We all know the rules when it comes to health and fitness right? No pain, no gain is the reason why so many people are spending so much time sweating on treadmills in pursuit of a lean toned body. But is endurance cardio training for weight loss effective?
Things to consider
The first consideration is the law of specificity when it comes to exercise. If you want to get better swimming, you swim, if you want to get better at sprinting, you sprint, and if you want to build your endurance you do endurance cardio.
Does that make endurance cardio for weight loss effective? No, endurance cardio will......you guessed it; increase your endurance. Sure it burns calories, but so does any form of exercise.
The fact is any mode of exercise can be effective for your weight loss goals, but first you must get into a calorie deficit, and that is the key to effective weight loss.
The way you eat is way more important than endurance cardio for weight loss
If your primary goal is weight loss you need to eat in line with that goal. Energy deficit rules, and if you take in less calories than you use, you will lose weight. You can create this deficit by eating less, or exercising more, or a combination of both. However when choosing a form of exercise to compliment your weight loss nutrition plan here are a few things to keep in mind
1) Cardio is not time efficient
Our bodies are designed to make the most of the energy we take in, so it takes a relatively long time to burn off the energy in the food we eat with exercise. That time can be undone in an instant, and it may well be for one very powerful reason...
2) Cardio will probably make you hungry
All that running is great for building up an appetite, but what this means is that there is a very good chance that the hour you spend on endurance cardio will be undone in a minute as your craving for food to replace the energy you have just spent.
3) Too much cardio isn't much fun
Some of us love it, but it definitely is not for everyone. If its not for you, you already know. The good news is that it is not necessary for your weight loss goals
4) Endurance cardio uses time and energy you could be putting to use building a lean toned body
Seen a marathon runner lately? Admirable as their efforts are, most of us, prefer the lean toned look of a Hollywood star, or a sprinter. The best way to get this look is with the proper use of resistance training.
Of course there is only so much time we can spare in pursuit of the body beautiful, but you don't need to spend your life on health and fitness to get the body you really want.
The fact is that less is more, focus your effort where it matters, on finding and following the right nutrition plan, and workouts that get you results in double quick time, rather than wasting energy and motivation running around doing endurance cardio, which only leaves you burned out wondering where weight loss went wrong.
