Strength Training or Cardio – What are the Differences?
Exercise Types
If you plan to start exercising, then you should know that generally there are 2 broad categories of exercise. The first category is cardio. This refers to things like running, jogging, skipping rope, using exercise bikes, using treadmills, etc. Cardio gets your cardiovascular system pumping and it helps you lose weight by burning off calories. Strength training, on the other hand, helps you burn calories and build muscle by exercising. Examples are: weight training, anything involving dumbbells, push-ups, pull-ups etc.
But which type is best for you?
Cardio is best for burning fat.
If your goal with exercise is to burn fat and shed some pounds, then without a doubt the best option is cardio. Now, that may be confusing for some. After all, both cardio and strength training are forms of exercise, so why should cardio be a better option for burning fat? Well, the reason is rather simple. 30 minutes of cardio burns more calories than 30 minutes of strength training. This may come as a surprise to some people, especially since you will find many people stating that strength training is the only way to go.
However, recent research has shown that cardio is just a much better way of burning fat and burning calories. For example, a study conducted by researchers at Duke University, looked at whether resistance training, cardio or a mixture of both was the best way to lose weight. The study concluded that if your goal is simply to lose weight and burn fat, then your best option is just to do cardio alone. Cardio proved to be superior both to strength training and strength training mixed with cardio. Now, this is not to say that strength training is useless, just that when it comes to losing weight, cardio is the better option.
Strength Training works best for muscle building.
If you want to build muscle, then the best option is strength training. In order to build muscle efficiently then you need to do strength training. Cardio is simply not intense enough to let you build muscle. In order to really build muscle, you need to do rapid, high-intensity exercise sessions. Strength training takes on more importance for people who are getting older, as strength training is the only way of ensuring that you maintain some muscle mass.
Finally, the best option is what works best for you. This will probably be some combination of both strength training and cardio!
We recommend you download this very useful free report that will further provide information on exercise and fitness.
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