Cardio vs Weights:
Which is Better for Fat Loss?
By Adrian| Sept 3, 2023
When it comes to losing weight, should you head to the treadmill or make gains in the weight room?
Cardio enthusiasts say you’ll burn fat by torching calories when you increase your heart rate.
Meat heads will say that excess fat is best shed by increasing muscle mass.
So which is best?
In this blog post, I’m going to address the cardio vs weight training debate from a number of different angles including:
-Calories burned during the session
-Calories burned after the session
-Calories burned long-term and
-Cardio vs weights for body shape
Calories Burned During the Session:
A 60-minute, steady state run on the treadmill will burn more calories than spending the same amount of time doing a traditional strength training session.
This shouldn’t come as a surprise because your heart rate will be elevated at a higher rate during the session than lifting weights alone.
So, in the cardio vs weight lifting debate, cardio definitely wins this one.
Cardio training will burn more calories during the session than a traditional weights session.
After strength training however, your engine doesn’t just cool off immediately.
t takes time. I like to use the analogy of driving from Galway to Tuam vs Galway to Dublin.
Your car engine is going to take longer to cool down and get back to its normal state after driving to Dublin (weight training) than going to Tuam (cardio).
So, after a weights session, your metabolism can be boosted for up to 38 hours post-workout.
This means that your body burns more calories as you chill out on the couch for the evening after strength training vs doing a traditional steady state cardio session alone.
How cool is that?
After you pay your dues in the gym and sit down and relax for the evening, your body will continue to burn more calories as you rest.
In order to generate a high amount of post-calorie burn from aerobic training, you’d have to be doing it for a longer duration of time.
It is worth noting that sprinting does have similar effects on your metabolic rate to that of weight lifting – so sprinting is definitely something to consider.
However, for the most part, the “after-burn” of strength training lasts longer than that of traditional, steady-state cardio.
Not only does strength training burn more calories in the short-term window post-workout, but it also has more of a long-term calorie burning effect as well.
Why is this? Muscles are more metabolically active than fat.
The more muscle mass you have, the more calories you burn even while you rest.
That is why strength training is not only a good short-term strategy for fat-loss, but long-term too.
The more lean muscle tissue you have on your body, the more calories you burn around the clock.
This is also one of the reasons why males typically need to eat more calories than females.
Women have up to 15 to 20 times less testosterone than men.
Because of this, men generally have more lean muscle tissue & therefore a higher metabolic rate.
Whenever someone says they want to get in “shape” or to “tone up,” if you think about it, what are you referring to?
What gives your body that shape and tone?
No, it is not your bones!
They hold your body in place.
But to get that shape and tone you desire; you are specifically referring to building muscle.
Muscle is the thing that gives your body that “shape and tone” in the absence of bodyfat!
That’s not to say that cardio doesn’t help you lose weight.
It certainly does, but this weight loss is typically a combination of fat and muscle so what you’re left with is a smaller version of yourself (sometimes coined as being “skinny fat).”
The focus should be to build muscle, not burn it off.
The best way to get “shaped” and “toned” is to perform strength training along with cardio training (not cardio training alone) while eating in a calorie deficit.
This will give you a much better overall transformation than doing cardio alone.
Anyone whose lost a considerable amount of weight but still looks somewhat “soft” is usually because they have lost some fat, but their muscles aren’t overly toned.
If you wanted to combine both weight lifting and cardio in a single session, do not do your cardio first and weights after (unless you’re doing max effort sprinting or improving your cardio is more important to you than your strength).
Cardio training first for say 30 minutes and then doing 45 minutes of weights will mean your weight training performance will suffer.
Why? Because you’re pre-depleting your carbohydrate stores before you ever even touch a weight.
Your carbohydrates are needed to enable your muscles to work at their best capacity.
You’ll naturally diminish the results you can achieve when you try to lift weights by doing tough cardio first.
For best results, stick the cardio at the end of your workout or on a separate day.
This will help you see better results and avoid the abovementioned problems.
One point does have to be made about the benefits of doing cardio for your cardiovascular health.
Your heart and your lungs typically work harder doing cardio than weights.
Thus, the purpose of this post isn’t to tell you that you should eliminate cardio if you’re looking to “tone up.”.
It’s to tell you that you shouldn’t just do cardio alone as your only form of exercise to get there.
The best form of cardio is the one you enjoy the most that you can adhere to.
This might include running, cycling, elliptical etc.
However, one universal form of cardio everyone should be doing is the most basic one – walking.
Don’t underestimate the power of getting your steps in on a daily basis.
If you’re someone who acknowledges the benefits of having a good cardiovascular base but hate the thought of lacing up your runners and going for a 45-minute jog, then tempo running, HIIT or circuit training might be a better alternative for you.
If you have the time, LISS (Low Intensity Steady State) may work best.
This is a form of cardio I like to incorporate with myself & some of the clients I work with.
They seem to enjoy it more than doing a steady-state run.
Tempo running is where you run at 70-80% of your max speed for a certain period of time or for a certain distance before momentarily resting and repeating the process.
An example would be doing 30s running at a faster pace and 30s rest.
Repeating this process for up to 30 minutes.
Another benefit of tempo/interval running is you get to practice running at a faster speed than you would normally do in a traditional 30–45-minute steady state run.
HIIT training involves alternating intense exercise which requires shorts bursts of energy (usually between 8-12 seconds) with low-intensity recovery periods.
Examples would include doing clap push ups, med ball slams, jumps, sprinting or the assault bike with max intent for 8-12 seconds before resting, walking, jogging or coasting for about 45-60 seconds and repeating this for 10-20 minutes. A 1:5 work: rest ratio is optimal.
HIIT training will save you time, might be more enjoyable for some than traditional cardio and will still allow you to get the health benefits of cardio.
Note, don’t mistake HIIT training with long duration low intensity training which is often 45 seconds of work and 15 seconds of rest.
This is not HIIT training. I would classify it as more of a circuit style of training.
Circuit training involves performing a number of exercises in a circuit fashion with minimal rest in between.
I like to call this ‘muscle-building cardio’ and share multiple examples of it on my Instagram page.
An example might include combining an upper body, lower body, core and conditioning exercise back-to-back without resting.
LISS training means keeping your heart rate at a sustainable pace throughout your workout.
Once you don’t find yourself gasping for air, stopping for a breather and/or gasping for air, you’re probably doing LISS training.
Examples include walking, running, rowing, cycling etc. at a steady pace for optimally a 30-60 minute period.
Conclusion
-Cardio burns more calories during a workout than lifting weights.
- Strength training burns more calories after a workout
-Weight training has more of a long-term calorie burn than cardio
-Strength training is more effective for body shape/toning up
- Do your cardio after strength training, not before if you’re doing it in the same workout
-Cardio has health benefits for your heart and lungs
-If you don’t like cardio, but still want a cardio base, consider doing tempo running, HIIT training or circuit training.
The bottom line is, the best form of exercise is the one you enjoy, that you’re most consistent with that gets you the goals you desire.
Adherence and effort will determine a huge percentage of your fat loss.
In my own personal experience, if fat-loss is the goal, primarily focusing on strength training while incorporating cardio yields the best results.
I would recommend you to make lifting weights a priority and break free from the mindset that cardio alone equates to faster fat loss.
Depending on your goal, I have some free resources which might be of benefit to you.
If you’d like a copy of my free, 3-day Total Body Transformation Program click HERE! (Enjoy the core finisher!).
If you’d like a copy of my Free Living Lean Cookbook to prove to you that it’s possible to eat foods you enjoy and get results, click HERE.
(Try out some EPIC protein pancakes!).
And if you’d like access to my Free 7 Day Fat Loss Accelerator (which has helped some members drop up to 7lbs inside 7 days),
click HERE and it will be sent straight to your email.
I hope these free resources help you!
While the above three relate specifically to training and nutrition, this final topic related to mindset. In the past, I’ve fallen victim to the test of success. What’s the test of success?
You know that feeling of accomplishment you get when you put a few “good days” back to back? For instance, Monday - Friday you’ve been eating really healthily and so you feel like rewarding yourself at the weekend? Or that sense of achievement you feel when you weigh yourself and see the scale move down and you now look forward to treating yourself.
I love those feelings too - everyone loves to win. But a mistake I made in the past was to let these wins give me a false sense of security. I justified these wins to allow myself to go binge-eating at the weekend and reverting back to my old habits. I would eat portions of food way bigger than normal. This all came off the back of getting a false sense of security from encountering a small win.
I let the test of success get to me - that temptation to “take the foot off the gas” when you experience a win instead of striving for better. It’s a fine line. So, while I’m not saying you shouldn’t take time to celebrate the wins, I am saying it’s important not to let complacency kick in when you do win. Not to allow yourself to lose your momentum and revert back to old habits.
I have lost weight before and rebounded so I know what it feels like. However, this year, I managed to lose weight and keep it off forever by focusing on the fundamentals and handling the test of success. So when you experience a win, when you start making progress, are you going to become comfortable and coast? Or are you going to continue to do the fundamentals that led to your success in the first place? This has been one of the biggest changes I’ve made this year – in my mindset.
Remember, losing weight is one skill to master, but creating a lifestyle change where you can learn how to sustain it and keep it is another skill entirely in itself. Being aware of the test of success and following the fundamentals is the final (and perhaps most important) way to stay lean year round.
Thank you for reading – I hope you learned something new and got some value from this.
If you did get value from it, please pay the fee. What's the fee?
If you find this content valuable (maybe you learned something new or are going to implement a new practice) then please share my blog post with a friend or on your social stories and tag me on Instagram (@McLifestyleFitness).
For such a small act that doesn't cost anything, it really helps me reach more people and spread the word on how to optimise your health and fitness.
I don’t run ads towards my blog posts, everything I’ve done to date has been done organically from people like you reading spreading the good word. I’d appreciate your continued support.
While the above three relate specifically to training and nutrition, this final topic related to mindset. In the past, I’ve fallen victim to the test of success. What’s the test of success?
You know that feeling of accomplishment you get when you put a few “good days” back to back? For instance, Monday - Friday you’ve been eating really healthily and so you feel like rewarding yourself at the weekend? Or that sense of achievement you feel when you weigh yourself and see the scale move down and you now look forward to treating yourself.
I love those feelings too - everyone loves to win. But a mistake I made in the past was to let these wins give me a false sense of security. I justified these wins to allow myself to go binge-eating at the weekend and reverting back to my old habits. I would eat portions of food way bigger than normal. This all came off the back of getting a false sense of security from encountering a small win.
I let the test of success get to me - that temptation to “take the foot off the gas” when you experience a win instead of striving for better. It’s a fine line. So, while I’m not saying you shouldn’t take time to celebrate the wins, I am saying it’s important not to let complacency kick in when you do win. Not to allow yourself to lose your momentum and revert back to old habits.
I have lost weight before and rebounded so I know what it feels like. However, this year, I managed to lose weight and keep it off forever by focusing on the fundamentals and handling the test of success. So when you experience a win, when you start making progress, are you going to become comfortable and coast? Or are you going to continue to do the fundamentals that led to your success in the first place? This has been one of the biggest changes I’ve made this year – in my mindset.
Remember, losing weight is one skill to master, but creating a lifestyle change where you can learn how to sustain it and keep it is another skill entirely in itself. Being aware of the test of success and following the fundamentals is the final (and perhaps most important) way to stay lean year round.
Thank you for reading – I hope you learned something new and got some value from this.
If you did get value from it, please pay the fee. What's the fee?
If you find this content valuable (maybe you learned something new or are going to implement a new practice) then please share my blog post with a friend or on your social stories and tag me on Instagram (@McLifestyleFitness).
For such a small act that doesn't cost anything, it really helps me reach more people and spread the word on how to optimise your health and fitness.
I don’t run ads towards my blog posts, everything I’ve done to date has been done organically from people like you reading spreading the good word. I’d appreciate your continued support.
While the above three relate specifically to training and nutrition, this final topic related to mindset. In the past, I’ve fallen victim to the test of success. What’s the test of success?
You know that feeling of accomplishment you get when you put a few “good days” back to back? For instance, Monday - Friday you’ve been eating really healthily and so you feel like rewarding yourself at the weekend? Or that sense of achievement you feel when you weigh yourself and see the scale move down and you now look forward to treating yourself.
I love those feelings too - everyone loves to win. But a mistake I made in the past was to let these wins give me a false sense of security. I justified these wins to allow myself to go binge-eating at the weekend and reverting back to my old habits. I would eat portions of food way bigger than normal. This all came off the back of getting a false sense of security from encountering a small win.
I let the test of success get to me - that temptation to “take the foot off the gas” when you experience a win instead of striving for better. It’s a fine line. So, while I’m not saying you shouldn’t take time to celebrate the wins, I am saying it’s important not to let complacency kick in when you do win. Not to allow yourself to lose your momentum and revert back to old habits.
I have lost weight before and rebounded so I know what it feels like. However, this year, I managed to lose weight and keep it off forever by focusing on the fundamentals and handling the test of success. So when you experience a win, when you start making progress, are you going to become comfortable and coast? Or are you going to continue to do the fundamentals that led to your success in the first place? This has been one of the biggest changes I’ve made this year – in my mindset.
Remember, losing weight is one skill to master, but creating a lifestyle change where you can learn how to sustain it and keep it is another skill entirely in itself. Being aware of the test of success and following the fundamentals is the final (and perhaps most important) way to stay lean year round.
Thank you for reading – I hope you learned something new and got some value from this.
If you did get value from it, please pay the fee. What's the fee?
If you find this content valuable (maybe you learned something new or are going to implement a new practice) then please share my blog post with a friend or on your social stories and tag me on Instagram (@McLifestyleFitness).
For such a small act that doesn't cost anything, it really helps me reach more people and spread the word on how to optimise your health and fitness.
I don’t run ads towards my blog posts, everything I’ve done to date has been done organically from people like you reading spreading the good word. I’d appreciate your continued support.
While the above three relate specifically to training and nutrition, this final topic related to mindset. In the past, I’ve fallen victim to the test of success. What’s the test of success?
You know that feeling of accomplishment you get when you put a few “good days” back to back? For instance, Monday - Friday you’ve been eating really healthily and so you feel like rewarding yourself at the weekend? Or that sense of achievement you feel when you weigh yourself and see the scale move down and you now look forward to treating yourself.
I love those feelings too - everyone loves to win. But a mistake I made in the past was to let these wins give me a false sense of security. I justified these wins to allow myself to go binge-eating at the weekend and reverting back to my old habits. I would eat portions of food way bigger than normal. This all came off the back of getting a false sense of security from encountering a small win.
I let the test of success get to me - that temptation to “take the foot off the gas” when you experience a win instead of striving for better. It’s a fine line. So, while I’m not saying you shouldn’t take time to celebrate the wins, I am saying it’s important not to let complacency kick in when you do win. Not to allow yourself to lose your momentum and revert back to old habits.
I have lost weight before and rebounded so I know what it feels like. However, this year, I managed to lose weight and keep it off forever by focusing on the fundamentals and handling the test of success. So when you experience a win, when you start making progress, are you going to become comfortable and coast? Or are you going to continue to do the fundamentals that led to your success in the first place? This has been one of the biggest changes I’ve made this year – in my mindset.
Remember, losing weight is one skill to master, but creating a lifestyle change where you can learn how to sustain it and keep it is another skill entirely in itself. Being aware of the test of success and following the fundamentals is the final (and perhaps most important) way to stay lean year round.
Thank you for reading – I hope you learned something new and got some value from this.
If you did get value from it, please pay the fee. What's the fee?
If you find this content valuable (maybe you learned something new or are going to implement a new practice) then please share my blog post with a friend or on your social stories and tag me on Instagram (@McLifestyleFitness).
For such a small act that doesn't cost anything, it really helps me reach more people and spread the word on how to optimise your health and fitness.
I don’t run ads towards my blog posts, everything I’ve done to date has been done organically from people like you reading spreading the good word. I’d appreciate your continued support.
While the above three relate specifically to training and nutrition, this final topic related to mindset. In the past, I’ve fallen victim to the test of success. What’s the test of success?
You know that feeling of accomplishment you get when you put a few “good days” back to back? For instance, Monday - Friday you’ve been eating really healthily and so you feel like rewarding yourself at the weekend? Or that sense of achievement you feel when you weigh yourself and see the scale move down and you now look forward to treating yourself.
I love those feelings too - everyone loves to win. But a mistake I made in the past was to let these wins give me a false sense of security. I justified these wins to allow myself to go binge-eating at the weekend and reverting back to my old habits. I would eat portions of food way bigger than normal. This all came off the back of getting a false sense of security from encountering a small win.
I let the test of success get to me - that temptation to “take the foot off the gas” when you experience a win instead of striving for better. It’s a fine line. So, while I’m not saying you shouldn’t take time to celebrate the wins, I am saying it’s important not to let complacency kick in when you do win. Not to allow yourself to lose your momentum and revert back to old habits.
I have lost weight before and rebounded so I know what it feels like. However, this year, I managed to lose weight and keep it off forever by focusing on the fundamentals and handling the test of success. So when you experience a win, when you start making progress, are you going to become comfortable and coast? Or are you going to continue to do the fundamentals that led to your success in the first place? This has been one of the biggest changes I’ve made this year – in my mindset.
Remember, losing weight is one skill to master, but creating a lifestyle change where you can learn how to sustain it and keep it is another skill entirely in itself. Being aware of the test of success and following the fundamentals is the final (and perhaps most important) way to stay lean year round.
Thank you for reading – I hope you learned something new and got some value from this.
If you did get value from it, please pay the fee. What's the fee?
If you find this content valuable (maybe you learned something new or are going to implement a new practice) then please share my blog post with a friend or on your social stories and tag me on Instagram (@McLifestyleFitness).
For such a small act that doesn't cost anything, it really helps me reach more people and spread the word on how to optimise your health and fitness.
I don’t run ads towards my blog posts, everything I’ve done to date has been done organically from people like you reading spreading the good word. I’d appreciate your continued support.
While the above three relate specifically to training and nutrition, this final topic related to mindset. In the past, I’ve fallen victim to the test of success. What’s the test of success?
You know that feeling of accomplishment you get when you put a few “good days” back to back? For instance, Monday - Friday you’ve been eating really healthily and so you feel like rewarding yourself at the weekend? Or that sense of achievement you feel when you weigh yourself and see the scale move down and you now look forward to treating yourself.
I love those feelings too - everyone loves to win. But a mistake I made in the past was to let these wins give me a false sense of security. I justified these wins to allow myself to go binge-eating at the weekend and reverting back to my old habits. I would eat portions of food way bigger than normal. This all came off the back of getting a false sense of security from encountering a small win.
I let the test of success get to me - that temptation to “take the foot off the gas” when you experience a win instead of striving for better. It’s a fine line. So, while I’m not saying you shouldn’t take time to celebrate the wins, I am saying it’s important not to let complacency kick in when you do win. Not to allow yourself to lose your momentum and revert back to old habits.
I have lost weight before and rebounded so I know what it feels like. However, this year, I managed to lose weight and keep it off forever by focusing on the fundamentals and handling the test of success. So when you experience a win, when you start making progress, are you going to become comfortable and coast? Or are you going to continue to do the fundamentals that led to your success in the first place? This has been one of the biggest changes I’ve made this year – in my mindset.
Remember, losing weight is one skill to master, but creating a lifestyle change where you can learn how to sustain it and keep it is another skill entirely in itself. Being aware of the test of success and following the fundamentals is the final (and perhaps most important) way to stay lean year round.
Thank you for reading – I hope you learned something new and got some value from this.
If you did get value from it, please pay the fee. What's the fee?
If you find this content valuable (maybe you learned something new or are going to implement a new practice) then please share my blog post with a friend or on your social stories and tag me on Instagram (@McLifestyleFitness).
For such a small act that doesn't cost anything, it really helps me reach more people and spread the word on how to optimise your health and fitness.
I don’t run ads towards my blog posts, everything I’ve done to date has been done organically from people like you reading spreading the good word. I’d appreciate your continued support.
While the above three relate specifically to training and nutrition, this final topic related to mindset. In the past, I’ve fallen victim to the test of success. What’s the test of success?
You know that feeling of accomplishment you get when you put a few “good days” back to back? For instance, Monday - Friday you’ve been eating really healthily and so you feel like rewarding yourself at the weekend? Or that sense of achievement you feel when you weigh yourself and see the scale move down and you now look forward to treating yourself.
I love those feelings too - everyone loves to win. But a mistake I made in the past was to let these wins give me a false sense of security. I justified these wins to allow myself to go binge-eating at the weekend and reverting back to my old habits. I would eat portions of food way bigger than normal. This all came off the back of getting a false sense of security from encountering a small win.
I let the test of success get to me - that temptation to “take the foot off the gas” when you experience a win instead of striving for better. It’s a fine line. So, while I’m not saying you shouldn’t take time to celebrate the wins, I am saying it’s important not to let complacency kick in when you do win. Not to allow yourself to lose your momentum and revert back to old habits.
I have lost weight before and rebounded so I know what it feels like. However, this year, I managed to lose weight and keep it off forever by focusing on the fundamentals and handling the test of success. So when you experience a win, when you start making progress, are you going to become comfortable and coast? Or are you going to continue to do the fundamentals that led to your success in the first place? This has been one of the biggest changes I’ve made this year – in my mindset.
Remember, losing weight is one skill to master, but creating a lifestyle change where you can learn how to sustain it and keep it is another skill entirely in itself. Being aware of the test of success and following the fundamentals is the final (and perhaps most important) way to stay lean year round.
Thank you for reading – I hope you learned something new and got some value from this.
If you did get value from it, please pay the fee. What's the fee?
If you find this content valuable (maybe you learned something new or are going to implement a new practice) then please share my blog post with a friend or on your social stories and tag me on Instagram (@McLifestyleFitness).
For such a small act that doesn't cost anything, it really helps me reach more people and spread the word on how to optimise your health and fitness.
I don’t run ads towards my blog posts, everything I’ve done to date has been done organically from people like you reading spreading the good word. I’d appreciate your continued support.
IIf you’d like a coach to help get you out of a routine that isn’t currently working for you and into one that will , then book your
free consultation call today to see if you’d be a good fit for my Online Coaching.
This is where having the structure and accountability of a coach comes in. I’ll help you get the results you’ve always desired and
make your journey much easier and quicker than doing it on your own.
You’re just one click away of becoming a success story.
IAdrian McDonnell is a highly specialised Personal Trainer & Online Fitness Coach from outside of Tuam, Co.Galway, Ireland.
Previously a primary school teacher for almost 5 years, Adrian followed his passion and pursued a career in fitness after seeing first hands the results he could achieve with himself.
Although Adrian is a Personal Trainer & now Full-Time Online Transformation Fitness Coach from outside of Tuam, Co.Galway – he not only coaches clients locally, but also nationally and internationally.
Adrian specialises in helping working professionals:
- Be confident in themselves·
- Feel more comfortable in their clothes·
- Look better in the mirror·
- Increase their energy and go for more promotions at work·
- Get fitter, leaner & stronger without following rigid meal plans·
- Go on more dates (this is a common one)·
- And feel proud of themselves for doing something they never thought was possible!
To date he has helped Transform over 500 Clients into fitter, more toned & confident individuals.
Transforming people’s lives through proper fitness, sustainable & enjoyable nutrition practices & mindset mentoring is something Adrian is truly passionate about and this is his mission in life.
Want to find out more? Contact me today & I’ll answer any questions you have.
Read Last Week's Post
© 2021 McLifestyle Fitness & Performance Ltd. - All Rights Reserved
Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Release & Waiver of Liability