I believe that both cardio and weight training are necessary for fat loss, and I do them both. That said, which do you consider MORE important? Cardio does wonders for the metabolism, but muscle burns more than fat...so which is it in your opinion, Cardio? or Weight Training?

Weight Training. Period.

Not that helpful i know, and it depends on goals (If your goal is to run a marathon, then id say Cardio), but for me Weight training is what its all about. It makes you fitter, stronger and burn more fat. :nod:

i consider weight training far more important for fat loss, i mean why else are you cutting than to show off your muscles!?

muscle will keep the fat off for longer, help you lose fat, keep your bone density up, make you strong, and about the 10000 other benefits of having a good LBM(and a good weight program), cardio is simply used to cut through the fat faster
while cardiovascular health is very important, i just belive weight training is more important!

My opinion is for fat loss Diet is #1 most important, Weight Training is #2, and cardio is #3.
---Trainiac
http://www.clintphillips.com

i consider weight training far more important for fat loss, i mean why else are you cutting than to show off your muscles!?

I dunno... I think not dropping dead of a heart attack at 35 is as good or better a reason for losing fat than showing off your muscles.

Both weight training and cardio are important for long term overall fitness. But fat loss, fundamentally, is about burning more calories than you eat. And given that X mins of cardio generally burns more calories than X mins of weight training, cardio definitely has a role to play.

My vote goes to resistance or weight training. You want muscle which is more compact than fat and burns more calories than fat. You can achieve a cardio effect in your workouts by cutting rest time between sets, using supersets, 8-15 reps, and doing a whole body workout.

Cardio is icing on the cake, resistance training is the meat of health. But if cardio is the only thing that can get you to move, do it! Any exercise is better than no exercise.

This is such a loaded question. You're going to get different answers from everyone on this board.

Personally I think cardio is more important. Why? Because it's what I love to do. I do enjoy going to the gym and lifting weights. I like the feeling of getting stronger and looking bigger too. But I'm what you might call a cardio junkie. Nothing better for me then to go out trail running for a couple hours and excessive or increased weight training hinders my performance. So I primarily run and then weight train to just maintain what I have.

I'm sure you'll get the exact opposite answer from someone else.

So, if you're looking for a way to best stay in shape or loose weight I would say go with what you love or desire. If you love to run like I do then run. If you love to weight train or desire to look like a body builder then you need to spend more time in the gym. If you're somewhere in between then you need some kind of combination. If you go with what you love then staying on track will be easy.

I believe that the only thing truly necessary in order to lose fat is to keep your energy intake at a reasonable level. Unless you get this right, there is no weight training or cardio in the world that could bring you to a lower bf%. You can disregard both weights and cardio, but if you disregard the food you put in your mouth, you will fail.

I do not consider weight training to be more important than cardio, or vice versa.

Having said that, I believe that AMR is on the right track. If you want to get in shape, you better make sure that you have fun while doing it. Everyone's different, but having fun is something anyone enjoys (that's kind of the whole point of the word). My idea of fun is generally being able to lift more than anyone else in my gym, but I've started exercising more and more to be able to move my body in a better way. I'd love to be able to do 20 chin ups at my current weight (260 lbs, I'm gonna reshape my body to make more of it lean mass). I can do 2 now, if I try hard, and that's something I've never been able to do before (and yes, back/bicep strength are my weak spots...).

Studies have shown Weight Training is more important in "FAT LOSS". While cardio certainly has its benefits, people who combine dieting with cardio will lose more muscle mass and less fat than people who combine dieting with weight training. A combination of the three is best, but I put diet as #1, weight training as #2 and cardio as #3.

From my personal experience, cardio is an easier tool for me to use to lose weight than weight lifting. When I was training for a marathon, I was dropping weight easily while I put away obscene amounts of food.

Although I agree with weight training being more important than cardio I do have one burning question that I dont fully understand...If weight training truly is more important in fat loss why do fat people who lift weights generally get bigger compared to fat people who run...does that make any sense?

Although I agree with weight training being more important than cardio I do have one burning question that I dont fully understand...If weight training truly is more important in fat loss why do fat people who lift weights generally get bigger compared to fat people who run...does that make any sense?

I have no idea what you just asked? :confused:

Do you mean people who lift weights are "fatter" than people who run?

...If weight training truly is more important in fat loss why do fat people who lift weights generally get bigger compared to fat people who run...does that make any sense?

If they do, it is because of the number one determinant - DIET. That it what points us in the direction, our bodies take. You overeat, you get fat.

I look at it like this:

DIET is the number one determinant of results. Having said that:

1. Cardio is king of losing scale weight.

2. Weights are king of changing body composition.

Capice?
My first three months of just cardio and dieting I lost a good bit of scale weight and I lost some inches but I still looked very out of shape. Now I'm starting to see some early results of what I was really looking for and that is coming from weights and diet. I'm not doing cardio right now. I'm still losing scale weight but much slower. However my bodyfat continues to decline and I'm getting much stronger and growing some guns. Yipee. :tu:

In my opinion both will work fine... but work in diffrent ways.


Cardio = Faster Fat loss, but at the price of "some" muscle loss.

Weights = Slow Fat loss, but also gain body compisition at the same time.

So I guess I would recommend either based on a persons personal short term goals. If you plot them both on a long term timeline, I think they will come out about even.


My 2 pennies....

ok, I like to do both myself however, from november 03 to march 04 I only did cardio and ate pretty clean and I lost about 3 lbs but I could run up the stairs no problem lol! From march to now I have been eating clean, cardio and lifting and I have lost 10 lbs. So there you have it from my experience. Of course everyone responds differently...

Why you do BOTH (http://www.exrx.net/FatLoss/WT%26End.html)


Resistance Weight Training With Endurance Training Improves Fat Loss
(8 week program, 72 over weight individuals)

Wayne Westcott, Ph.D. conducted a study in which 72 over weight individuals participated in an eight week exercise program. The participants were placed in two groups. The first group performed 30 minutes of endurance exercise on a stationary cycle. The second group performed only 15 minutes of exercise on the stationary cycle plus an additional 15 minutes on weight resistant exercises. At the conclusion of the study, the "endurance only" group lost a total of 3.5 lbs.; 3 lbs. of which was fat and a half pound was muscle loss. On the other hand, the "endurance and weight resistive" group lost 8 lbs. with an actual fat loss of 10 lbs. and an increase of 2 lbs. of lean body weight.

Endurance Training (30 min)
Weight Change (lbs) -3.5
Fat Change (lbs) -3
Lean mass Change (lbs) -0.5

Endurance (15 min) & Weight Training (15 min)
Weight Change (lbs) -8
Fat Change (lbs) -10
Lean mass Change (lbs) +2

That is very interesting. Did it state at what intensity it was at? I think my problem was I was hell bent on Cardio to the point it was really eating up my muscles. High Cardio - too low calories mistake. So I decided to do 12 weeks MAX-OT only. Depending on what happens I may throw in 2-3 cardios a week. Have to wait and see .

I would have to agree with most people on this and say Weight training.
But to quote Marcus from another thread
"Increased maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max)
Improvement in cardivascular/cardiorespiratory function (heart and lungs)
Increased maximal cardiac output (amount of blood pumped every minute)
Increased maximal stroke volume (amount of blood pumped with each beat)
Increased blood volume and ability to carry oxygen
Reduced workload on the heart (myocardial oxygen consumption) for any given submaximal exercise intensity
Increased blood supply to muscles and ability to use oxygen
Lower heart rate and blood pressure at any level of submaximal exercise
Increased threshold for lactic acid accumulation
Lower resting systolic and diastolic blood pressure in people with high blood pressure
Increased HDL Cholesterol (the good cholesterol)
Decreased blood triglycerides
Reduced body fat and improved weight control
Improved glucose tolerance and reduced insulin resistance

Why would you want to miss out on all of these benefits?"