Get Off That Treadmill! Cardio is Counterproductive!

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Replies

  • KayteeBear
    KayteeBear Posts: 1,040 Member
    Well, I know, FOR MYSELF PERSONALLY, that cardio helps me waaaaay more than weight lifting/strength training did. My favourite thing is circuit training so I get both. But when I was doing mainly strength training with only a little cardio I seriously started to bulk up. I was GETTING BIGGER. The tape measure proved it and even my boyfriend noticed I was getting bigger. And since I don't want to get bigger I stopped that and started doing mainly cardio with only a little strength training and I have finally lost weight and inches after months of losing absolutely nothing.

    But that is just my personal experience. For me, cardio actually works way better than strength training (however I do have PCOS and I know of a few other ladies with it that have had the same experience with strength training bulking them up) but my favourite is to mix up the two with a bit more cardio such as days with ONLY cardio (Not like treadmill cardio, but videos that are mainly cardio but still use a lot of core and legs) and circuit training days. I no longer do JUST strength days anymore and that has shown to work for my body.
  • rm7161
    rm7161 Posts: 505
    Well, I know, FOR MYSELF PERSONALLY, that cardio helps me waaaaay more than weight lifting/strength training did. My favourite thing is circuit training so I get both. But when I was doing mainly strength training with only a little cardio I seriously started to bulk up. I was GETTING BIGGER. The tape measure proved it and even my boyfriend noticed I was getting bigger. And since I don't want to get bigger I stopped that and started doing mainly cardio with only a little strength training and I have finally lost weight and inches after months of losing absolutely nothing.

    But that is just my personal experience. For me, cardio actually works way better than strength training (however I do have PCOS and I know of a few other ladies with it that have had the same experience with strength training bulking them up) but my favourite is to mix up the two with a bit more cardio such as days with ONLY cardio (Not like treadmill cardio, but videos that are mainly cardio but still use a lot of core and legs) and circuit training days. I no longer do JUST strength days anymore and that has shown to work for my body.

    I have PCOS as well, plus hypothyroid, (and celiac disease, but that has no bearing really on weight loss... rather gluten free diet if the carbs aren't watched like a hawk, will contribute to weight gain in a recovering celiac) and I have had no issues losing weight once I started to really control my diet (use a food scale, I suggest people buy one, posthaste). But, now my thyroid is medicated, and I strictly control my caloric intake. My exercise simply doesn't burn enough calories to not watch the diet like a hawk. I don't want to spend hours in the gym either.
  • NewLIFEstyle4ME
    NewLIFEstyle4ME Posts: 4,440 Member
    bump
  • Yo_Lazarov
    Yo_Lazarov Posts: 56 Member
    Thank you very much, Mell! Appreciating the comment! :0))
  • lachesissss
    lachesissss Posts: 1,298 Member
    I sandwich it. I run, lift, and then do more low impact cardio. I currently cardio more than I lift, but that is just my preference.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    Congrats to the OP. You went trolling and you caught a whopper. You should become a trolling consultant.

    When all of the muscle heads are dropping like flies prematurely because their weak heart gives out, I wonder how counterproductive cardio will seem to them then.

    I do not do cardio as I do not like it - so, it will serve me right if I drop dead of a weak heart?
    That's a straw man argument and doesn't deserve a direct response.

    You are simply increasing your risk of cardiac death and cardiovascular disease later in life. It's pretty simple actually.

    ok then dear.

    BTW: not doing cardio does not increase my risk - it just may not reduce it. There are many other things I do to decrease the risk also.
  • tuckerrj
    tuckerrj Posts: 1,453 Member
    Muscle & Fitness is NOT a medical journal. I stopped reading it years ago when I realized that it was chuck full of guys promoting protein powder & vitamins, when their physiques were due to massive steroid use. I've dropped 12 lbs. in a month combining weightlifting and cardio in every workout. It's anecdotal evidence, I know. But there's a couple thousand people on MFP that can make the same point.
  • Yo_Lazarov
    Yo_Lazarov Posts: 56 Member
    I guess sarcasm and a sense of humour is not easily digestible, no pun intended. :0)

    Thank you for your comment.
  • Fitness4Paul
    Fitness4Paul Posts: 166 Member
    Whether something is productive or counterproductive would depend on an individual's goals. Cardio does make me feel good and improves my performance in many other activities i.e. cycling. that being said i get a good feeling from weight training too. as with cardio, weight training improves my performance in other ways with increased strength. doing both IMO provides me with good a overall health and fitness level. that said someone else might have specific goals that require more focus on one or the other.
  • latormenta2u
    latormenta2u Posts: 6
    I would start with aqua training using resistance. Less likely to damage your back and no stress on your joints.
  • MDIRunner
    MDIRunner Posts: 26
    I guess I won't run my Half Marathon Sunday....it's counter productive to everything I've ever done.
  • MDIRunner
    MDIRunner Posts: 26
    hehe. love this reply
  • rm7161
    rm7161 Posts: 505
    Whether something is productive or counterproductive would depend on an individual's goals. Cardio does make me feel good and improves my performance in many other activities i.e. cycling. that being said i get a good feeling from weight training too. as with cardio, weight training improves my performance in other ways with increased strength. doing both IMO provides me with good a overall health and fitness level. that said someone else might have specific goals that require more focus on one or the other.

    This pretty much in a nutshell.

    For the average person, combining cardio and weight training gives you the most bang for your buck, so sayeth two medical journals and um, Muscle and Fitness.

    Might be different for a bodybuilder, but that's not the goal of a great many of us here.

    edit: links added.

    http://www.muscleandfitness.com/training/other/should-you-do-weight-training-cardio-same-day

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22492939

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22460475
  • OspreyVista
    OspreyVista Posts: 464 Member
    ....
  • leaffan12
    leaffan12 Posts: 52 Member
    Bump (read thread when I have more time)
  • CallMeCupcakeDammit
    CallMeCupcakeDammit Posts: 9,377 Member
    I do cardio on separate days normally, but sometimes I run at night even if I lifted that morning, since there's a lot of time between the two.
  • rm7161
    rm7161 Posts: 505
    I guess sarcasm and a sense of humour is not easily digestible, no pun intended. :0)

    Thank you for your comment.

    You're welcome, of course you were "only joking", ha ha.

    See, I can use the same magazine to show the opposite. But it is true that there is a physical limit to the storage of glycogen, and this is the reason that bodybuilders do split days. But just sayin... there's no scientific evidence that this is actually better for an average person with a time limited schedule needing to fit exercise into a busy life. Seems that mixing it up, allows someone to get more benefits with less exercise expending on each. There is simply no difference at all between separating it and combining it, aside that you can do less exercise for the same benefit if combined.
  • MisterDubs303
    MisterDubs303 Posts: 1,216 Member
    Tell that to my ticker.
  • Inspired2run
    Inspired2run Posts: 74 Member
    *smashing head into wall*

    No kidding! Ugh!
  • Feisty_Red
    Feisty_Red Posts: 982 Member
    Please tell me now...will I make it to tomorrow? If not...I'm gonna have some pie....
  • Yo_Lazarov
    Yo_Lazarov Posts: 56 Member
    Well... I decided to see if it was true.

    The website article is here.

    http://www.muscleandfitness.com/training/other/should-you-do-weight-training-cardio-same-day
    However, the results of the studies actually showed that performing weight training and cardio on the same day had no negative effects on endurance training, resistance training, or muscle growth. In fact, they found that doing 50 percent less of both types of exercise on the same day produced the same results as doing full workouts devoted to one or the other. So, if you’ve been doing your weight training and cardio on separate days, combine your workout to get more bang for your buck.



    Sadly that is not the article in question: HIIT High Intensity Training Interval Training Anti-Catabolic Fat Burning by Dr Daniel Reardon and Mark Gilbert (page 114 of the October 2012 issue) :0))
  • IronPlayground
    IronPlayground Posts: 1,594 Member
    There seems to be a lot of misunderstanding in this thread. The article was talking about cardio being counterproductive to strength gains. If you are someone who is lifting heavy and whose goal is to gain strength/size, then cardio can and most likely will hinder your gains. If you are someone whose goal is endurance or distance running or just enjoy cardio more than lifting, then there is absolutely nothing wrong with cardio and it is a wonderful workout.

    The title of the thread is misleading, but if you take time to understand what it is saying, then you will see that it isn't bashing cardio. All it's saying is be careful how you use cardio when training for maximum strength and size.
  • megsmom2
    megsmom2 Posts: 2,362 Member
    I will keep doing my cardio,thank you. I enjoy it, it lets me eat more, and my *kitten* is looking pretty darn good because of it. I am adding some strength training too....but I am keeping my cardio. And my health thanks me for it.
  • DL717
    DL717 Posts: 31
    No, Deadlifting is KING.

    Deadlifts make me feel like a bad *kitten*. :smile:
  • Yo_Lazarov
    Yo_Lazarov Posts: 56 Member
    There seems to be a lot of misunderstanding in this thread. The article was talking about cardio being counterproductive to strength gains. If you are someone who is lifting heavy and whose goal is to gain strength/size, then cardio can and most likely will hinder your gains. If you are someone whose goal is endurance or distance running or just enjoy cardio more than lifting, then there is absolutely nothing wrong with cardio and it is a wonderful workout.

    The title of the thread is misleading, but if you take time to understand what it is saying, then you will see that it isn't bashing cardio. All it's saying is be careful how you use cardio when training for maximum strength and size.


    Thank you, IPG!!! :smile:
  • drgndancer
    drgndancer Posts: 426 Member
    There seems to be a lot of misunderstanding in this thread. The article was talking about cardio being counterproductive to strength gains. If you are someone who is lifting heavy and whose goal is to gain strength/size, then cardio can and most likely will hinder your gains. If you are someone whose goal is endurance or distance running or just enjoy cardio more than lifting, then there is absolutely nothing wrong with cardio and it is a wonderful workout.

    The title of the thread is misleading, but if you take time to understand what it is saying, then you will see that it isn't bashing cardio. All it's saying is be careful how you use cardio when training for maximum strength and size.

    That's great, and if the title of the post had been "You should separate cardio and strength to maximize gains" not many people would have had a problem with it. Instead it had a provocative and misleading title, followed by a provocative and misleading post, and incidentally a link to an article with a reasonable premise. That's what we call trolling, and it not cool. Just because the article she linked to has merit, doesn't mean her post is valid or makes sense.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    There seems to be a lot of misunderstanding in this thread. The article was talking about cardio being counterproductive to strength gains. If you are someone who is lifting heavy and whose goal is to gain strength/size, then cardio can and most likely will hinder your gains. If you are someone whose goal is endurance or distance running or just enjoy cardio more than lifting, then there is absolutely nothing wrong with cardio and it is a wonderful workout.

    The title of the thread is misleading, but if you take time to understand what it is saying, then you will see that it isn't bashing cardio. All it's saying is be careful how you use cardio when training for maximum strength and size.

    I agree with the fact that excessive cardio is not conducive to strength gains, but moderate cardio should not have that impact

    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/muscle-gain/cardio-and-mass-gains.html
  • Yo_Lazarov
    Yo_Lazarov Posts: 56 Member
    There seems to be a lot of misunderstanding in this thread. The article was talking about cardio being counterproductive to strength gains. If you are someone who is lifting heavy and whose goal is to gain strength/size, then cardio can and most likely will hinder your gains. If you are someone whose goal is endurance or distance running or just enjoy cardio more than lifting, then there is absolutely nothing wrong with cardio and it is a wonderful workout.

    The title of the thread is misleading, but if you take time to understand what it is saying, then you will see that it isn't bashing cardio. All it's saying is be careful how you use cardio when training for maximum strength and size.

    That's great, and if the title of the post had been "You should separate cardio and strength to maximize gains" not many people would have had a problem with it. Instead it had a provocative and misleading title, followed by a provocative and misleading post, and incidentally a link to an article with a reasonable premise. That's what we call trolling, and it not cool. Just because the article she linked to has merit, doesn't mean her post is valid or makes sense.


    Hello there,

    Thank you for your comment. Appreciating it! :0))

    The HIIT High Intensity Training Interval Training Anti-Catabolic Fat Burning by Dr Daniel Reardon and Mark Gilbert is currently not available online, reason why no link has been posted to aid our debate.

    Trolling? I was not aware titles of posts must fully reveal contents of discussion. However, I do understand it is a lot easier to be dismissive and disrespectful online. No heart feelings. All opinions are most welcome.
  • chooriyah
    chooriyah Posts: 469 Member
    The interesting argument from NROL4W is that long periods of steady cardio increase endurance. A rough definition of endurance is the ability to keep going, for longer, a large part of which is improving cardiovascular health, and some of which is training your body to become more energy efficient. The first is obviously a good thing for everyone, with heart disease remaining a huge problem in most of our countries. The second is more troublesome, if you are still trying to lose weight. If you are becoming more 'energy efficient', your body is learning how to go further while burning less calories, so the argument is that over time you'll have to run further and further to burn the same amount of calories. That's why the author of NROL4W recommends mixing up the cardio with HIIT.

    I know many of you MFP veterans already now this, and sorry for preaching to the choir! Thought it might be interesting for some 'noobs' like me (:
  • PuffedMummy
    PuffedMummy Posts: 17
    Not topic related, but I love your counter motif.

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