The Final Verdict On Cardio and Weight Loss

I do know that I cut way back on my cardio a few weeks ago, and my weight loss came to a slow halt... I think the caloretic defecite it created was really helping... Although when lifting, I usually and supersetting from lift to lift and can get breathing very hard, especially on legs night, in which I am breathing very hard the entire time... But if I get on the treadmill and run 2 miles I can do it, and its a different kind of tired... am I way off base here?

Eat...Lift....Sleep......Repeat

Enjoy the process.. but crave the goal.

I don't think you are way off.
 
If the goal is fat loss and you are tracking changes in body composition, you can use cardio to tweak the fat loss.
 
You can create a caloric deficit from the combination of diet and training.
 
One key is the energy balance...however there are other keys!
As an example...
Lets look at someone who eats 2000 and expends 2500 calories.
We expect they will lose 1 pound a week.
 
However, the goal is to retain muscle mass and lose fat.
Muscle has to be stimulated which means there has to be resistance training. 
There are many ways to achieve the same goal..but lets say you train in the 9-12 range.
 
That means the calories you EXPEND while training will be glucose, not fat.
Lets also say your diet is not optimal and you still consume milk, bread, pasta, fruit etc.
 
That means in the 23 hours you are not in the gym your body is going to be insulin dominant and not likely to be in a fat burning mode very often.  That means it is possible either muscle will be used to make up the calories needed, or the body may slow the metabolism.
 
Now lets look at the role of cardio here....if you do it pre meal in the AM..then you are likely to burn fat for fuel.  If you do post workout cardio, the same applies.
 
Though, correcting the diet and tracking body composition would help to insure that you see that fat is burning and not muscle or metabolic adjustments.  If the diet is on, you can more easily burn fat in the 23 hours you don't train.
 
If your training includes stimulating the Type I and Type IIa - oxidative fibers then your fat burning will be higher and you may not need cardio.
 
While cardio should primarily be looked at as a way to improve the cardiorespiratory and other systems of the body, it is also tool.  A powerful tool.
 
It is not the most efficient way to burn fat.  If you get the elements right, you burn more in the 23 hours you don't train than you do in the hour cardio session!
 
Doing cardio causes the body to shift is preference for energy use more toward fat.
However, cardio can cause changes in the body that favor fat gain.
 
For most cardio freaks, it just causes more muscle loss and more fat storage.

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So that is the main reason why all the cardio freaks at the gym are skin and bones skinny.... Not slim like veg who has loads of muscle but no muscle hardly at all.

Eat...Lift....Sleep......Repeat

Enjoy the process.. but crave the goal.

Skinny Fat people.
 
Actually there is a new clinical definition for this...
Sarcopenic Obesity - reduced lean body mass...

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For most cardio freaks, it just causes more muscle loss and more fat storage.

Yup.  Burning away more and more muscle.

Twin Peak said a long time ago that 'cardio was overrated.'  And I tend to agree.  Use it as a tool.  Use it to increase your endurance but so many people abuse it they end up doing more hard than good.

Overrated in my opinion but not worthless by any means which is what this article pretty much said.

Marc C. David
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Sweet... I do a small pre workout to get the pump going, then 10-15 minutes post workout.... honestly not for fat loss, but because I find I dont get a sore the next day, I think it has to do with blood flow... Not to mention I just have a burst of energy, where if I dont do cardio I get sleepy..

Eat...Lift....Sleep......Repeat

Enjoy the process.. but crave the goal.

i can honestly tell you that i have lost at least 50 pounds just lifting weights. i dont do alot of cardio only the speed bag and bmx every now and then.
 
so i should just stick to lifting weight and not do a lot of cardio if i want to get more cut...i still need to lose like 20-30 pounds. but still have alot of muscle.
 
also if you do alot of reps with small weights wont that burn calories and still build muscle.
 
thanks
 
 

so i should just stick to lifting weight and not do a lot of cardio if i want to get more cut...i still need to lose like 20-30 pounds. but still have alot of muscle.

At some point your training is likely going to need to be more oxidative (fat burning) in nature and your diet tighter to get to the lower bodyfat levels, say to 10% and below.
 

also if you do alot of reps with small weights wont that burn calories and still build muscle.

It will burn calories, and if the reps are higher...in the 25-40 range then it will mostly be fat calories (assuming your diet supports optimal fat use for energy)
 
It will also stimulate Type I and Type IIa oxidative (fat burning) muscle fiber (just like running for instance) which can hypertrophy (think of sprinters muscle vs. those of marathon ruinners)...but this is not the optimal way to get hypertrophy...it is simply a tool.
 
Awesome job on the weight loss!

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On the cardio issue, it depends on your goals.
 
If burning fat is your priorities, then cardio is a good plan for you. When you do cardio for a long duration of time, you literally burn the fat. Your body recruits glucose when you do long distance running. The body actually uses fat stores to recruit more glucose for energy. What happens is that fatty acids are taken from the stomach and transports to the liver. The liver converts it into glucose for energy.
 
If you are on a bulk muscle mass gain phase, I would not recommend cardio. Over the summer, I cut my cardio down to short duration sprints once a week and was able to gain 15lbs of muscle.  

body weight: 250
Bench: 365
Squat: 555 w/ briefs and knee wraps
Deadlift:585

- tps strongman