Why I stopped doing so much cardio
I too thought hour-long tough cardio workouts would help me lose weight, but they didn’t. I upped my cardio from 1 to 2 hours a day and, darn it, no weight loss. The only thing that got me leaner was weight training. Here’s why, “Weight training can, and will, help you get leaner, and cardio can actually have a negative impact on body composition (percent body fat), as too much of it creates a catabolic (muscle-wasting) environment in the body, which slows metabolism. In the presence of adequate protein and carbohydrate consumption, lifting will help build muscle. More muscle means a faster metabolism, which means more fat is burned and the physique becomes leaner. And while you may burn more calories during a cardio session than a lifting workout, you’ll burn more calories at rest (like when you’re sleeping or sitting around watching TV) as a result of lifting versus cardio” (1).
Instead of my 1 hour cardio burn outs, I’m doing 1 hour of heavy lifting and about 30 minutes of light cardio four to five days a week. I’m spending less time in the gym, enjoying my workouts more, and I’m losing inches. Goodbye boot camps! I won’t miss you.
Photo: Me doing bench hops. I like doing short bursts of cardio between weight training sets to keep my heart rate up.
Source: Muscle & Fitness article titled, “3 Reasons Why You’re Not Ripped” by Joe Wuebben
