Cardio Vs. Toning exercises?

lmgroszek

I have a question for anyone wiling to answer. My sister-in-law swears that the only way to really lose weight is by sticking to cardiovascular exercise like running or Zumba, things like that. But I read everywhere that you have to do crunches, sit-ups, etc to tone your belly and work on the muscles. She claims this is wrong because even if you do the exercises, the fat is still there on top of it and you'll just end up with more weight from the addition of muscle. Is there any truth to this? Should I stick with cardio until I reach my desired weight and then worry about toning the belly area??? Thanks for any answers I may get.

thepetiterunner

She's right in the sense that only doing crunches, sit-ups, etc, isn't going to give you a flat set of washboard abs if you're still lugging around an extra 30 lb of fat.

You have to do both. Cardio to burn the fat off, toning exercises to shape the abs you have. They work in tandem. If you're just starting out, I'd say stick with the cardio most of the time to give you more "visual" results in the beginning. Then focus on toning to "fine tune" your newly revealed abs.

nikolaim5

There is no such thing as a toning exercise. What you mean is losing body fat. That is done by eating less. lifting weights will build muscle.

Also, you can't reduce fat in a specific area short of liposuction. Your body will lose it all over.

kateroot

There is no such thing as a toning exercise. What you mean is losing body fat. That is done by eating less. lifting weights will build muscle.

^This.