Mythbusters? Cardio, Weight Loss.. Weights, Bulk?

sunshineallthetime4

Hi all. I'm a 5'4" female looking to lose about 15 more pounds. I am very athletic and have fair muscle definition. I dance and run on a very regular basis. In my weight loss journey, I don't want to "bulk out". I'd like my already muscular thighs to still fit in my jeans!

I see a lot of conflicting information about whether to do cardio or weights or a combo for weight loss.

Here is what I've been doing. I'm curious if anyone can explain why I should potentially add weights and reduce cardio -- I've always heard that the cardio is what burns the fat. However, others say the loss will be increased and accelerated if I alternate with "rest" days.

My typical week:

As for exercise, I almost always do 30-40 min cardio in the afternoon on weekdays, burning about 400 calories. One or two days a week I tend to take advanced level dance/fitness classes, which are extremely aerobic and are averaged to burn 400-500 additional calories. Sometimes I'll do a single weekend run or class, but often I rest.

This week, my average cal burned/day way about 630 with 5 consecutive days of intense cardio.

I've heard that I should possibly do less cardio days and alternate with weights....

Any trainers or experts out there able to explain why/if I should make some adjustments to my workout regimen? I definitely can tell that I'm toning up and losing some inches, but it's just a very slow crawl.

Thanks for any advice!

tpt1950

I'm no expert but there are hundreds of threads at MFP and thousands of sites via Google that will tell you that if all you do is cardio to lose weight eventually you will start to lose lean muscle and not fat. Strength training (on alternate days with cardio) will help build your muscle to where it keeps your metabolism burning calories for a longer period of time than cardio. Together they are the perfect combo to lose body fat and not lean muscle.

quirkytizzy

I'm sorry. I have to.



I wish they would do an episode on exercise myths. Maybe I can suggest that on their site!