Cardio or Weights?Technology and Fitness?

Published: Sun, 07/29/18

Today, just 2 questions that come up a lot! Cardio or weights for fat loss? Is all of this technology helping me reach my fitness goals?

WHICH IS BETTER FOR WEIGHT LOSS: CARDIO or WEIGHT TRAINING?

If you GOOGLE this question, you will find "expert" opinions on both ends of the spectrum. I've never been a fan of listening to these so-called experts. I like to dig a little deeper and look at the science and find research to back it up. Let me preface what I found by saying if you want to lose weight properly, it starts with smart nutrition. That needs to be the foundation, then you add in training. Which is why we focus on the BIG PICTURE at RPT!

As far as which type of training is better, researchers from Wake Forest University recently published a study with some interesting findings. The research team studied a group of adults, looking to lose weight, over an 18 month period.They split the group in 3 categories=>
- Diet + Weight Training
- Diet + Cardio
- Diet Only

RESULTS =>All 3 groups lost weight. Yet, both of the groups who added an exercise component lost significantly more weight. So who won then? Cardio or Weights?

The weight training group lost more weight, but only by a slight margin. BUT WAIT, they didn't stop there. The researchers took it a step further to examine what TYPE of weight was lost. They broke down how much of the weight loss was muscle vs. fat.

The group performing "cardio" exercise only, lost weight. A significant amount of that weight was LEAN MUSCLE MASS . Compared to the "weight training" group who lost a very small percentage of muscle mass, if any. Why is that important?

"Loss of lean mass could have important consequences given the high risk of physical disability among the growing population of older adults".

In other words, if you are losing muscle as you age, it will have a profound effect on your QUALITY OF LIFE. AKA ...Make it worse!! If you are not worried about aging yet then just realize you can lose weight and actually look worse!!..so there is no debate! You must be doing strength training!! We teach you how to do it safely! And, no, you will not bulk up!!! We also help you get all of the cardiovascular benefits without a boring treadmill!

Technology: Good or Bad for Fitness?

No one knows more about this topic than Dr. Andy Galpin and Brian Mackenzie who authored the book Unplugged. A great book for those who might be on the path to technology addiction in regards to fitness. I agree with everything they say in this book so I am just going to share a few quotes and summarize the book below.

Positive=>

✔We're not saying we're against fitness technology or that you should stop using it completely, rather take a more careful approach to how you use it, when, and why. A wearable can provide some early motivation and accountability. The problem is not technology but our misconception of what it can or will do for us, refusal to accept its limitations, and fixation on fitness tracking, which deadens our senses.

Negative=>

✔Cardio machines overestimated caloric burn by an average of 19 percent(Study conducted at UC San Francisco's Human Performance Center)

✔Multiple studies have found that activity trackers' heart rate monitoring is only 80% accurate with higher heart rates.
✔Because their motivation was coming from an external source, removing it means that many struggle to remain being active. A Duke university study found .."those who had quit tracking ended up doing less of their given activity than the people who'd never had any numbers attached to it in the first place

✔January 2017 study( Medicine and Science in Sport and Exercise) found 92 percent accuracy for tracking calories burned during walking and running, just 40.4 % accuracy for outdoor cycling, and 0% for cycling on a stationary bike!

✔Tracking Calories burned during exercise is not only faulty, but also fails to take into account the exercise induced increase in metabolic rate. The fact that when you build muscle, you burn more energy at rest....So the just do cardio people, or group classes focused on calories burned during the session, are missing the big picture!

✔Funny story about how one of his training partners told him to slow down or his heart would blow up, even though he was able to hold a comfortable conversation the entire time. So, yeah, it can cause you to think you are working way harder than you are if it's not accurate! And it is not!!

✔our phones, watches, and wearables promise insight, knowledge, and freedom, but what they really deliver is information overload, confusion, and servitude.

✔Despite the promises of technology, we're sicker, more worried, and less fulfilled than ever before.

Detric Smith, CSCS, ACSM Exercise Physiologist

http://resultsperformancetraining.com/

P.S=> Just hit reply or text 757 589 7028 if you are interested in a FREE CONSULTATION TO learn more about our fitness programs! Backed by REAL Science with Proven Results for Williamsburg Residents since 2011!