Is cardio even necessary?

angiechimpanzee
angiechimpanzee Posts: 536 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
According to my understanding, the primary purpose of cardio is to burn fat (amongst its other non-weightloss related benefits). But calorie reduction does the same thing. And strength training is the only way to maintain/gain muscle, correct?

So couldn't fat loss & muscle gain be a two-step process?
FIRST the persons creates a prolonged calorie deficit (by EITHER calorie reduction, cardio, or both) & then
SECOND, once a certain weight is reached, introduce strength training, an increased calorie limit & an increased protein intake to gain muscle?

So technically, a person could become slim & toned without having to do cardio if strength training is introduced after most of the desired fat is lost?

Replies

  • mgmlap
    mgmlap Posts: 1,377 Member
    Cardio builds endurance..and helps build heart and lungs..thats what I do it..and I love being outdoors..
  • wackyfunster
    wackyfunster Posts: 944 Member
    You want to strength train while cutting to preserve lean body mass and prevent a corresponding reduction in BMR.
    Cardio is optional.

    You cannot gain muscle at a caloric deficit (perhaps if you are morbidly obese it could be possible, but even then it's doubtful).
  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
    You're correct, you can lose fat through calorie restriction alone.

    If you're thinking of strength training though why wait until you've lost the weight? You can start immediately and start deriving benefits immediately. While you won't pack on muscle while in a caloric deficit you will become stronger and can work on developing good technique.

    You can mitigate lean muscles lost while "dieting" by doing strength training and ensuring you're getting enough protein.

    The fat burning mythology surrounding cardio is largely that. If you're exercising at an adequate intensity to derive a significant cardiovascular benefit you're burning a significantly higher proportion of calories from carbohydrates (stored as glycogen in your muscle tissue & liver) than from fat. If you're in the so-called "fat burning zone" you're working out at a very low intensity and, while burning a higher proportion of calories from fat, burning quite a small amount of calories. (Sometimes I think the "fat burning zone" - except in the context of endurance athletes - was started by fitness equipment manufacturers as a way of ensuring people would remain long-term customers of the gyms which bought said equipment........./conspiracy theory)
  • daphnemoon
    daphnemoon Posts: 216 Member
    I do it because I love doing it. The health benefits are a bonus!
  • kareinlib
    kareinlib Posts: 98
    Most people do cardio to burn calories and thus gain another much-needed bunch of calories that they are able to eat through the day. It also makes you feel better and healthier in general because your heart, lungs, etc. are getting stronger.
  • NikoM5
    NikoM5 Posts: 488 Member
    According to my understanding, the primary purpose of cardio is to burn fat (amongst its other non-weightloss related benefits). But calorie reduction does the same thing. And strength training is the only way to maintain/gain muscle, correct?

    So couldn't fat loss & muscle gain be a two-step process?
    FIRST the persons creates a prolonged calorie deficit (by EITHER calorie reduction, cardio, or both) & then
    SECOND, once a certain weight is reached, introduce strength training, an increased calorie limit & an increased protein intake to gain muscle?

    So technically, a person could become slim & toned without having to do cardio if strength training is introduced after most of the desired fat is lost?

    You are correct. I do zero traditional cardio. I say traditional because I lift with enough intensity that my heart rate is elevated during my entire lifting session. Diet trumps cardio by a HUGE margin in terms of it's ability to affect fat loss. A 130lb woman would have to run at 5mph for 2.5 hours just to burn off a Big Mac meal. I'd rather just not eat the Big Mac meal :/ That's being said, cardio improves endurance and can thus improve your ability to lift weights with increasing intensity so it's not a bad thing is small doses even for those who's primary goal is to gain muscle.
  • amcswain01
    amcswain01 Posts: 26 Member
    Cardio can build muscle. Have you ever seen the leg muscles on some runners? I don't do much if any weights and I can feel my abs and leg muscles getting toned from running.
  • NikoM5
    NikoM5 Posts: 488 Member
    Cardio can build muscle. Have you ever seen the leg muscles on some runners? I don't do much if any weights and I can feel my abs and leg muscles getting toned from running.

    Toned is simply lowering fat to make the existing muscle more prevalent. Toning has nothing to do with gaining muscle. I totally agree that any exercise has the potential to build some muscle over no exercise at all but running is a far from optimal way to do it.
  • angiechimpanzee
    angiechimpanzee Posts: 536 Member
    Cardio can build muscle. Have you ever seen the leg muscles on some runners? I don't do much if any weights and I can feel my abs and leg muscles getting toned from running.

    Toned is simply lowering fat to make the existing muscle more prevalent. Toning has nothing to do with gaining muscle. I totally agree that any exercise has the potential to build some muscle over no exercise at all but running is a far from optimal way to do it.
    Actually I kind of feel like toning IS gaining muscle, just to a smaller extent. When I say I want to gain muscle, I don't mean buff bodybuilder guy. I actually mean I want to tone. Runners have visibly nicer legs (& sometimes abs) than people who are just as slim, but don't workout. So I'm pretty sure that means they have not just less fat, but more leg muscle as well.
    You are correct. I do zero traditional cardio. I say traditional because I lift with enough intensity that my heart rate is elevated during my entire lifting session. Diet trumps cardio by a HUGE margin in terms of it's ability to affect fat loss. A 130lb woman would have to run at 5mph for 2.5 hours just to burn off a Big Mac meal. I'd rather just not eat the Big Mac meal :/ That's being said, cardio improves endurance and can thus improve your ability to lift weights with increasing intensity so it's not a bad thing is small doses even for those who's primary goal is to gain muscle.
    I definitely agree with this.
  • ndirish4life
    ndirish4life Posts: 17
    If you don't want to imporove endurance and have a healthy heart, then no. It's not. I would suggest it though :)
  • NikoM5
    NikoM5 Posts: 488 Member

    Actually I kind of feel like toning IS gaining muscle, just to a smaller extent. When I say I want to gain muscle, I don't mean buff bodybuilder guy. I actually mean I want to tone. Runners have visibly nicer legs (& sometimes abs) than people who are just as slim, but don't workout. So I'm pretty sure that means they have not just less fat, but more leg muscle as well.

    Here in lies the problem with the word "tone", "toned", "toning", etc. People think it means something that it isn't. Muscle tone has nothing to do with muscle mass by very definition of the word. Look up "tone" in the dictionary, it has nothing to do with size. Muscle tone is simply the product of low body fat, thus allowing you to see the muscle's definition without the smoothing effect of a lot of fat between the skin and muscle. Iggy Pop is toned. Now what most people actually mean when they use the word "toned" is low body fat AND increased muscle mass. This is due to magazines and celebrity gossip television shows that toss the word around without knowing what the hell it means. Thus, "toned" becomes associated with a certain look when really it's only half the story.

    Now this wouldn't be such a problem if "toning" were a singular goal. People say "I want to get toned" and think that there's a singular approach to achieving that goal. The reality is that "toned", by most people's idea of the word (low BF + increased muscle mass), requires two separate and often contradictory approaches to achieve. Training can be identical for both goals but diet should be different when trying to gain muscle or lose fat.

    Angie, you actually have the two goals bang on in your original post. Just avoid the word tone!! ;)
  • DMZ_1
    DMZ_1 Posts: 2,889 Member
    Cardio is beneficial. There is a cardio section in the bootcamp classes I take. I also play tennis.
  • cedarghost
    cedarghost Posts: 621 Member
    Nope. I strength train for 15 minutes 3 days a week and I sweat more and get my heart rate up more than anyone else in there. But I am doing High Intensity Interval Strength training. 4 to 5 exercises working the whole body, 12 reps of each the first set with no rest in between, 90 seconds of rest after all 5 are complete, then do all 5 again for 10 reps, rest 90 seconds then do all 5 again for 8 reps. You should be failing on your last rep every set and quivering when you are done.
    Look up 15 minute workouts if you are interested.
    Takes me forever to catch my breath after the first 2 minutes and my heart rate stays way up for most of the workout.
    Now I do also do 1 day per week 15 minutes High Intensity Interval Training on cardio equipment as well. To maximize my afterburn.

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