What is better?
Many people who decide to lose weight struggle to choose between the two most popular workouts for weight loss – cardio or strength training. Even if you plan to do both, doubts still linger as to which one you should focus more on to lose fat effectively and efficiently. Here's all you need to know about cardio vs weight/strength training for fat loss.
Cardio burns more calories per session
Several studies have found that if you workout for a particular period of time, you will burn more calories doing cardio than while doing strength training. So cardio helps you burn calories faster. Cardio includes workouts like running, cycling, swimming, walking, jumping rope, and HIIT.
Weight training burns more calories every day
When it comes to building muscle, weight training is definitely more effective than cardio. But why should you build muscle when trying to get rid of unwanted fat? This is because muscle burns more calories at rest. As per research, you burn more calories after a weight training session, compared to those after a cardio session. There are reports of resting metabolism staying high for up to 38 hours after weight training session. However, no such increase has been reported in case of cardio workout.
Don't forget your diet
While choosing between cardio and weight training, do not forget the importance of managing your diet and overall calorie consumption. You need to workout regularly as well as eat a nutritious and well-balanced diet for long-term weight loss. Some people focus entirely on managing their diet and do not exercise. However, a scientific review including over 400 people found that the combination of dietary changes plus exercise led to 20% greater weight loss, compared to only dietary changes alone for weight loss.
Fat loss vs weight loss
Make sure you do not entirely check your results via the numbers on your weighing scale. Weight loss includes decrease in your overall body weight from muscle, water, and fat loss. Excessive loss of water and muscle may be detrimental to over health. Instead, focus on fat loss, which refers to weight loss from fat only. Measuring your inches may help check results in a more healthier way than the weighing scale.
What’s the verdict?
As discussed earlier, a combination of cardio and strength training along with a balanced diet can all work together to help to reach your weight loss goals. If we focus on fat loss, then weight lifting is better as it helps you build lean muscle. Cardio is great for improving cardiovascular health and uncovering the muscle you've sculpted via strength training.
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