons

Or you can combine both aspects at once...Google TABATA workouts. They are one minute of body weight exercise - sit ups, push ups, tricep dips, jumping jacks...etc...with 30 seconds of rest between...I do 12 reps for 2 sets - You can even get a tabata timer for your phone - there's an APP for 1.99 that you can program for as many intervals as you want. Not kidding, you can do this workout with nothing but a chair!

ktsimons

Cardio : Will not make you look better, will burn a lot of calories short-term so you can eat more that day, will improve cardiovascular health.

Lifting heavy : Will make you look better, will build muscle (at least when you eat at a surplus) which burns a few more calories long term, will not significantly improve cardiovascular health.

Best plan for all round health and fitness - do both.

THIS, too!

j6o4

Cardio can be used to create a deficit, strength training will help you retain your lean body mass while eating at a deficit
IMO I think strength training is more important because if you retain most of your lean body mass while losing weight, your bodyfat percentage will go down. Cardio also has its place, might as well do both.

CoderGal

Couch Potato: expect to still have a high fat content, even at a low weight. You can still get smaller.
Cardio: Expect to have a lower fat content then the above. When you start using muscles, you will 'tone up' to a point. And then that stops. You can still get smaller with weight loss, but the benefits halt rather quickly compared to the next option. Cardio increases the calories you can eat via exercise. Cardio is good for your heart and lungs. It's very easy to create a deficit with hard cardio, even if you're high fat. But if you have back/knee/joint problems like I do, it can make a huge difference in how miserable your day is....repetitive movements do not act kindly on injuries and joint problems.
Lifting: Lifting helps retain LBM on deficits and promote it on a surplus. This means when you lose weight you'll lose a higher percentage of fat. Meaning you'll be thinner at a higher weight. For example, I've went on a surplus and gained 10lbs and have the same waist line as I did before when I was underweight doing cardio. Notice I'm on a surplus. You will NOT gain a chunk of muscle on a deficit, you are still likely losing muscle, just a lot more fat. Increased strength does not equal increased muscles like many people here seem to think. I wouldn't consider myself a hulk by any means, and I lift heavy (meaning 85% of my max rep for ~5 reps). And like cardio, the calories you can eat at the time increases via exercise. Except unlike cardio, your resting rate goes up more when lifting. So you burn more when eating chips on the couch then you would with cardio.
Increase: firmness, bone density, strength, self-confidence, muscle mass, endurence, metabolism (even at rest)
Decrease: arthritis, inches, resting heart rate, fat, back problems, injuries, other heath problems

I've done it all. I'm much happier when I'm leaner. It means I can eat more and be stronger and thinner then the alternative. And cannot complain about increased firmness, bone density, and decreased joint problems (including back problems and arthritis I've had since I was 8, both of which seems to have disappeared).

sally_jeffswife

Alternating weights days and cardio days is optimal.

1capybara

Yes, thats very common - every other day weights, every other day cardio

Aparz1

Why choose? Build a program with both

SezxyStef

Cardio : Will not make you look better, will burn a lot of calories short-term so you can eat more that day, will improve cardiovascular health.

Lifting heavy : Will make you look better, will build muscle (at least when you eat at a surplus) which burns a few more calories long term, will not significantly improve cardiovascular health.

Best plan for all round health and fitness - do both.

Cardio will not make you look better!? Pft! All a matter of opinion. Cardio will help you look skinnier. Cardio won't give you big muscles, but since when do women want big muscles? Lots of people just want to lose weight and look more slender in their clothes. Not everybody wants to be a hard body.

All I have to say to this is yes skinny girls look good in cloths fit girls look good naked.

On that note to the OP it's all about personal choice.

I choose no cardio. Build muscle mass (no not big bulky muscles) help burn fat and that happens with lifting.

Couch Potato: expect to still have a high fat content, even at a low weight. You can still get smaller.
Cardio: Expect to have a lower fat content then the above. When you start using muscles, you will 'tone up' to a point. And then that stops. You can still get smaller with weight loss, but the benefits halt rather quickly compared to the next option. Cardio increases the calories you can eat via exercise. Cardio is good for your heart and lungs. It's very easy to create a deficit with hard cardio, even if you're high fat. But if you have back/knee/joint problems like I do, it can make a huge difference in how miserable your day is....repetitive movements do not act kindly on injuries and joint problems.
Lifting: Lifting helps retain LBM on deficits and promote it on a surplus. This means when you lose weight you'll lose a higher percentage of fat. Meaning you'll be thinner at a higher weight. For example, I've went on a surplus and gained 10lbs and have the same waist line as I did before when I was underweight doing cardio. Notice I'm on a surplus. You will NOT gain a chunk of muscle on a deficit, you are still likely losing muscle, just a lot more fat. Increased strength does not equal increased muscles like many people here seem to think. I wouldn't consider myself a hulk by any means, and I lift heavy (meaning 85% of my max rep for ~5 reps). And like cardio, the calories you can eat at the time increases via exercise. Except unlike cardio, your resting rate goes up more when lifting. So you burn more when eating chips on the couch then you would with cardio.
Increase: firmness, bone density, strength, self-confidence, muscle mass, endurence, metabolism (even at rest)
Decrease: arthritis, inches, resting heart rate, fat, back problems, injuries, other heath problems

I've done it all. I'm much happier when I'm leaner. It means I can eat more and be stronger and thinner then the alternative. And cannot complain about increased firmness, bone density, and decreased joint problems (including back problems and arthritis I've had since I was 8, both of which seems to have disappeared).

And all of this

_Zardoz_

Whatever you enjoy and can keep doing. There is no right answer as everyone will give you a different answer. Just find things you enjoy doing.

JoRocka

Cardio : Will not make you look better, will burn a lot of calories short-term so you can eat more that day, will improve cardiovascular health.

Lifting heavy : Will make you look better, will build muscle (at least when you eat at a surplus) which burns a few more calories long term, will not significantly improve cardiovascular health.

Best plan for all round health and fitness - do both.

mostly this

Cardio will not make you look better!? Pft! All a matter of opinion. Cardio will help you look skinnier. Cardio won't give you big muscles, but since when do women want big muscles? Lots of people just want to lose weight and look more slender in their clothes. Not everybody wants to be a hard body.

and this...

it's true. Not everyone wants to actually be super fit- some people just want to be "not fat" and that's cool too. I don't understand it- but I recognize it as a thing. And I accept it- you can accept without having to understand fully.

I personally love muscled women... I think they look great- healthy vivacious and capable. squishy women- just... eh.

totally don't do it for me.

Same with men.

But you can do both if you like doing both- it pretty much absolutely 100% depends on what your goals are.

Fullsterkur_woman

Or you can combine both aspects at once...Google TABATA workouts. They are one minute of body weight exercise - sit ups, push ups, tricep dips, jumping jacks...etc...with 30 seconds of rest between...I do 12 reps for 2 sets - You can even get a tabata timer for your phone - there's an APP for 1.99 that you can program for as many intervals as you want. Not kidding, you can do this workout with nothing but a chair!

No.

Seriously?!

No.:noway:

ETA: You may call it a form of High Intensity Interval Training, but Tabata, it ain't.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-intensity_interval_training#Tabata_regimen

JoRocka

Or you can combine both aspects at once...Google TABATA workouts. They are one minute of body weight exercise - sit ups, push ups, tricep dips, jumping jacks...etc...with 30 seconds of rest between...I do 12 reps for 2 sets - You can even get a tabata timer for your phone - there's an APP for 1.99 that you can program for as many intervals as you want. Not kidding, you can do this workout with nothing but a chair!

No.

Seriously?!

No.:noway:

ETA: You may call it a form of High Intensity Interval Training, but Tabata, it ain't.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-intensity_interval_training#Tabata_regimen

All Tabata are HIIT

But not all HIIT are tabata.

Fullsterkur_woman

OK, that was really nitpicky of me and didn't add anything to the discussion, so I apologize.

We have a fitness class at my gym called Tabata Training, and it's an hour long! Um, nobody can do Tabata intervals for an hour. If you can, you're not doing them right. You should be near puking and falling over after 20 minutes, including warmup. I hate them, and haven't done them for some time. But I'll probably be adding them back in soon, because I don't want my steady-state cardio affecting my lifts. I'm not at a point where it matters yet.

In general, I would recommend that the OP do a mix of exercise that she loves and enjoys. That way she'll stick with it, and there's always time to branch out from there.

And "tone" (or "tonus") is a fine thing to say, provided that's what you mean. I have hypertonicity in my neck and upper back, and it has nothing to do with muscle definition:
In physiology, medicine, and anatomy, muscle tone (residual muscle tension or tonus) is the continuous and passive partial contraction of the muscles, or the muscle’s resistance to passive stretch during resting state.[1] It helps to maintain posture and declines during REM sleep (from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muscle_tone)

KANGOOJUMPS

I am the cardio queen so I say cardio,
but most of the world hates it

WendyTerry420

Cardio : Will not make you look better, will burn a lot of calories short-term so you can eat more that day, will improve cardiovascular health.

Lifting heavy : Will make you look better, will build muscle (at least when you eat at a surplus) which burns a few more calories long term, will not significantly improve cardiovascular health.

Best plan for all round health and fitness - do both.

Cardio will not make you look better!? Pft! All a matter of opinion. Cardio will help you look skinnier. Cardio won't give you big muscles, but since when do women want big muscles? Lots of people just want to lose weight and look more slender in their clothes. Not everybody wants to be a hard body.

Skinny = look better?

That's a matter of opinion. Pfft!

JoRocka

OK, that was really nitpicky of me and didn't add anything to the discussion, so I apologize.

We have a fitness class at my gym called Tabata Training, and it's an hour long! Um, nobody can do Tabata intervals for an hour. If you can, you're not doing them right. You should be near puking and falling over after 20 minutes, including warmup. I hate them, and haven't done them for some time. But I'll probably be adding them back in soon, because I don't want my steady-state cardio affecting my lifts. I'm not at a point where it matters yet.

In general, I would recommend that the OP do a mix of exercise that she loves and enjoys. That way she'll stick with it, and there's always time to branch out from there.

And "tone" (or "tonus") is a fine thing to say, provided that's what you mean. I have hypertonicity in my neck and upper back, and it has nothing to do with muscle definition:
In physiology, medicine, and anatomy, muscle tone (residual muscle tension or tonus) is the continuous and passive partial contraction of the muscles, or the muscle’s resistance to passive stretch during resting state.[1] It helps to maintain posture and declines during REM sleep (from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muscle_tone)

Lol it is nitpicky- but meh- it's something useful for people to know. I tend to not make a big deal about it. I don't get why it needs it's own name (haven't researched it to credit my own laziness)- I use a HIIT timer- free app. I can do it however I want. Tabata or boring hiit with no special name.

I don't judge you

Skinny = look better?

That's a matter of opinion. Pfft!

looking better is in the eye of the beyolder. to you or I.. it probably doesn't- but to someone else- it might.

ultimately it doesn't matter what WE think looks better- it matters what the person who is setting their goals thinks.

Again- some people- they just want to not be fat- and that is OKAY. not my goal- not my friend- not my life. I don't have to deal with it or understand it- good for you for trying to change your life. Do I think its' the best? NOPE... but it's not my life. Let them be not fat. let them be skinny- it's their choice.