Why Strength Training is better

I have been doing about 45 mins cardio 3 times a week followed by 15 mins weight training. then the other 3 days 45 mins weight training and then 15 mins cardio. Is that counter productive? I mean as far as losign weight it has definitely worked i've also seen muscle development. But I'd like to reduce more fat. Should I do weight training 4 days a week and 2 days cardio? I'm always looking for new ways to work out or new schedules. I at one point was doing and hour cardio and 15 mins weight training and alternating.

I have been a cardio "lover" for years and I love it. I lost most of my weight and been keeping it off. I love my cardio. However I always do cardio and weight training. Psulemon in your opion do you think it would be better for me to cut way back on cardio and concentrate mostly on weight lifting? I only have a few lbs I want to lose to get to my "ideal" weight. And I want to concentrare on fat loss rather than weightloss although they might go hand in hand. I'd like to maintain my size not get any smaller. Not sure how possible that might be for me.

My opinion would be, yes. I do cardio once or twice/week for 15-20 minutes each session (I do bike to and from work 2.4 miles each way). That is it. I strength train 3-4 days/week 30 min/session, and I am in the middle of a cut phase to get from around 10% fat to 8ish%.

Here we go again...

I have been doing about 45 mins cardio 3 times a week followed by 15 mins weight training. then the other 3 days 45 mins weight training and then 15 mins cardio. Is that counter productive? I mean as far as losign weight it has definitely worked i've also seen muscle development. But I'd like to reduce more fat. Should I do weight training 4 days a week and 2 days cardio?

I have been a cardio "lover" for years and I love it. I lost most of my weight and been keeping it off. I love my cardio. However I always do cardio and weight training. Psulemon in your opion do you think it would be better for me to cut way back on cardio and concentrate mostly on weight lifting? I only have a few lbs I want to lose to get to my "ideal" weight. And I want to concentrare on fat loss rather than weightloss although they might go hand in hand. I'd like to maintain my size not get any smaller. Not sure how possible that might be for me.

My opinion would be, yes. I do cardio once or twice/week for 15-20 minutes each session (I do bike to and from work 2.4 miles each way). That is it. I strength train 3-4 days/week 30 min/session, and I am in the middle of a cut phase to get from around 10% fat to 8ish%.

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For fat loss cardio just lets you eat a little more to have the same deficit, so if you are not training for an event, I would lower your cardio to 2-3 days/week at most, and would suggest that at least one cardio day/week be HIIT, which should only last for 15-20 (excluding warm-up and cool down).

As for strength training aim to hit each muscle group a minimum of once/week and no more than 3 times. I would suggest working on compound moments as the basis for any program. To get an idea of such a program check out Starting Strength, or Stronglifts 5x5. You can tweak these slightly by adding some isolation moves at the end if you like isolation exercises, but the compound moves are enough to hit all muscle groups on their own.

Weight loss does NOT equal fat loss. You may be burning calories or losing weight, but that weight and those calories may or may not be coming from fat. If you follow the standard low-calorie-aerobic-exercise-model, you are likely burning muscle not fat. And a loss of muscle means a less efficient metabolism. This is the missing link when personal trainers and fitness enthusiasts embark on helping others and themselves create new bodies.

Agreed, and coming from personal experience I know this first hand. I lost all my baby weight down to 102-105 pounds by cardio and diet alone and I was still flabby, stickly skinny, and not in very good shape. I started training hard, went up to 110 pounds, but lost 3-5% body fat, still fit in the same size 0-3 clothes (albeit some of the shirts are too tight in the shoulders and arms because they are muscular which I prefer). I look better says everyone I know. The scale does not matter!

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Conditioner is better, it leaves the hair silky and smooth!

LOL!! :laugh:

Love the OP post. Great info to share!

I keep reading this and it makes me feel a little disappointed in my journey. I have an upper back injury, and am going through physical therapy but can not do any kind of heavy lifting for my upper body. That being said, I have lost weight, and inches, but am definitely not as toned as I would like to be in my arms and back, and at this point I can't really do the heavy lifting that everyone is suggesting. Does anyone have any other suggestions?%3

So what if you do both intense cardio and strength training? Is that counter productive?

great read! thanks for posting!

Bump...Love it!

Thank you for this. I have been struggling with the right balance of cardio and weights, and while I know that doing more weights is better for me, I get obsessed with the high caloric burns I achieve during cardio workouts. Over the last two weeks I have started being much more firm with myself over weights. I actually enjoy weightlifting, but again, get caught up in the "more calories burned is better" mindset.

I personally think they're both essential. I run 3x a week and strength train another 3x, then have a day of rest. Actually I credit the Insanity program which was a blend of cardio and resistance for having lost most of my 40 pounds! Yes muscle burns fat, you need muscle to burn fat, but you also need have cardio conditioning to keep a healthy heart.

BUMP!