Switching to less cardio/ more weights..?
Options
FitnessLover001
Posts: 188 Member
Has anyone ever switched their routine up and cut back on cardio and done more weights? I love love love cardio, so I know this will be hard for me, and I truly don't want to cut out all cardio (I do a 10mile run once a week). I was told that all of the cardio I do is burning my muscle fibers and I should look at lifting weights more.
I kind of want to, I just don't want to cut out all cardio. I currently do 60 min of cardio and 20-30 min of weights 6 days a week. Is it possible to continue with this same routine 3 days a week and then 3 days a week I do 30 min of cardio and 60 min of weights…? or will that still be too much cardio? I do want to build muscle, I'm not trying to be "skinny" I just really love the way I feel after a hard core cardio session so that's why I like doing cardio.
Anyyyy suggestions…?
I kind of want to, I just don't want to cut out all cardio. I currently do 60 min of cardio and 20-30 min of weights 6 days a week. Is it possible to continue with this same routine 3 days a week and then 3 days a week I do 30 min of cardio and 60 min of weights…? or will that still be too much cardio? I do want to build muscle, I'm not trying to be "skinny" I just really love the way I feel after a hard core cardio session so that's why I like doing cardio.
Anyyyy suggestions…?
0
Replies
-
Yeah I'm considering something similar but i will be honest and say I'm fearful of cutting back the cardio and stalling out. So yeah, not a helpful answer but I'm curious to see opinions as we'll....0
-
You're not doing a massive load of cardio. You could keep your hour per week and just add to your weight lifting. I currently do about 3 hours of lifting per week (three sessions) and I'm up to about 2 hours of running per week (training for a 13 mile leg of a relay race). As long as you don't move it up too quickly and have the time, you should be fine.
If you're concerned about the possible muscle loss of a long run (though I don't think that happens with something as short as 10 miles), you could just do a few shorter runs vs one long one.0 -
Yeah, definitely make the switch. It'll improve your body's composition.0
-
Yeah, definitely make the switch. It'll improve your body's composition.
That would depend entirely on what her body composition and fitness goals are.0 -
Bumping this so I can see the answers that come up. I'm in the same boat: cardio 6 days a week, calorie deficit, no weight loss. I know I need to start some sort of weight training, but I don't want to cut out cardio in the process. I feel healthier than I have in a very long time and don't want to lose that.0
-
if you're working out 6 days a week and not losing weight, you're not at a calorie deficit.Bumping this so I can see the answers that come up. I'm in the same boat: cardio 6 days a week, calorie deficit, no weight loss. I know I need to start some sort of weight training, but I don't want to cut out cardio in the process. I feel healthier than I have in a very long time and don't want to lose that.0 -
Yeah, definitely make the switch. It'll improve your body's composition.
That would depend entirely on what her body composition and fitness goals are.
OP wrote she wants to build muscle.0 -
Yeah I wasn't worried about the cardio tearing my already built muscles, but I was told that my heart rate was really high while doing all that cardio and I was burning my muscle fibers, which wasn't good at all. I'm sure it could be true, but I didn't know that an hour of cardio a day would do that. I just have a lot of endurance built up that doing 30 min of cardio seems really little to me (no offense to anyone! I'm not trying to belittle short amounts of cardio,I'm just used to doing more than that)0
-
That's actually not true. I am in the same boat and have been doing so for 6 weeks. It has to do with metabolism and speeding it up again rather than misunderstanding the idea of calorie deficit.0
-
Yeah, definitely make the switch. It'll improve your body's composition.
That would depend entirely on what her body composition and fitness goals are.
OP wrote she wants to build muscle.
You can build muscle while still having a cardio element to your workouts. 60 minutes of cardio a week will not hamper that goal.
OP, as long as you're eating at a surplus with adequate protein and a lifting routine that encourages hypertrophy, you can build muscle. You don't have to switch if you don't want to. But if you want to really buckle down and focus solely on muscle building, cutting out the cardio and devoting that extra time to lifting would be a good path to follow.0 -
Just want to follow this conversation!! My cardiologist encouraged me to get more active and since doing lots of cardio, I've seen an improvement in the heart issue I was having and have lost about 15 pounds. I too, love to run and am planning on a 1/2 marathon in Jan.
However, I'm *super* intrigued by the success stories I'm seeing here of those that have transitioned to more weigh lifting. Would love to learn if both can be done.0 -
I don't think your cardio is excessive the way it is now. You could probably keep your runs and add in more weights and be fine.0
-
Does anyone else notice the amount of muscle the op has in her avatar?0
-
if you're eating at a deficit, you'd be losing weight unless you have a thyroid problem or something of this sort.
do you weigh all your food accurately on a scale and keep a diary of everything you eat? if so, is it possible you have lower lean body mass and higher body fat % than the average person of your height/weight? i was 40% bodyfat instead of the 30.5% that was standard at my height and weight, and as a result, i needed and burned a lot less calories.Bumping this so I can see the answers that come up. I'm in the same boat: cardio 6 days a week, calorie deficit, no weight loss. I know I need to start some sort of weight training, but I don't want to cut out cardio in the process. I feel healthier than I have in a very long time and don't want to lose that.0 -
Bumping this as well, very interested to see postings. 0
-
I'm in exactly the same boat.
I'm wanting to start weight lifting but honestly I'm terrified that if I step away from any cardio that my weight loss will stop. Cardio has been a godsend for me, I'm consistently losing 11-12lbs a month (avg) and honestly with that success I don't want to stop or slow down. I have 40ish pounds to go to meet my goal and I want to make that by Christmas and I'm scared that moving away from any cardio will cause me to fail to make that goal.
I'm going to the gym and cardio'ing my *kitten* off 6 days a week, so if I split those 6 days up between cardio and weight lifting what can I expect to occur?
I'm 6'1" and a large build, 52 years old and want to lose weight and build muscle, I want to be able to do some tough mudder runs and do some fun stuff like that.
I'd love some input!0 -
Does anyone else notice the amount of muscle the op has in her avatar?
My avatar is me currently and I'm in a calorie deficit as well. Like I said, I do 20 min of weights daily so I know I have some muscle definition, but I just didn't know if the muscle fibers in my legs were "being ruined" because I was told I do way too much cardio (running, efx precor machine, elliptical machines). So I really want second opinions to see if anyone thinks that 60 min of cardio a day is too much and if I need to cut back0 -
Has anyone ever switched their routine up and cut back on cardio and done more weights? I love love love cardio, so I know this will be hard for me, and I truly don't want to cut out all cardio (I do a 10mile run once a week). I was told that all of the cardio I do is burning my muscle fibers and I should look at lifting weights more.
I kind of want to, I just don't want to cut out all cardio. I currently do 60 min of cardio and 20-30 min of weights 6 days a week. Is it possible to continue with this same routine 3 days a week and then 3 days a week I do 30 min of cardio and 60 min of weights…? or will that still be too much cardio? I do want to build muscle, I'm not trying to be "skinny" I just really love the way I feel after a hard core cardio session so that's why I like doing cardio.
Anyyyy suggestions…?
I'm not an expert, but how does doing cardio "burn muscle fibers?" Maybe if you do hours of cardio a day, and are already lean (like under 18% BF for a woman), but otherwise, I don't see how that happens. I know marathoners can lose muscle mass, but again, very lean, and hours of running....
Am I mistaken?0 -
Has anyone ever switched their routine up and cut back on cardio and done more weights? I love love love cardio, so I know this will be hard for me, and I truly don't want to cut out all cardio (I do a 10mile run once a week). I was told that all of the cardio I do is burning my muscle fibers and I should look at lifting weights more.
I kind of want to, I just don't want to cut out all cardio. I currently do 60 min of cardio and 20-30 min of weights 6 days a week. Is it possible to continue with this same routine 3 days a week and then 3 days a week I do 30 min of cardio and 60 min of weights…? or will that still be too much cardio? I do want to build muscle, I'm not trying to be "skinny" I just really love the way I feel after a hard core cardio session so that's why I like doing cardio.
Anyyyy suggestions…?
I'm not an expert, but how does doing cardio "burn muscle fibers?" Maybe if you do hours of cardio a day, and are already lean (like under 18% BF for a woman), but otherwise, I don't see how that happens. I know marathoners can lose muscle mass, but again, very lean, and hours of running....
Am I mistaken?
I'm not an expert either and I'm not saying cardio does that. I'm just saying I was told that by a man that works in Golds and has been weight lifting for years. I didn't really know how true that was, that's why I came to the forum0 -
Has anyone ever switched their routine up and cut back on cardio and done more weights? I love love love cardio, so I know this will be hard for me, and I truly don't want to cut out all cardio (I do a 10mile run once a week). I was told that all of the cardio I do is burning my muscle fibers and I should look at lifting weights more.
I kind of want to, I just don't want to cut out all cardio. I currently do 60 min of cardio and 20-30 min of weights 6 days a week. Is it possible to continue with this same routine 3 days a week and then 3 days a week I do 30 min of cardio and 60 min of weights…? or will that still be too much cardio? I do want to build muscle, I'm not trying to be "skinny" I just really love the way I feel after a hard core cardio session so that's why I like doing cardio.
Anyyyy suggestions…?
I'm not an expert, but how does doing cardio "burn muscle fibers?" Maybe if you do hours of cardio a day, and are already lean (like under 18% BF for a woman), but otherwise, I don't see how that happens. I know marathoners can lose muscle mass, but again, very lean, and hours of running....
Am I mistaken?
I'm not an expert either and I'm not saying cardio does that. I'm just saying I was told that by a man that works in Golds and has been weight lifting for years. I didn't really know how true that was, that's why I came to the forum
Yeah, I am curious as to others' input on that, also.0
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 391.9K Introduce Yourself
- 43.5K Getting Started
- 259.8K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.7K Food and Nutrition
- 47.3K Recipes
- 232.3K Fitness and Exercise
- 399 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.4K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 152.8K Motivation and Support
- 7.9K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.4K MyFitnessPal Information
- 23 News and Announcements
- 978 Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.4K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions