Cardio instead of weight training for weight loss?

MyfavoriteMe

I'm currently at 175, down 12 pounds since I began eating clean and working out. I've tried doing the 30 DS a few times before (but never got beyond 20 or so days of it because of my busy schedule), and I just started it up again about a week ago, but now I'm reading on the boards that what I really might want to be focusing on is cardio? I'm looking to lose weight, not gain muscle. I'm actually fairly muscular already.

Note: I'm living in a little studio in Belgium, in a tiny town, we don't even have a local gym, so treadmills and such aren't available for me, and I can't really run on the streets because most of them are cobblestones So what I'm looking for is a video program like the 30DS but more focused on cardio I guess.

BorntoROAR

Both cardio and weight training are important elements of a weight loss program! I'm ignoring strength training right now, and I hate that, but I will start it here in about 4 weeks after I graduate from grad school.

I think you are proving that you are successful with what you are doing so I would stick with it. I have bought 30 day shred, but it's still in the packaging. From what I can read on the back of the package, it seems like a combo on strength training and cardio.

Anything that gets your heart rate up and causes you to break a sweat is cardio. If you can't run on cobblestone, I'm sure you can walk, and walking uphill is GREAT!!!

Be consistent in what you are doing, and be patient. You will get to where you are going as long as you follow those two rules.

Good luck!

shadow2soul

General rule of thumb is you can't gain muscle while eating at a deficit.

Strength training helps to keep from losing LBM. It also helps you lose inches. Meaning you'll be able to fit into even smaller clothes.

Cardio alone will burn both LBM and fat.

You will also be stronger if you continue with the strength training. Stronger doesn't mean that you will have more muscle. To actually gain muscle you have to eat a surplus of calories.

BusyRaeNOTBusty

30 day shred pretty much is cardio.

But weight lifting preserves muscle as you lose fat. Muscle is good and it's sad to lose it.

Juniper617

I just did my first 30 day shred yesterday. it was tough!! My arms are killing me today. I'm looking to tone up and only loose about 20lbs. I am hoping this work our series will work for me. What do you guys think?

MarioLozano16

You should do both. Your results will be a whole lot better

4theking

General rule of thumb is you can't gain muscle while eating at a deficit.

Strength training helps to keep from losing LBM. It also helps you lose inches. Meaning you'll be able to fit into even smaller clothes.

Cardio alone will burn both LBM and muscle.

You will also be stronger if you continue with the strength training. Stronger doesn't mean that you will have more muscle. To actually gain muscle you have to eat a surplus of calories.

Good post! I would like to add, lifting weights will boost fat burning hormones while most cardio has the opposite effect. Walking is a great exercise to burn calories, increase blood flow to the fat, increase fat burning enzyme activity, and not have a negative effect on fat burning hormones.

SGSmallman

Do both but my mindset is;

Cardio for Fitness/ stamina

Weight training/ resistance for weight loss

I enjoy cardio so I do circuit training which incorporates HIIT and weighted resistance training using barbells and dumbells.

End of the day you can't have one without the other

tequila09

For weight loss all you really need is a calorie deficit whether it comes from diet or cardio is up to you. Weight training is important when you are in a deficit in order to not lose a lot of muscle mass while you are losing weight. So basically do whatever makes you feel the best but i personally LOVE weight training.

KeepCalmNGetyaSweatOn

I vote for both as well.

Cookibw

I started a new gym 1/8/13 and; I did both weights and cardio for two months but there was no weight loss. So now I only do cardio workouts, for me its working so far I've loss 14lbs just doing cardio and counting calories. Good luck!!:happy:

SGSmallman

I started a new gym 1/8/13 and; I did both weights and cardio for two months but there was no weight loss. So now I only do cardio workouts, for me its working so far I've loss 14lbs just doing cardio and counting calories. Good luck!!:happy:

Have you tried working out your body fat % and measurements- you could have been gaining muscle and losing fat during that time but now are losing that extra built up muscle and the water retention that goes along with repairing trained muscles

cwolfman13

1. 30Ds is cardio...pretty much circuit training with some light weights thrown in

2. If you are dieting (i.e. eating at a deficit) you can't build any appreciable muscle...in fact, when you diet you lose muscle as well as fat.

3. Weight training/resistance training helps to preserve muscle while in a deficit, resulting in a better physique when you get to your goal weight.

4. Cardio is basically weight lifting for the heart...yes, you burn calories, but your cardio work should be focused on specific fitness goals, not just calorie burn...if you're using the MFP method, you're supposed to eat back exercise calories anyway.

5. Cardio and diet only will result in weight loss, but a lot of it will be muscle as well as fat in the absence of resistance training; your fitness program should incorporate all aspects of fitness, which includes cardiovascular health as well as strength training.

xidia

I started a new gym 1/8/13 and; I did both weights and cardio for two months but there was no weight loss. So now I only do cardio workouts, for me its working so far I've loss 14lbs just doing cardio and counting calories. Good luck!!:happy:

You've lost weight, but some of that weight is muscle mass. That means your metabolism is lower, because muscle burns calories just sitting there, and you've got less of it doing that now. You'll also be less firm than if you'd shed fat while maintaining the same amount of muscle because the muscle is no longer there to support the fat.

Tape measure >> scales

redraidergirl2009

If you just do cardio you'll be skinny-fat. I'd rather look thinner and weight a bit more than be flabby and weight less but to each their own.

samanthajade124

30 day shred pretty much is cardio.

But weight lifting preserves muscle as you lose fat. Muscle is good and it's sad to lose it.

30 Day Shred is a combination of cardio, strength, and abs. There are 3 levels, 10 days on each level. Each level has 3 circuits to the workout..which is 3 minutes of strength, 2 minutes of cardio, and 1 minute of abs. (repeat for circuit 2 and 3) but with slightly different exercises.

silverinc13

Is your food diary accurate? If so you are not eating enough to fuel any sort of workout!

crazybookworm

I really recommend doing both. Muscle strength is just as important for a healthy lifestyle. You can focus on more on toning muscle rather than gaining it.

For workout videos, there is a great youtube channel called BEFIT- They have full length or short length videos including the full 30 days shred program and other great, popular routines! http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCD0nBMLdq_KbIK9u-mzpNkA

Good luck!

lizziebeth1028

I'm currently at 175, down 12 pounds since I began eating clean and working out. I've tried doing the 30 DS a few times before (but never got beyond 20 or so days of it because of my busy schedule), and I just started it up again about a week ago, but now I'm reading on the boards that what I really might want to be focusing on is cardio? I'm looking to lose weight, not gain muscle. I'm actually fairly muscular already.

Note: I'm living in a little studio in Belgium, in a tiny town, we don't even have a local gym, so treadmills and such aren't available for me, and I can't really run on the streets because most of them are cobblestones So what I'm looking for is a video program like the 30DS but more focused on cardio I guess.

30 day shred is cardio (circuit training cardio). It's a good work out but not considered strength training in the true sense of the term. I believe a good fitness program contains both strength and cardio. For strength training - focus on compound moves (pushups, pullups, planks, bench presses, overhead presses, deadlifts). Use weights that challenge you (if you can do more than 12 reps it's too light). The 'new rules of lifting for women' is a good book with lot's of info on strength training and includes a workout routine. For cardio - youtube is your friend!! So many good workouts available for free. I've recently got hooked on the Jessica Smith TV channel and the BeFit channel.

briiiiness

I do Insanity.

You don't need much space and the workouts are constantly changing which makes it exciting. The first month the workouts including 2 sets of stretches are 45 minutes long, the second being close to an hour.

The results are amazing.

skeo

I've tossed out my scale, and quite frankly, only weigh myself once a month on the scale at the gym. I used to be a cardio bunny, doing at least 60 minutes on the elliptical 5 days a week, still feeling weak and tired and quite frankly exhausted. But my clothes didn't look any better on me, the number on the scale went down, so still feeling frustrated as hell, i threw out my scale and purchased a set of body callipers and a tape measurer, I've gone from 33% body fat to 29%, my clothes fit better, but the real kicker is I weigh about the same.

SW = 160lbs
CW = 158lbs

The only cardio I do now, literally is 10 minutes of high intensity intervals on the elliptical before I start my work out. Starting resistance level 4 for 1 minute, and then level 15 for 1 minute. Then I hit the weights hard for an hour.

Track your progress and set your fitness goals based on body fat, not the number on the scale.

Mrs_Duh

Do both cardio and weight training.

jlapey

General rule of thumb is you can't gain muscle while eating at a deficit.

Strength training helps to keep from losing LBM. It also helps you lose inches. Meaning you'll be able to fit into even smaller clothes.

Cardio alone will burn both LBM and muscle.

You will also be stronger if you continue with the strength training. Stronger doesn't mean that you will have more muscle. To actually gain muscle you have to eat a surplus of calories.

Good post! I would like to add, lifting weights will boost fat burning hormones while most cardio has the opposite effect. Walking is a great exercise to burn calories, increase blood flow to the fat, increase fat burning enzyme activity, and not have a negative effect on fat burning hormones.

So for optimum fat burning, I should supplement my 3x a week lifting session with steady-state walking on my off days?

VpinkLotus

General rule of thumb is you can't gain muscle while eating at a deficit.

This sentence is confusing to me. I have just a few lbs left to lose so I AM counting cals right now. But also lifting. So does this mean that you cannot build muscle while trying to shed lbs? Because if I have to choose between shedding the last few and gaining muscle, I choose muscle. Can someone clarify this a bit for me? Lifting WHILE using a deficit is not adding muscle? Don't get it... :huh:

drchimpanzee

General rule of thumb is you can't gain muscle while eating at a deficit.

This sentence is confusing to me. I have just a few lbs left to lose so I AM counting cals right now. But also lifting. So does this mean that you cannot build muscle while trying to shed lbs? Because if I have to choose between shedding the last few and gaining muscle, I choose muscle. Can someone clarify this a bit for me? Lifting WHILE using a deficit is not adding muscle? Don't get it... :huh:

Just from reading around, if you're not already really built out and if you have extra weight to shed you CAN build muscle and lose fat just not as much muscle as you would if you were focusing on bulking up.

phjorg

General rule of thumb is you can't gain muscle while eating at a deficit.

This sentence is confusing to me. I have just a few lbs left to lose so I AM counting cals right now. But also lifting. So does this mean that you cannot build muscle while trying to shed lbs? Because if I have to choose between shedding the last few and gaining muscle, I choose muscle. Can someone clarify this a bit for me? Lifting WHILE using a deficit is not adding muscle? Don't get it... :huh:

losing pounds is NOT the same thing as losing fat.

Lifting preserves muscle mass. (you don't use it, you lose it principle)
Preserving muscle mass means that calorie deficit chooses other types of mass to lose instead. like fat.

And yes, lifting while in deficit does not build muscle. Muscle has to comes from somewhere. (food) there are some exceptions, like being totally untrained, being really fat, and using drugs. But outside of those 3 (and even then it's not guaranteed) it's just not going to happen.

VpinkLotus

General rule of thumb is you can't gain muscle while eating at a deficit.

This sentence is confusing to me. I have just a few lbs left to lose so I AM counting cals right now. But also lifting. So does this mean that you cannot build muscle while trying to shed lbs? Because if I have to choose between shedding the last few and gaining muscle, I choose muscle. Can someone clarify this a bit for me? Lifting WHILE using a deficit is not adding muscle? Don't get it... :huh:

Just from reading around, if you're not already really built out and if you have extra weight to shed you CAN build muscle and lose fat just not as much muscle as you would if you were focusing on bulking up.

Thanks DC. That is what I was thinking. i can def see my muscles peeking out a bit. Okay, then i'll just keep doing what I'm doing I guess?

SGSmallman

General rule of thumb is you can't gain muscle while eating at a deficit.

This sentence is confusing to me. I have just a few lbs left to lose so I AM counting cals right now. But also lifting. So does this mean that you cannot build muscle while trying to shed lbs? Because if I have to choose between shedding the last few and gaining muscle, I choose muscle. Can someone clarify this a bit for me? Lifting WHILE using a deficit is not adding muscle? Don't get it... :huh:

Just from reading around, if you're not already really built out and if you have extra weight to shed you CAN build muscle and lose fat just not as much muscle as you would if you were focusing on bulking up.

Thanks DC. That is what I was thinking. i can def see my muscles peeking out a bit. Okay, then i'll just keep doing what I'm doing I guess?

Without going into too much detail regarding biomechanics you can't build muscle during a deficit you need to eat more to do that but you can strengthen and increase (to a degree) muscle mass while on a deficit.

phjorg

General rule of thumb is you can't gain muscle while eating at a deficit.

This sentence is confusing to me. I have just a few lbs left to lose so I AM counting cals right now. But also lifting. So does this mean that you cannot build muscle while trying to shed lbs? Because if I have to choose between shedding the last few and gaining muscle, I choose muscle. Can someone clarify this a bit for me? Lifting WHILE using a deficit is not adding muscle? Don't get it... :huh:

Just from reading around, if you're not already really built out and if you have extra weight to shed you CAN build muscle and lose fat just not as much muscle as you would if you were focusing on bulking up.

Thanks DC. That is what I was thinking. i can def see my muscles peeking out a bit. Okay, then i'll just keep doing what I'm doing I guess?

muscles starting to peek out could just as easily be from fat being lost and existing muscle starting to show through better. have the areas that started to peak out grown at all? like your 12" arms became 13" arms or something like that? Otherwise it's unlikely you've gained anything.

Also, when weight training your muscles will be trained to hold more water while in recovery and increase it's carb storage. Both will add a bit of size temporary, but does not mean there has been muscle growth.

lyndabraczynski

Thanks for the great advice...DO you actually have to walk fast or if you walk fast enough and long enough to break a sweat are you good? My boyfriend does an incline of 17% and a 4.2 pace...I can do this but seem to be so sore after that it hampers my other training. I am tryong to tone up and build muscle do not wish to lose LBM...

xMonroeMisfit

Continue to lift weights.

Your best bet is to start a workout program (those listed on various websites for free, i.e. 12 week programs) and follow their lay out.
Lifting weights will continuously burn more calories even after you're finished.
It will ensure you don't lose much muscle as you control your diet.

You cannot BULK at a deficit.
So what you REALLY want to do, is eat at a slight deficit from your TDEE but above your BMR.
That is what is going to get you to lose weight.

Everything else is needed, but extra.

As far as Cardio, do HIIT. Take a nice run around your block. 1 minute FAST hardcore running, the next 2 minutes moderate and do that for 10 minutes, each week lessen the gap between the intervals.