Cardio isn't for "fat burning".
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although don't give up cardio it is very good for your general health and if like me you do a lot of it per week it certainly does your aid your fat loss by simply expending a lot of energy0
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We all understand the point. We get what he is TRYING to say. Why not just say it in a way that is not trying to get as many hits as possible. Folks, you want to speed up your weight loss, cardio will help as long as you keep your intake the same but it is not necessary for weight loss. See how easy that is!4
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Ugh Yes! Thank you! Right now I'm super frustrated by my friend who is hitting the gym a few times a week (cardio and some circuit training) but endlessly complaining that she's not losing weight . She is now saying it's a thyroid issue. So I ask her what she's eating, if she's tracking in any way and she wants nothing to do with it. And I'm like, clearly what you are doing isn't working. If you need to create a Deficit and you burn 2000 calories a day but eat oogaliboo calories a day, how exactly will you know what's going on? 2000 - unknown = not weight loss means that the unknown part is the problem!
Edit to correct my stupid autocorrect.2 -
ronocnikral wrote: »NorthCascades wrote: »Cardio is for whatever you want to get out of it. Maybe it's for burning fat, maybe it's for burning time; I have half an hour to kill, so I'll run a 5k. Maybe it's for fun. Or cabin fever. Or scenery. Or transportation. Maybe you're doing a race, or it's scheduled into your training plan. Maybe it's to test new equipment - I got a set of road tubeless wheels and I've put hundreds of miles on them learning the ins and outs of this new tech before I take them onto unpaved mountain roads.
To say that a type of exercise is only for the one thing you approve of is incredibly stupid and shows a profound lack of understanding (of why people exercise) and imagination (about the ways exercise can benefit people).
You're out wandering around. You should come back into the house. Maybe I missed, but who said there is only one type of exercise?
You should read a post before you reply to it. Would you like a do-over?1 -
NorthCascades wrote: »
To be honest, I don't know any. I know people who do more than others, but everyone I know who is at a healthy weight and maintaining that is physically active in one way or another.2 -
I wish this silly "cardio doesn't burn fat" notion would die already. Cardio increases TDEE which increases calorie deficit which burns stored fat. Every time I stop or reduce cardio, the fat comes back. When I keep up the cardio, the fat comes off and stays off.3
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Traveler120 wrote: »I wish this silly "cardio doesn't burn fat" notion would die already. Cardio increases TDEE which increases calorie deficit which burns stored fat. Every time I stop or reduce cardio, the fat comes back. When I keep up the cardio, the fat comes off and stays off.
It only increases calorie deficit if you're still eating in a deficit...if I'm eating at maintenance, it doesn't increase calorie deficit...'cuz I'm eating at maintenance.2 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »Traveler120 wrote: »I wish this silly "cardio doesn't burn fat" notion would die already. Cardio increases TDEE which increases calorie deficit which burns stored fat. Every time I stop or reduce cardio, the fat comes back. When I keep up the cardio, the fat comes off and stays off.
It only increases calorie deficit if you're still eating in a deficit...if I'm eating at maintenance, it doesn't increase calorie deficit...'cuz I'm eating at maintenance.
And the deficit or maintenance or surplus will be determined by my TDEE which will be directly related to my cardio. And since I eat around the same amount of food on average (week to week), and don't want to eat less (and nowadays don't bother tracking calories), then the amount of cardio is the only thing I manipulate to burn fat or maintain fat loss. So to say cardio doesn't burn fat is just nonsense and misleads a lot of gullible people.2 -
Cardio has the potential to burn stored body fat if and only if one remains in a negative energy balance...4
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Traveler120 wrote: »cwolfman13 wrote: »Traveler120 wrote: »I wish this silly "cardio doesn't burn fat" notion would die already. Cardio increases TDEE which increases calorie deficit which burns stored fat. Every time I stop or reduce cardio, the fat comes back. When I keep up the cardio, the fat comes off and stays off.
It only increases calorie deficit if you're still eating in a deficit...if I'm eating at maintenance, it doesn't increase calorie deficit...'cuz I'm eating at maintenance.
And the deficit or maintenance or surplus will be determined by my TDEE which will be directly related to my cardio. And since I eat around the same amount of food on average (week to week), and don't want to eat less (and nowadays don't bother tracking calories), then the amount of cardio is the only thing I manipulate to burn fat or maintain fat loss. So to say cardio doesn't burn fat is just nonsense and misleads a lot of gullible people.
Or it educates a lot of people who think just because they're churning away on the hamster wheel that they should be losing weight...looked around a gym lately??? These people are everywhere. Like I stated before, there are tons of people who think the exercise itself should lead to weight loss...they have zero control over their diet...they do hours of cardio thinking they should be burning fat and have zero results to show for it...not sure why this is so hard to understand...seems pretty basic.
Ultimately, if you're in a deficit, you are consuming fewer calories than you are expending...if you are maintaining you are consuming a balance of calories...if you are gaining, you are consuming a surplus of calories, regardless of your exercise.
Nobody is arguing that it doesn't impact TDEE...that's pretty obvious.2 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »Traveler120 wrote: »cwolfman13 wrote: »Traveler120 wrote: »I wish this silly "cardio doesn't burn fat" notion would die already. Cardio increases TDEE which increases calorie deficit which burns stored fat. Every time I stop or reduce cardio, the fat comes back. When I keep up the cardio, the fat comes off and stays off.
It only increases calorie deficit if you're still eating in a deficit...if I'm eating at maintenance, it doesn't increase calorie deficit...'cuz I'm eating at maintenance.
And the deficit or maintenance or surplus will be determined by my TDEE which will be directly related to my cardio. And since I eat around the same amount of food on average (week to week), and don't want to eat less (and nowadays don't bother tracking calories), then the amount of cardio is the only thing I manipulate to burn fat or maintain fat loss. So to say cardio doesn't burn fat is just nonsense and misleads a lot of gullible people.
Or it educates a lot of people who think just because they're churning away on the hamster wheel that they should be losing weight...looked around a gym lately??? These people are everywhere. Like I stated before, there are tons of people who think the exercise itself should lead to weight loss...they have zero control over their diet...they do hours of cardio thinking they should be burning fat and have zero results to show for it...not sure why this is so hard to understand...seems pretty basic.
Ultimately, if you're in a deficit, you are consuming fewer calories than you are expending...if you are maintaining you are consuming a balance of calories...if you are gaining, you are consuming a surplus of calories, regardless of your exercise.
Nobody is arguing that it doesn't impact TDEE...that's pretty obvious.
Yep, we're 20 pages in and people are still arguing something the post didn't say.
There are so many people who think that regardless what they eat or what else they do all day, when they are doing cardio it causes their body right there in that moment to burn through their fat stores and that they should see that change pretty quickly in the way their clothes fit. All this post was saying is - that's not how it works.
Cardio does NOT directly burn fat. It burns calories which can contribute to your deficit if you control CI and cause your body to burn fat over time.
And if you think that's obvious, read through the forums regularly over a couple of weeks and count how many newbies post about how they are spending 2 hours doing cardio every day and are frustrated their waist isn't getting smaller.2 -
Traveler120 wrote: »I wish this silly "cardio doesn't burn fat" notion would die already. Cardio increases TDEE which increases calorie deficit which burns stored fat. Every time I stop or reduce cardio, the fat comes back. When I keep up the cardio, the fat comes off and stays off.
You can increase your CO with cardio, or you could just consume fewer calories to begin with. The fat will stay off either way.
The point is it's not the cardio that burns fat, it's your calorie deficit.
Many people spend hours at the gym and wonder why they're not losing weight.. that's who he's addressing.7 -
extra_medium wrote: »Traveler120 wrote: »I wish this silly "cardio doesn't burn fat" notion would die already. Cardio increases TDEE which increases calorie deficit which burns stored fat. Every time I stop or reduce cardio, the fat comes back. When I keep up the cardio, the fat comes off and stays off.
You can increase your CO with cardio, or you could just consume fewer calories to begin with. The fat will stay off either way.
The point is it's not the cardio that burns fat, it's your calorie deficit.
Many people spend hours at the gym and wonder why they're not losing weight.. that's who he's addressing.
I don't understand how this point is not blatantly obvious...but yeah, apparently it's not.2 -
Actually every little bit adds up for fat burning; The calorie deficit the most, even if we don't count exercise burn there is a slight edge with all exercise - lifting, HIIT cardio, and lighter steady state cardio even for 30 minutes.
It's the too much intense cardio that hinders fat loss, mainly because it stresses out the body to much and people eat more due to higher hunger intensity that comes with that stress - there is no willpower to combat that when the stress is too high in the body - the hunger hormones will increase.2 -
Traveler120 wrote: »I wish this silly "cardio doesn't burn fat" notion would die already. Cardio increases TDEE which increases calorie deficit which burns stored fat. Every time I stop or reduce cardio, the fat comes back. When I keep up the cardio, the fat comes off and stays off.
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Traveler120 wrote: »cwolfman13 wrote: »Traveler120 wrote: »I wish this silly "cardio doesn't burn fat" notion would die already. Cardio increases TDEE which increases calorie deficit which burns stored fat. Every time I stop or reduce cardio, the fat comes back. When I keep up the cardio, the fat comes off and stays off.
It only increases calorie deficit if you're still eating in a deficit...if I'm eating at maintenance, it doesn't increase calorie deficit...'cuz I'm eating at maintenance.
And the deficit or maintenance or surplus will be determined by my TDEE which will be directly related to my cardio. And since I eat around the same amount of food on average (week to week), and don't want to eat less (and nowadays don't bother tracking calories), then the amount of cardio is the only thing I manipulate to burn fat or maintain fat loss. So to say cardio doesn't burn fat is just nonsense and misleads a lot of gullible people.
It's NOT DISPUTED that one can lose weight without doing any cardio at all by just eating less than their current TDEE. It's NOT the cardio causing excess fat loss to happen, it's eating under TDEE.
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Traveler120 wrote: »Cardio increases TDEE which increases calorie deficit which burns stored fat.
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Traveler120 wrote: »I wish this silly "cardio doesn't burn fat" notion would die already. Cardio increases TDEE which increases calorie deficit which burns stored fat. Every time I stop or reduce cardio, the fat comes back. When I keep up the cardio, the fat comes off and stays off.
Now, that's just stupid considering I can simply eat a civilized amount of food like 1700 and increase my TDEE to 2200 to burn off 1 lb/week. And all that would need is about 12-14 hrs a week of cardio like hiking, cycling, elliptical, etc if I wanted to lose at that rate. This is how I went from 152 lbs to 115 lbs without starving myself.
And at 115 lbs, I can eat 1700-2000 and maintain it with just 7-10 hrs/week of moderate intensity cardio (~400 cals/hr). So suggesting people should just eat less is ridiculous when exercising more can accomplish the same goal with additional benefits of heart health, bone health, digestive health, and a better relationship with food coz you're not overly restricting and starving.
Short story: Just because people are clueless about how weight loss works (CI<CO), and that you can lose just by eating less without exercise, doesn't somehow result in the conclusion that cardio doesn't burn fat or that it shouldn't or can't be relied on a primary way to burn fat.
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Traveler120 wrote: »Traveler120 wrote: »I wish this silly "cardio doesn't burn fat" notion would die already. Cardio increases TDEE which increases calorie deficit which burns stored fat. Every time I stop or reduce cardio, the fat comes back. When I keep up the cardio, the fat comes off and stays off.Now, that's just stupid considering I can simply eat a civilized amount of food like 1700 and increase my TDEE to 2200 to burn off 1 lb/week. And all that would need is about 12-14 hrs a week of cardio like hiking, cycling, elliptical, etc if I wanted to lose at that rate. This is how I went from 152 lbs to 115 lbs without starving myself.
And at 115 lbs, I can eat 1700-2000 and maintain it with just 7-10 hrs/week of moderate intensity cardio (~400 cals/hr). So suggesting people eat less is ridiculous when exercising more can accomplish the same goal with additional benefits of heart health, bone health, digestive health, and a better relationship with food coz you're not overly restricting and starving.Short story: Just because people are clueless about how weight loss works (CI<CO), and that you can lose just by eating less without exercise, doesn't somehow result in the conclusion that cardio doesn't burn fat.
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BUMP0
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You burn a higher percentage of fat at rest (and we are at rest more than exercising) because it's the primary fuel when the body isn't doing anything physically demanding.
So does this mean yoga is better for burning fat than HIIT?0 -
You burn a higher percentage of fat at rest (and we are at rest more than exercising) because it's the primary fuel when the body isn't doing anything physically demanding.
So does this mean yoga is better for burning fat than HIIT?
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Cardio won't aid fat loss unless you are eating at a deficit. It is impossible to outrun a bad fork which is why weight loss occurs in the kitchen and not the gym. Boy, oh boy though, do I love the extra calories it allows me to eat1
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extra_medium wrote: »Traveler120 wrote: »I wish this silly "cardio doesn't burn fat" notion would die already. Cardio increases TDEE which increases calorie deficit which burns stored fat. Every time I stop or reduce cardio, the fat comes back. When I keep up the cardio, the fat comes off and stays off.
You can increase your CO with cardio, or you could just consume fewer calories to begin with. The fat will stay off either way.
The point is it's not the cardio that burns fat, it's your calorie deficit.
Many people spend hours at the gym and wonder why they're not losing weight.. that's who he's addressing.
Yeah ... no. I had some delicious tacos and I got to ride my bike in the sun.0 -
Lillymoo01 wrote: »Cardio won't aid fat loss unless you are eating at a deficit. It is impossible to outrun a bad fork which is why weight loss occurs in the kitchen and not the gym. Boy, oh boy though, do I love the extra calories it allows me to eat
Friend of a friend lost about 40 pounds hiking the PCT. He ate as much as he was capable of, including entire jars of peanut butter in a day.
I wish this falsehood would die.2 -
Cardio is done to improve cardio vascular fitness and burn calories. It will HELP with a calorie deficit and for some that do a lot of cardio, allow one to eat more versus someone at the same weight who does little or no cardio at all.
Like all other physical activity, GLYCOGEN will be the first thing burned before fat is even touched (ratio will vary more to fat if duration extended and/or intensity is lower) so the addage that one needs to do cardio to burn fat is a myth. You burn fat with a calorie deficit. Don't believe it? Do whatever cardio you want, but eat your TDEE. You'll more likely keep the same bodyfat percentage if you keep doing that.
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It's an old thread but was just wondering: Glycogen is burned first, then fat. Ok.
Lets say I run in the evening, a longer run. Then go to bed. Do glycogen stores get replenished from somewhere magical or only the next morning at breakfast? And if the latter, does that mean my calorie needs are a bit bigger then in order to restore the glycogen stores?0 -
ForecasterJason wrote: »For low intensity exercises, is it body fat or dietary fat burned, or both?
If your body is well-nourished, and weight 80 kg it can store about 2000 calories of glycogen in the muscles and the liver.
The glycogen stored in the muscles cannot be used to feed any other tissue. Only the muscles can have that. It's about 80% of your bodily storage. The glycogen stored in the liver can be used to feed any tissue in the body.
People who weigh more don't necessarily store more glycogen. However, if their muscle mass is greater than the 80 kg baseline, they do.
There are two kinds of people. Those in ketosis, who have already depleted all their muscle-stored glycogen, and those who are daily consuming high carbs. who constantly replenish their muscle-stored glycogen.
Losing body fat involves consuming fewer calories than your body burns in a day, every day, consistently, or in a week, every week, consistently, or in a month, every month, consistently.
For low intensity exercises, the keto people metabolize fat, and the carb-fed people metabolize glycogen.
This happens because the cells of the body preferentially burn the glycogen first.0 -
Cardio is done to improve cardio vascular fitness and burn calories. It will HELP with a calorie deficit and for some that do a lot of cardio, allow one to eat more versus someone at the same weight who does little or no cardio at all.
Like all other physical activity, GLYCOGEN will be the first thing burned before fat is even touched (ratio will vary more to fat if duration extended and/or intensity is lower) so the addage that one needs to do cardio to burn fat is a myth. You burn fat with a calorie deficit. Don't believe it? Do whatever cardio you want, but eat your TDEE. You'll more likely keep the same bodyfat percentage if you keep doing that.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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It's an old thread but was just wondering: Glycogen is burned first, then fat. Ok.
Lets say I run in the evening, a longer run. Then go to bed. Do glycogen stores get replenished from somewhere magical or only the next morning at breakfast? And if the latter, does that mean my calorie needs are a bit bigger then in order to restore the glycogen stores?
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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Cardio is done to improve cardio vascular fitness and burn calories. It will HELP with a calorie deficit and for some that do a lot of cardio, allow one to eat more versus someone at the same weight who does little or no cardio at all.
Like all other physical activity, GLYCOGEN will be the first thing burned before fat is even touched (ratio will vary more to fat if duration extended and/or intensity is lower) so the addage that one needs to do cardio to burn fat is a myth. You burn fat with a calorie deficit. Don't believe it? Do whatever cardio you want, but eat your TDEE. You'll more likely keep the same bodyfat percentage if you keep doing that.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
It's an old thread but was just wondering: Glycogen is burned first, then fat. Ok.
Lets say I run in the evening, a longer run. Then go to bed. Do glycogen stores get replenished from somewhere magical or only the next morning at breakfast? And if the latter, does that mean my calorie needs are a bit bigger then in order to restore the glycogen stores?
Just to keep straight for that reference of carb first, fat after - not true. Further posts after the one you quoted worked out that fact.
Fat is vast majority of the day as prime fuel supply.
As intensity increases from rest, lower and lower percentage of fat used though still greater calorie amount until you reach a point fat can't oxidize fast enough then % lowers even faster.
I know idea of carb first until like gone and then fat is thrown around by Keto supporters very often - and it's not true.
Your glyco stores replenished the next meal where you eat carbs - liver given precedence over muscle stores.
Calorie needs aren't bigger unless you mean you weren't taking into account the extra calorie burn of the run.
Taking in the extra food because you are doing extra activity can usually handle the extra carb burn.
You can setup a bad scenario where that doesn't happen and slowly but surely your performance will suffer.
Sometimes not so slowly actually.
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Cardio is done to improve cardio vascular fitness and burn calories. It will HELP with a calorie deficit and for some that do a lot of cardio, allow one to eat more versus someone at the same weight who does little or no cardio at all.
Like all other physical activity, GLYCOGEN will be the first thing burned before fat is even touched (ratio will vary more to fat if duration extended and/or intensity is lower) so the addage that one needs to do cardio to burn fat is a myth. You burn fat with a calorie deficit. Don't believe it? Do whatever cardio you want, but eat your TDEE. You'll more likely keep the same bodyfat percentage if you keep doing that.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
It's an old thread but was just wondering: Glycogen is burned first, then fat. Ok.
Lets say I run in the evening, a longer run. Then go to bed. Do glycogen stores get replenished from somewhere magical or only the next morning at breakfast? And if the latter, does that mean my calorie needs are a bit bigger then in order to restore the glycogen stores?
Just to keep straight for that reference of carb first, fat after - not true. Further posts after the one you quoted worked out that fact.
Fat is vast majority of the day as prime fuel supply.
As intensity increases from rest, lower and lower percentage of fat used though still greater calorie amount until you reach a point fat can't oxidize fast enough then % lowers even faster.
I know idea of carb first until like gone and then fat is thrown around by Keto supporters very often - and it's not true.
Your glyco stores replenished the next meal where you eat carbs - liver given precedence over muscle stores.
Calorie needs aren't bigger unless you mean you weren't taking into account the extra calorie burn of the run.
Taking in the extra food because you are doing extra activity can usually handle the extra carb burn.
You can setup a bad scenario where that doesn't happen and slowly but surely your performance will suffer.
Sometimes not so slowly actually.
Thanks a lot, both you and the answer above. I was just curious how it works as I am only able to workout in the evening (low blood pressure and energy), can' eat anything anymore after working out, and can't seem to get fat adapted for cardio. On most days I hit the wall after about one hour, big time.0
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