Lifting produces amazing results, but I have a question.

MNA76

I've seen many posts showing the amazing results of lifting/heavy lifting. There is no dispute that it's a great way to build strength and become a leaner, meaner ; ) version of oneself.

As a person that started off needing to lose more than 100 lbs, I've lost most of it doing cardio only. Now that I've gotten a good portion of the weight off, I've started focusing more on adding lifting/muscle conditioning in regular routine in addition to the cardio.
I'm starting to focus more on body composition rather than weight. It's sometimes a bit of a process to make that mental shift.

So, herein lies my question: Are there any of you people out there that have lost 100+ lbs or more through lifting alone (no cardio)? I'd really love to hear/see some success stories. Please share.

I've seen a lot of results from extremely well-sculpted individuals that only lift weights and do no cardio whatsoever. I've seen people lose a lot of weight and become 'skinny fat' (or start that way), then start lifting and completely change their physiques.

I personally think that a balance of both is what is going to work best for me.

mogletdeluxe

Bump. Am in a very similar boat to you - lost the vast majority of my weight through intense cardio, but my shape has changed massively since lifting heavy. Will watch this with interest!

ttkg

I am just responding to give you a bump in the hopes that someone more knowledgeable will jump on this. Hmmm

Sarauk2sf

I have not lost over 100lb, however, my suggestion/opinion is:

- start strength training now. While a well planned full body workout based around compound lifts will be best in your case, any program will be beneficial. You should look into Stronglifts 5 x 5 if you have access to a gym. This group has a lot of information:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/4601-stronglifts-5x5-for-women

- you can lose weight without cardio - it is all about the caloric deficit. Cardio does have a lot of benefits to it however.

- you can also increase your activity through NEAT (non-exercise activity) - this is an ofttimes under-appreciated way to increase your deficit.

As I say, I have not lost 100lb+ but I lost all my weight by ensuring I was at a caloric deficit and strength training. The amount of cardio I do is minimal (usually about 12 minutes after lifting only). I am not saying not to do it, I am just saying it is not necessary for weight loss or body composition.

tameko2

Howdy!

Fat loss comes from caloric deficit. Period. The reason most people like to add cardio for fat loss is to increase that deficit - its actually generally more important for people who are leaner to do cardio as otherwise they have a hard time eating low enough to lose while still getting enough nutrients unless they do it. (there are OTHER reasons to do cardio, for health, but its not required to lose weight).

I have not lost as much as you are asking about, but in terms of relative SIZE I've lost about 70 lbs. I went from a size 16 to a comfortable 8 (not tight anywhere) with only 40-50 lbs lost., doing very little deliberate cardio (I did complete C25k at some point last year, and when I first started losing all I did was walk for 45 minutes). Actually today's jeans are a 6, and comfy, but I think they're just a weird cut. If I squeeze, I can wear a six in other things, but its not comfy at ALL.

I am not 'extremely well sculpted or anything' (I'll change my profile pic in a second to a recent one) but hopefully the above helps you? I know its not quite what you asked for but - I did start from very over-fat (210 or so) and I'm now 165ish. Also I eat a LOT more than most people and I'm getting visible results from it - 2100. I attribute that to the lifting, entirely.

I do however, walk more than an average suburbanite with a desk job. My friend and I tend to go across the street for coffee a couple times a week, and we walk a mile round trip to pick up lunch, and on weekends I tend to walk to my local farmers market which is about 3 miles round trip. Not ridiculous amounts or anything but probably a good deal more than many.

ETA - my size 16 was a 'i barely fit in these' 16. It probably should have been an 18. But I was and still kind of am in denial. either way, I was very ...fluffy.

rachelilb

Bump...very interested in this subject

GloriaAnn72

I do both and I have to do some cardio or I won't lose weight. I do have a question, I am new to this site and I do a series of machine and free weights, but I don't get any points for calories burned in the exercise part??!! I am sure that I am doing something wrong and I know that I burn calories when I lift. Any help would be appreciated.

Sarauk2sf

I do both and I have to do some cardio or I won't lose weight. I do have a question, I am new to this site and I do a series of machine and free weights, but I don't get any points for calories burned in the exercise part??!! I am sure that I am doing something wrong and I know that I burn calories when I lift. Any help would be appreciated.

You can find it under cardio - not very intuitive I know.

suzely0530

I do both and I have to do some cardio or I won't lose weight. I do have a question, I am new to this site and I do a series of machine and free weights, but I don't get any points for calories burned in the exercise part??!! I am sure that I am doing something wrong and I know that I burn calories when I lift. Any help would be appreciated.

You can find it under cardio - not very intuitive I know.

OMG...I did not know that either !! LOL !

Bakkasan

I'd suggest anyone do both from the start unless you are large enough to make it difficult to get even in a machine. After consulting a doctor!

kooltray87

Far from an expert but people usually say cardio will make you look good with clothes on, and strength training makes you look good naked...in other words cardio is a great way to lose weight, but strength training is the really the only way to shape (sculpt) you body. Some will prefer one over the other but a good exercise routine must contain both cardio and strength training to be most effective. Even professional bodybuilders incorporate cardio into their programs. Hope that helps.

FitBeto

Do 5/3/1 with power assistance or BBB. I've made more progress with that then 5x5 - I injured myself with 5x5

T1mH

I do both and I have to do some cardio or I won't lose weight. I do have a question, I am new to this site and I do a series of machine and free weights, but I don't get any points for calories burned in the exercise part??!! I am sure that I am doing something wrong and I know that I burn calories when I lift. Any help would be appreciated.

Under cardio is a strength training option. Though calculating calories burned while lifting is very difficult. It all depends on weight, intensity, how fast your doing it.

Lifting does not burn near as much while your doing it as cardio does but its the gift that keeps on giving. Muscle burns more energy to rebuild and maintain so your body will burn more at rest the better the shape you get in.

ItsCasey

I lost about 60 lbs doing only cardio and then another 40 doing about 90% strength training, 10% cardio. Took me a year to lose the 60. Took me about 5 months to lose the next 40. But the amazing thing to me was that after 60 lbs, I still looked just like I did before, only on a smaller scale, which tells me I lost a lot of muscle. Three months of heavy lifting completely changed my body. I dropped several dress sizes very quickly. The rapid change actually did sort of a mental number on me because in my mind, I was still a fat girl, but in the mirror, I was starting to look really fit, and it didn't make sense to me that cutting out all those hours of cardio and picking up some heavy weight did that. I had been told all my life that cardio was the best (the ONLY) solution.

I guess what I'm saying is that I think it's a mistake to try to lose ANY amount of weight with cardio alone. Even if you have no interest in adding any lean mass, you need to do some kind of resistance training to maintain the lean mass you currently have. As for doing strength training alone, I think it depends on your concept of strength training. You can get an excellent cardiovascular workout from weight lifting, assuming proper loading parameters, set/rep structure, doing compound lifts, etc. Conditioning is sort of an incidental benefit. But if your idea of strength training is biceps curls and triceps kickbacks, I would not remove traditional cardio from the equation.

Docmahi

I was 270 when i started losing weight solely though lifting alone (and a bit of scuba diving) but I didnt do any cardio my first year of weight loss

I went from 270-220 ( I am 5'9) with ease - I wasn't really tracking what I ate and I was gaining strength consistently through the first year. My last year I have gone from 220-to now about 203ish this morning and I have had to supplement cardio after every weight session - also my strength gains have significantly slowed down.

That being said I love to lift and its what has kept me at least in the gym for the past two years. I think i was losing weight with lifting initially just because I was so obese. I used a heart rate monitor to try and accurately gauge how many calories i am burning during a full lifting session and unless I am doing heavy deadlifts or squats I guess my body has gotten used to it cause my HR really doesn't get above 120 anymore - where as during stairclimbs it gets well into the 150s and can sustain there for quite sometime.

eyeshuh

I guess what I'm saying is that I think it's a mistake to try to lose ANY amount of weight with cardio alone. Even if you have no interest in adding any lean mass, you need to do some kind of resistance training to maintain the lean mass you currently have.

Not trying to hijack this thread or anything, but out of curiosity: do exercises with small weights (i.e. 30 Day Shred & other small weight repetition exercises) and using body weight (i.e. push-ups) count as "resistance training" with regard to preserving lean body mass?

Sarauk2sf

Do 5/3/1 with power assistance or BBB. I've made more progress with that then 5x5 - I injured myself with 5x5

You are suggesting 5/3/1 to a beginner? Really?

hoosierlad

It is great you are lifting as I think it is critical to truly getting in shape and helping to burn more calories / fat. I definitely think you need both lifting and cardio. Cardio not only for additional weight loss but for the aerobic gains. Keep at it !

Sarauk2sf

I guess what I'm saying is that I think it's a mistake to try to lose ANY amount of weight with cardio alone. Even if you have no interest in adding any lean mass, you need to do some kind of resistance training to maintain the lean mass you currently have.

Not trying to hijack this thread or anything, but out of curiosity: do exercises with small weights (i.e. 30 Day Shred & other small weight repetition exercises) and using body weight (i.e. push-ups) count as "resistance training" with regard to preserving lean body mass?

Not really - you need to have progressive loading and stay in the strength/hypertrophy range to do that.

BlueInkDot

bump for later

mamasmaltz3

Bump to read later.

stinastudios

I've lost 58 lbs. since April 2011, 12 of those pounds being just since January 1st. In the beginning, I would do an hour of straight cardio a day, but I wasn't seeing results, and I was getting so hungry that I'd blow my diet and not lose any weight. The bulk of the weight that I've lost has been with almost all weight training. The cardio I've done has just been short walks (15-30 minutes at a time.)

I don't plan to add anymore cardio to my routine, weights are the way to go for me!

jayliospecky

Well, I've lost over 70 pounds...twice. >.<

The first time I lost it I did absolutely no weights and I got down to a weight of 150.

This latest time, I did it partly without lifting weights, and just a few months before Christmas I started lifting serious weights. I currently weigh 161 and I am fitting into ALL the clothes I wore when I was 150, and some of them are actually too big on me.

I'm currently doing stronglifts, so that amounts to about 35-50 minutes per session, 3x per week. I like to do at least a little bit of cardio on off-days, and I sometimes do like 1 mile or so on the treadmill if I have the time/energy after stronglifts.

For me, personally, I suspect I need a bit of cardio (and it's good for your heart, anyways) to get my heart rate up, and from what I've read it can be a good thing for people with PCOS (which I have.) Plus I look at it as something that allows me to eat more food. And, as much as I hate to admit it, I actually like how the exercise makes me feel. *shakes fist*

I think a bit of cardio is fine, but some people will spend hours on a treadmill (for example) and unless you are training for a marathon or something, I don't really think that's necessary.

tameko2

Do 5/3/1 with power assistance or BBB. I've made more progress with that then 5x5 - I injured myself with 5x5

You are suggesting 5/3/1 to a beginner? Really?

OP and others - 5/3/1 is NOT a beginner program. Do not pick this up please, unless you have several months of CONSISTENT barbell training under your belt. 3x5 is a fine beginner program (starting strength) as is 5x5 - if you injured yourself doing 5x5 its because something was wrong with your form not because there is some MAGICAL rep range at which injury occurs.

Docmahi

Do 5/3/1 with power assistance or BBB. I've made more progress with that then 5x5 - I injured myself with 5x5

You are suggesting 5/3/1 to a beginner? Really?

OP and others - 5/3/1 is NOT a beginner program. Do not pick this up please, unless you have several months of CONSISTENT barbell training under your belt. 3x5 is a fine beginner program (starting strength) as is 5x5 - if you injured yourself doing 5x5 its because something was wrong with your form not because there is some MAGICAL rep range at which injury occurs.

Starting strength is a good place to start - If you have the dedication to actually read the 5/3/1 PDF then you could start there - but I tend to agree its not something I would suggest to start with especially if you are unfamiliar with a lot of the big barbell lifts

Sarauk2sf

Do 5/3/1 with power assistance or BBB. I've made more progress with that then 5x5 - I injured myself with 5x5

You are suggesting 5/3/1 to a beginner? Really?

OP and others - 5/3/1 is NOT a beginner program. Do not pick this up please, unless you have several months of CONSISTENT barbell training under your belt. 3x5 is a fine beginner program (starting strength) as is 5x5 - if you injured yourself doing 5x5 its because something was wrong with your form not because there is some MAGICAL rep range at which injury occurs.

I would also like to add that a full split routine is not ideal when at a deficit, and should really only be considered when the gains on a full body workout are 'used up'. When at a deficit and trying to maintain LBM, you should ideally be hitting each muscle group at least 2 x a week for as long as you can. This is not to say that moving to a split routine is necessarily a bad thing, but the benefits of a full body (or at least a split that hits each muscle group twice a week) should be utilized as much as possible.

FitBeto

Do 5/3/1 with power assistance or BBB. I've made more progress with that then 5x5 - I injured myself with 5x5

You are suggesting 5/3/1 to a beginner? Really?

OP and others - 5/3/1 is NOT a beginner program. Do not pick this up please, unless you have several months of CONSISTENT barbell training under your belt. 3x5 is a fine beginner program (starting strength) as is 5x5 - if you injured yourself doing 5x5 its because something was wrong with your form not because there is some MAGICAL rep range at which injury occurs.

I would also like to add that a full split routine is not ideal when at a deficit, and should really only be considered when the gains on a full body workout are 'used up'. When at a deficit and trying to maintain LBM, you should ideally be hitting each muscle group at least 2 x a week for as long as you can. This is not to say that moving to a split routine is necessarily a bad thing, but the benefits of a full body (or at least a split that hits each muscle group twice a week) should be utilized as much as possible.

5/3/1 is squat, bench, press, and deadlift. The same as 5x5. You progress at 65% of 90% of your one rep max. You increase weight every month not every workout. You can choose power assistance or a BBB and you have the option of having a 'split' routine - but the whole program revolves around the big lifts as being important. in fact, its not even 5 sets of your main lift - its 3x5, 3x3, and 5/3/1 where the last set you get as many as you can. Slow progressive loading - slower than 5x5, so I dont see how it can not be used as a beginner program

Sarauk2sf

Do 5/3/1 with power assistance or BBB. I've made more progress with that then 5x5 - I injured myself with 5x5

You are suggesting 5/3/1 to a beginner? Really?

OP and others - 5/3/1 is NOT a beginner program. Do not pick this up please, unless you have several months of CONSISTENT barbell training under your belt. 3x5 is a fine beginner program (starting strength) as is 5x5 - if you injured yourself doing 5x5 its because something was wrong with your form not because there is some MAGICAL rep range at which injury occurs.

I would also like to add that a full split routine is not ideal when at a deficit, and should really only be considered when the gains on a full body workout are 'used up'. When at a deficit and trying to maintain LBM, you should ideally be hitting each muscle group at least 2 x a week for as long as you can. This is not to say that moving to a split routine is necessarily a bad thing, but the benefits of a full body (or at least a split that hits each muscle group twice a week) should be utilized as much as possible.

5/3/1 is squat, bench, press, and deadlift. The same as 5x5. You progress at 65% of 90% of your one rep max. You increase weight every month not every workout. You can choose power assistance or a BBB and you have the option of having a 'split' routine - but the whole program revolves around the big lifts as being important. in fact, its not even 5 sets of your main lift - its 3x5, 3x3, and 5/3/1 where the last set you get as many as you can. Slow progressive loading - slower than 5x5, so I dont see how it can not be used as a beginner program

I know what 5/3/1 is - I do it myself.

It's not a beginners program