weights vs cardio

Watching people at the gym this weekend..Would a person lose weight faster strictly weight lifting or cardio

In terms of losing weight, it's pretty much a tie. Your exercise routine shouldn't be based on calorie burn or weight loss. Exercise is for fitness. Diet is for weight loss.

Eat, Lift, Cardio. its like a happy triangle.

You need strength training as well as cardio in whatever you do. My goal is to be the fastest runner I can be. I don't want big, heavy muscles so my strength training consists of doing a routine twice per week @ 50% the weight I would lift if I wanted to gain mass. I also do a core strength routine twice per week.

Strength:

I do all of these @ 2 sets of 12 repetitions.

Squats
Bent-Over Dumbbell Rows
Bench Press
Stiff-Legged Dead Lifts
Barbell Curls

Then I do the rotisserie core workout from Scooby's workshop. If you're curious what it is, here is the link to the video of Scooby demonstrating it. It's really easy to do and it has made a real difference in my life as a runner. It has all but eliminated the back pain I used to get from running and it allows me to keep proper running form when I'm fatigued which itself helps to prevent injuries cause by falling into bad form.

Remember, my goal is to be the best runner that I can be because I love the sport and it is the best thing that has ever happened to me besides the birth of my children. I imagine your goals are different so you should do your research, the information is out there. Just like with diet, it will take experimentation to find out what works for you but whatever your goals, strength training is critical.

I have only been doing cardio since January and have lost 30 pounds. I've noticed a drastic increase in energy and endurance. I know that I will need to add weights into my routine soon, just haven't gotten to that point yet. I think both are important.

I do both. I never saw it as one verse the other. I know you can lose weight doing either. ........

I know that is a bit of a dodge so if I had a gun to my head and I couldn't say do both. Then I would say do the weight lifting.

To some people weightloss IS that important !!!

HIIT Cardio will melt away the lbs with a quickness. Burns a lot of calroies during and you get the benifits of the afterburn you normally wouldn't get with cardio.

That's what I have found too. Was doing moderate effort cardio for a bit, but found near max high intensity cardio was just so much better and less time consuming anyways. Never understood "afterburn" until I started with it too and loving it.

HIIT cardio = Sprinters body
Low Impact cardio = Marathoners body

Yes, I'm sure all that sprinting gave him those arms. Maybe he was sprinting on his hands too?

PS - lift weights

Maybe....he looks fit enough to pull that off don't you think...=)

On a serious note, lifting weights is also a must. I was just comparing types of running programs.

Abs are built in the kitchen..still cooking up mine! But heavy weights and cardio combined are great. There's purpose for both! But if you eat junk food all the time but workout your results will come slower..diet has so much to do with it!

I have never seen anyone do one verse the other before....I think your body composition would make a difference in that....i.e. if you have a lot of excess fat, cardio will likely shed that quickly for you.

For most people, a good combination of the 2, you burn calories, build muscle, keep your metabolism rev'd up, etc.