Is cardio Ideal for weight loss?

Is cardio Ideal for weightloss? from Hybrid Performance Method on Vimeo.

Is cardio Ideal for weight loss?

There seems to be a lot of confusion around cardio and weight loss.

Most people think that cardio is the only way to expose their beautifully crafted six pack but the truth is that’s not  the case. 

Gyms around the  world are always filled with people doing endless amounts of cardio under that same exact assumption, the more cardio they do  the more fat they can lose. 

Gyms have stair-masters, ellipticals, treadmills, bikes, you name it.  

For some reason they're convinced that if they spend enough time in the fat burning zone that the fat will just melt off magically. 

Not to mention that the calorie expenditure amount on cardio machines is highly inaccurate and most often overestimate the amount of calories that you're actually burning.

Believe it or no, cardio is not the only way that you can lose weight. 

Beyond that, it might be relatively ineffective. 

So I'm here to tell you that there is a better way based on science.

Weight Loss comes down to total energy expenditure minus total daily caloric intake... 

Cardio does increase  energy expenditure, the problem is it does so in such a tiny amount and it's often negated by being hungry and moving less through the day,  and this happens subconsciously. 

You can only do so much in an hour, and what you do can easily be undone by eating a lot more and not moving like I said above. 

Instead focus on non-exercise activity, where the biggest changes can be made. Sedentary people burn at 6 -10% of their calories on non-exercise activity but active people can burn as much as 50%. 

So just starting by walking more and being more mindful of how much you are moving in a day helps a ton. 

The World Health Organization 150 min of activity  per day but 80% of adults don't even get that. 

And don't let me forget resistance training... when people say “weight loss” what they really mean is fat loss.  Muscle loss is rarely ever the goal, and keep in mind people with more muscle mass burn way more calories at rest and during activity, and they can consume more calories without gaining as much weight.

So resistance training to build muscle, and keep it, when losing fat is super helpful. 

But most fail to understand that when we change one part of the equation, we never like to change something else. Cardio seems to be the most direct way to accelerate weight loss, but it's not a complete approach to getting leaner. 

Don't forget the other more powerful weight loss tools that exist…. resistance training is kind of like your entree and cardio is more of a side dish... I hope that makes sense.

-Stefi