Weight training or cardio? which burns more fat

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  • J72FIT
    J72FIT Posts: 6,002 Member
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    Both burn calories. Calorie deficit is what helps you to burn fat. The reality is that the majority of body fat is burned at rest (like sitting and sleeping) and NOT during exercise.
    Lift to retain muscle, keep strength, and condition it. Do cardio to help with calorie deficit and heart health.
    This is all that really needs to be said...
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,993 Member
    coachjschroth wrote: »
    During a single bout of cardio, more fat calories will be consumed. It's just the nature of steady state cardio which utilizes oxidative energy sources. However, Weight training generally burns more fat calories over time. It's well documented and is a result of EPOC (exess post exercise oxygen consumption). There are many articles out there, including peer-reviewed, that elaborate on it more if you're interested in the research data. This was already mentioned in a post above but the term EPOC wasn't mentioned.

    Also, regardless if your goal is to maintain or increase muscle mass, muscle is a much more metabolically active tissue. It will burn 2-3x more calories than adipose tissue will.

    And finally, it is possible to add lean muscle even in a deficit, assuming the deficit isn't extremely severe. That has also been documented.
    EPOC is highly exaggerated. Azdak contributed a good article on this with peer reviewed studies:

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1106134/the-final-nail-in-the-hiit-epoc-coffin

    It's not really as complicated as most think. We rest more than we exercise (unless someone is exercising 5-8 hours a day). At rest, fat is the PRIMARY source of energy usage. That's why people who don't exercise lose fat on a calorie deficit. Also the same reason that people who are bedridden or who can't exercise lose body fat if on a calorie deficit.

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  • jessef593
    jessef593 Posts: 2,272 Member
    Neither, your calorie deficit does. I burn twice as many calories when I incorporate both into my workouts. Mix it up, become stronger and increase your cardio
  • wildsilver91168
    wildsilver91168 Posts: 10 Member
    Cardio burns more fat
  • dlm7507
    dlm7507 Posts: 237 Member
    Muscle burns more fat 24/7. If you like cardio then that's what you should do, but scale weigh is mostly what you eat. You can't out exercise a trip to the doughnut place. Exercise is for body composition. It lets you enjoy a decent meal if you burn a bunch of calories exercising and you are eating at a big deficit, but I can burn calories faster with a kettlebell than I can on a dreadmill so it's also time efficient.

    The difference in muscle for men and women is why the big difference in metabolic rate which makes fat loss harder for women and in the case of small women, the caloric deficit means they can never enjoy a good meal unless tthey exercise. Adding a bit of muscle is a very good thing for fat loss, especially for women. I'm not being sexist, that is just a fact.

    At my age, height and weight my RMR is 2151. If I were the same age, height and weight as a female it would be 1832. I can eat 319 more calories/day as a woman my a,h,w for us both to stay the same weight. To loose 2 lbs/wk I eat 1600 calories/day, she eats 1282. Exercise that burns 235 net calories for me burns 106 net calories for her. The difference? The difference in muscle in men and women and it's effect on metabolism. Putting on some muscle will improve your metabolism for fat burning. It's not about the fat you burn while exercising, it's about the fat you continue burning, even when you are not exercising.
  • gail1time
    gail1time Posts: 8 Member
    edited October 2015
    19gabriela01 wrote: »
    Well I get my heart rate pretty high and sweat more than while running with squats and deadlifts. Or combined deadlift + front squat = one rep with lighter weight around 20, 30 kg. And these movements I make faster than whith heavier weights

    yes weights win hands down long after your workout weights still burn more fat
  • fbinsc
    fbinsc Posts: 735 Member
    edited October 2015
    My experience is that HIIT cardio is the best for fat loss, strength traning second and long slow cardio the worst of the three. The long slow cardio burns more calories but the cortisol from the stress of it tends to keep fat on my belly. Have to have the diet right for any of it to work, and sleep matters.
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