Cardio or Weight Training?
What burns more calories?
What is the fastest and easiest way?
This might be something that you are wondering about if you have a fat loss goal.
You've might have heard that cardio is the way to go if you're trying to lose weight.
But contrary to popular belief, cardio isn't the recipe for fat loss. And neither is resistance training alone.
So what is?
Yes, you can achieve fat loss with cardio and with weight training. But, focusing on your nutrition to drive your fat loss is going to be your best bet rather than trying to do it through just exercise.
Because the ONLY WAY to lose fat is to be in a calorie deficit.
So you don't need cardio or strength training to lose fat. By just focusing on your nutrition and making sure you are in a calorie deficit, you will lose fat. But just because you can doesn't mean you should or that it would be smart. On the other hand, you don't need to work out 6 or 7 days a week and be super restrictive with your diet to reach your goals.
So it shouldn't be either or. Because a combination of both resistance training and cardio will lead you to better and long-lasting results.
With that being said understanding how to incorporate both cardio and resistance training will better help you than either one alone.
The reality is that if you are doing cardio and eat in a calorie deficit you can lose fat. And if you strength train and eat in a calorie deficit you can also lose fat.
But doing cardio or any form of resistance training for the sole purpose of burning calories isn't the reason you should be working out.
And btw, you shouldn't trust the Treadmill, Elliptical, Rowing machine, etc., or your Apple Watch or Fitbit to tell you how many calories you are burning. They are wrong. They might be telling you that you burned 700 calories when the reality is you probably only burned 200 calories at the most.
I know it might suck to hear that.
Now to answer the question...
Which Form of Exercise Burns More Calories, Cardio or Strength Training?
Well, if we compare a 30 min Cardio session to a 30 min Strength Training session, Cardio does burn more calories. So minute by minute, you will burn more calories during a cardio session than during a strength training session.
Keep in mind that the total calories burned in one given session will ultimately depend on the total amount of work that was performed.
And when it comes to strength training there are some things to consider. Compound movements will burn more calories than isolation movements. Free weight exercises will burn more calories than machine exercises, especially isolation machine exercises.
So if we are strictly looking at calories expended in one given workout session, cardio does win here. But I want to be clear that cardio workouts win only in terms of actual calories burned during exercise. I wouldn't say nor recommend that it's the "preferred" or "only exercise" choice for fat loss.
So before you decide to do hours and hours of cardio, let's take a look at the benefits of Strength Training and Cardio.
Strength Training Benefits
In one given strength training session, strength training doesn't burn as many calories as cardio does. However, there are many benefits of strength training that you don't get by just doing cardio alone.
So picking up some weights shouldn't be overlooked.
Strength training will help you:
Build muscle.
Get stronger.
Increase your bone density.
Strengthen your ligaments and tendons.
Improve your balance, stability, and mobility.
These are just some of the major factors that come with strength training.
Now one thing I would like you to consider is that strength training is more effective than cardio in building muscle. Which in turn will help you burn more calories at rest. Because the more muscle mass you have on your body the more energy you expend at rest. This way you are making your metabolism more efficient.
Muscle tissue burns more calories than other types of tissue. So, if you have more muscle, you will burn more calories and potentially lose more weight, even if you’re just sitting at your desk.
Another really big benefit that strength training has over cardio is that you can reshape your body. By strength-training and using progressive overload, over time you will be building muscle. This way you'll be able to add more definition to your body.
What you don't want is to jump on the treadmill for hours just to lose weight, you'll end up losing both fat and muscle.
That's why strength training while being in a calorie deficit will give you a better chance of losing more body fat than muscle mass. This will allow you to get the definition you might be looking for. Because muscle tissue is denser than fat tissue. It takes up less space, which in turn contributes to that lean, fit look that is referred to by many as the "toned" look.
The benefits of strength training do take longer to build up but they also take a long time to lose. So if you start strength training consistently for 1, 2, 3 years and you take some weeks off you don't lose all your strength, all your muscle, or all the bone density that you built up.
Benefits of Cardio
Other than just burning more calories than strength training does session for session, cardio has many other benefits that shouldn't be overlooked.
Cardio:
Improves heart health
Lowers blood pressure
Regulates blood sugar
Improves your endurance
Increases sleep quality
Improves mood
You should be doing cardio regardless of whether or not it burns more calories. Whatever your health and fitness goals are, cardio should be included in your program.
The Biggest Takeaway
The biggest takeaway from this article is that it's not either-or. There isn't one "right" exercise for fat loss.
For the best fat loss results your going to want to follow this formula: You'll need to be in a calorie deficit + Make sure you are eating sufficient protein + Include both strength training and cardio in your program.
This will help you maintain your muscle mass while losing fat.
This way you'll get the best of both worlds.
For example in general your program could look something like this:
4 Strength Training Sessions 2 Cardio Sessions
3 Strength Training Sessions 3 Cardio Sessions
3 Strength Training Sessions 2 Cardio Sessions
2 Strength Training Sessions & 4 Cardio Sessions
2 Strength Training Sessions & 3 Cardio Sessions
2 Strength Training Sessions & 2 Cardio Sessions
As you can see there are many many ways to do this.
However, the most important thing here is to pick something that works for you and your lifestyle.
There is no ONE right or ONE wrong way. It's also going to depend on what you enjoy. So if you don't like running then don't run, walk. If you can't stand the Treadmill, but enjoy the Elliptical then use the Elliptical. Or if you just can't stand doing cardio inside and would prefer to be outdoors then take your cardio outside. Go on hikes, long walks, or bike rides.
My recommendation would be to:
Strength Train a minimum of 2 x a week and focus on compound movements.
Do cardio a minimum of 2 x a week (any form of cardio that you prefer and yes walking counts too.)
Take at least 2 rest days. Now on these rest days that doesn't mean laying in bed all day or sitting on the couch doing absolutely nothing. On your rest day do something. Anything that you enjoy doing. You can still go for walks or play your favorite sport. A rest day is just a day where you don't have a scheduled workout to do.
There is and will never be a "best exercise" there is only what works for you and what you can stay consistent with.
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Thank you for reading!
I hope you found this helpful.
If you have any questions please feel free to reach out. I'm always happy to help.
If you're interested in getting one on one coaching from me. Where I create a training and nutrition plan to help you achieve your goals. Fill out my Online Coaching Application, and I'll be reaching out to you to talk more about your goals and how I can help.
Coach Deb
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