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Weights or Cardio or Both

DaveMustGetFit
DaveMustGetFit Posts: 43 Member
edited November 2024 in Fitness and Exercise
I've come to believe that exercise has a limited impact on losing weight and food is all that mattered. It certainly has never really helped me very much in that respect except when I was young and lived in the mountains and could hike 30 to 50 miles a week, in that case I noticed some difference. With that said, I have always focus on cardio exercises and very little weightlifting. In general which of the two helps you lose more weight? I used to think it was cardio (but then found it did very little compared to healthy eating). But now I suspect that I might've been missing out all these years with weightlifting. I read that increases your metabolism more than cardio does. Or is it better to have a healthy combination of both?

Replies

  • tomorrowistoday0000
    tomorrowistoday0000 Posts: 125 Member
    Definitely both!
  • estherdragonbat
    estherdragonbat Posts: 5,283 Member
    Both. It'll help you hold onto muscle so you'll lose less of it while burning fat.
  • SCoil123
    SCoil123 Posts: 2,111 Member
    Both. I want to lose fat not muscle and I love to eat. Cardio ups my calorie allowance and the weights help me look and feel more fit as I lose.
  • JaxxieKat
    JaxxieKat Posts: 427 Member
    I do both. I don't track calories burned lifting weights, but I track (and eat back) my cardio calories. On weight days I'll do 20 minutes of steady state cardio. On cardio days, I do 40 minutes of steady or 25 of HIIT. Depends on how I am feeling or if I'm pressed for time.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    The best answer is always both but there's lot's of variation of what ratio suits people's preferences and goals.

    Cardio is by far the biggest calorie burner - not just the rate at which you burn but also the duration can be far longer.
    In summer I'm cycling roughly 34 hours a month, at a very conservative 500 cals/hr that's could be almost 5lbs of weight loss a month if I was eating at maintenance levels.

    But exercise really isn't about weight loss - health, fitness, strength, body composition and just plain feeling good.

    A big success factor for weight loss and then maintenance is building healthy habits that you will stick with long term.
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
    As you've already observed & stated, neither do much for weight loss, it's what you eat.

    However for overall health & fitness, you should do both.
  • CipherZero
    CipherZero Posts: 1,418 Member
    BOTH, but especially weight training.
  • robemax
    robemax Posts: 1 Member
    Both, without a doubt.
    Cardio burns more calories while doing the exercise.
    Strength training burns fewer, but it also burns calories later. Building and maintaining muscle increases your core metabolism.
  • jhnbwh1014
    jhnbwh1014 Posts: 3 Member
    I prefer both
  • DaveMustGetFit
    DaveMustGetFit Posts: 43 Member
    Thank you everyone for the great replies

    Seems like both is the clear answer!!
This discussion has been closed.

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