Myth Busting March: “To lose weight you must just focus on cardio”

We know that trying to lose weight is not always straight forwards. There is so much information out there and so many different approaches that it’s difficult to know where to begin.

However, one myth that we often hear is that when you are trying to lose weight you must only focus on cardio. Whilst cardio is an important element of a workout, it is not the sole answer to losing weight – let’s go into more detail!

The role of cardio when working towards weight loss:

Cardio plays an essential role in weight loss as it burns calories, creating a deficit which will lead to losing total bodyweight. When you engage in a cardio session your body uses a combination of fat stores, carb stores and blood sugars as energy which helps to reduce weight. It can also increase your metabolism during the session which means that even after you finish, you are still likely to burn calories whilst cooling down.

Why not just cardio?

Relying on just cardio when you are trying to lose weight can lead to muscle loss, which can then alter your metabolism and hinder you losing weight. It’s important to include a mixture of cardio and resistance training when trying to drop the pounds as building muscle will lead to you burning calories faster (which has the added bonus of improving your physique, giving a “toned” appearance).

The bottom line? When you are trying to lose weight, a full body approach with a mixture of cardio and resistance training will usually yield the best results. Whilst cardio is an important element of that, it is also essential to be building muscle and all round fitness.

If you found this helpful, you might like to take a look at the following:

Planning A Workout -https://www.elevatefitness.uk/blog/mwzktmdbj7oqzv9d8yqwr7e6uj4o82

Heart Rate Zones - https://www.elevatefitness.uk/blog/what-exactly-are-heart-rate-zones

Switching Up Exercise - https://www.elevatefitness.uk/blog/switching-up-your-exercise-VwAIA