Can someone confirm my belief in resistance for weight loss!?

seliwyma

seliwyma

New member
Hi guys,

I know this is probably a pointless thread, but here I go anyway...

I have tried to arm myself with a lot of knowledge about the best ways to lose weight (and I'm talking the sensible way, not crazy fad diets or 5 minutes a day on the ab blaster 2000). From this I have come to an understanding that a balance of cardio and resistance training is the best way to go.

At the gym my usual routine consists of:

30 minutes on the treadmill - 3 x 5 minutes of running with 2 minute walks in between and longer walks to warm up and cool down. I'm 5'2 and weight 110kg so I feel like this is a big achievement and by the end of it I am dripping with sweat and pretty pooped.

Then I move on to resistance. I try to do 3 sets of 10, with the weight set so that the end of each set is definitely a challenge. I enjoy doing weights and I like the challenge of pushing myself and increasing the weight when I can.

Typically I do:

Leg extensions 30kg
Leg curls 30kg
Leg adduction 75kg
Leg abduction 75kg
Lateral pulldown 13.5kg
Chest Press 26kg
Seated Row 26kg
Pec Deck 26kg

I have been doing this pretty consistently for the past 3 weeks and I definitely feel stronger. My running time has increased (from 12 minutes initially) and I have increased the weight on all resistance exercises.

I asked a male friend (I am female) recently if he could help me add some free weights to my training (cause I have no idea), mostly for biceps, triceps and squats, as the machines never feel right for these. He said he'd help, but he was very critical of the fact that I was doing so much resistance training and said I should really just focus on cardio.

But it's not just been him. A LOT of people have said the same. A lot of very fit and healthy people.

I feel like this counteracts everything I know, but I feel funny saying this to them because..well...I'm the fat chick and they're the fit, skinny and buff ones.

So am I right? Is it good for me to be doing this resistance training? Surely the more developed my muscles are the stronger I will get and my ability to perform cardio will improve. As well as this my metabolism will improve. No? And I'm not going to bulk up like some freaky body builder (no offence to body builders)...I am correct right?

I guess I'm just looking for reassurances that I'm on the right track! I'd really appreciate some feedback.

And of course I know the most important thing for weight loss is less calories in than out :)

Thanks!!!
 
Your friend is correct. Cardio should be your top priority if you're trying to lose weight. Resistance training, while necessary, should be supplementary. I'm not an expert but from what I've read, this seems to be the case. Overall, you will burn more calories in a cardio session than a res training session. Here's a comparison I found:

40 minutes of moderate cardio (running 8:30 pace) vs. 40 minutes of moderate strength training-

Cardio: 522 calories burned during the activity, 30 calories burned in afterburn, 0 calories burned from gained muscle

Strength Training: approximately 136 calories burned during the activity, 20 calories burned in afterburn, 30 calories burned from gained muscle.

Your endurance and stamina will increase with cardio over time too, so RT isnt the only way to improve your performance. I haven't started RT yet and I've lost 28 lbs in 2 months.
 
Er. I totally disagree that cardio should be your priority.

You WANTweight training because you want to lose fat and not muscle.

I speak as someone who lost 60+ pounds without weight training. I wish I had been weight training the whole time, then I wouldn't have had to work as hard to regain the muscle I lost in the process.

Disclaimer: If you have very high body fat, i.e. higher than 35% then the resistance may not be as important as your body tends to know it can safely shed the fat.

Personally, I would even do the weight training first and then do the cardio. It's easy for people who have been fit all their lives to have opinions on how things should be done that work for them, but not to really have a clue what works for anyone else.

And no, you definitely won't bulk up like a freaky body builder :D
 
Yeah I agree with Jeanette on this one.

Unless you spend hours on end each day at the gym, your main cause of calorie deficit is going to be from your diet, The resistance training ofcourse burns some calories but the main part is that you're shedding fat and maintaining lean body mass due to stimulating your muscles.

Cardio is good too, by all means go nuts, but resistance training is the only efficient way to keep your lean body mass from dropping along with the fat.
 
Jeanette401 said:
Er. I totally disagree that cardio should be your priority.
Click to expand...

Well I was going by the sheer numbers of calories burned. I agree that RT is absolutely necessary. I didn't suggest she drop all RT and go full on cardio. In any case, OP, I'm sure the other two posters are correct. Please disregard my earlier post. :)
 
Last edited:
I actually think we all pretty much agree, given the chance to hash out our opinions.

Cardio is good because per unit of time it burns the most calories, it increases your ability to transport oxygen in the blood, your cardiovascular health etc.

Resistance training is good because it prevents you from loosing muscle instead of fat, increases bone strength, joint strength etc. and, as far as I remember, recent studies even indicate that it is really good for cardiovascular health too.

Both are made of pure win! :)
 
I think it's a matter of perspective in terms of priorities. Here's the thing though - in terms of weight loss, you can make up for cardio by eating fewer calories. You can't make up for lack of resistance training by eating fewer calories though (although getting plenty of protein helps). So from my perspective, weight training is required and cardio is optional and primarily for aerobic fitness rather than weight loss.

Of course, once you get beyond the required amount of weight lifting, any extra you want to do as cardio is bonus calories burned, so it's certainly not bad! But if I only have 3 hours a week to spend at the gym, you better believe I'm going to spend them on resistance training first, and cardio in the time I have left. :)
 
You can't make up for lack of resistance training by eating fewer calories though (although getting plenty of protein helps). So from my perspective, weight training is required and cardio is optional and primarily for aerobic fitness rather than weight loss.
Click to expand...

Ahh good point. Didn't really think of that one. Yes, they are both "made of win" however :)
 
if you want to get the most out of your gym time and calories burned you should stick to cardio because that will help the fat melt away the fastest in comparison to weight training.

Also, diet should probably be a bigger priority at your weight than the gym... working out is very very important for weight maintenance but in general, it's your diet that is going to hold you back the most. Think about it, it is way easier to eat 500 calories less in a day than to go to the gym and burn that many.
 
Hi all. Just putting in my two cents.

Trying to determine how much cardio activity you need to lose weight depends on a number of factors–how many calories you consume; how hard you exercise; your age and gender; and your fitness level to name a few.

But cardio and diet alone will not give you the results you’re hoping for. People who lift weights and do push ups and squats may not lose pounds but they shed fat. And since muscles are more compact than fat, their bodies appear leaner even though they have not lost that much weight.

Muscle needs more calories than fat to maintain itself. So folks who regularly weight train burn more calories even while sitting at their desks, or doing housework. Bottom line…the more lean muscle mass you build, the less fat you’ll have and the higher your rate of metabolism will be.
 
my opinion, the best way is cardio. Too many times Ive tried the weight training and it sucks because I dont see the weight drop as fast as it will with cardio. So then I start to cheat and eat some junk and then take some time off from the gym. Right now, Ive been loosing 2.5 lbs a week. I so motivated that I dont want to stop. And if i loose some muscle, who cares? I dream of the day that I want to gain muscle and bulk up a bit. But first things first, get down to a reasonable weight. Priority one for me is to "keep with it". and for me, that means nutrition and cardio. I do a bit of weight training one or two days a week on my cardio off days
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top