Weights VS Cardio for weight loss!

sarah_christine6

Alright,
I'm pretty new at the whole weight loss thing and am having a really hard time balancing weight training and cardio. I'm 20 years old, about 6 feet tall, currently 177.6, started at 187.6.I have lost about 10 pounds in 3 weeks doing only cardio about 5 days a week, no weights at all, I changed my diet drastically (no more dr pepper, no more white anything, no more sweets, lots more veggies, lots more whole grains, etc.) so I'm feeling pretty good about my weight loss so far but I'm looking to incorporate strength training into my routine.

Has anyone had success balancing the two when it came to weight loss? I'm hoping to hit 160 pounds then reevaluate from there. What worked for you and what didn't? I'm a total beginner with weights so any help is appreciated!!!!

paleojoe

A pretty good starting point is to strength train 3x per week and do cardio 2x per week. Example: Monday, wednesday and friday you strength train. Tuesday and thursday you do cardio. Sat and sun are off.

JesseDP00

I've lost over 70 pounds since late April to early May by doing a combination of both. About 70% cardio and 30% weight and strength conditioning. Lately I've been focusing more on my cardio, however as I get about 20 pounds from my goal weight, I'm going to flip my routine and focus most only reshaping and building myself up - cut cardio down.

links_slayer

Unless you have a medical reason for it, there's no real reason to cut anything out of your diet. The only thing you *need* to do to lose weight is eat fewer calories than you expend in a day. Cardio is good for your heart and weight lifting (while eating at a deficit) will help maintain lean mass. Both will help burn calories, too, obv.

MyPureSteez

They both work but together they work better. I do HIIT 100 it kind of combines them both 100 reps with little rest in between. (50% of your max) you get winded and push hard. It worked for me. But whatever you do... Do both cardio & weights Good luck

CyberEd312

I would suggest a 3 day weight lifting routine with a rest day in between lifting days to start and you can fit in your cardio on those non lifting days. After you are into a routine, you can add some cardio in on lifting days if you desire... I normally lift and then hop on the treadmill for 20-30 minutes of light walking cardio before I leave.... Best of Luck

ronrstaats

Mr_Knight

Has anyone had success balancing the two when it came to weight loss?

Sure, tons of people. I'm at 80%/20% cardio/strength, although part of that is swimming which is kind of "cardio with resistance" for the upper body.

Cardio and strength are both very important components of overall physical fitness. Everybody will have their own balance between the two, depending on their individual needs. For weight loss, I find cardio invaluable, as it allows me to increase my TDEE and therefore create a larger safe deficit.

scottb81

I lost all my weight running, around 30 lbs. After two years I added strength training and have gained 10 lbs. My waist size so far has stayed about the same. Bodyfat is up slightly but still way below where I started.

If you are doing strength training pay closer attention to measurements and bodyfat than solely scale weight.