How much cardio is adequate?

tomas1938 · Newbie Joined: 18 Jun 2005 Posts: 1

Hi, I have been weight lifting for couple of months. I have joined the gym primarily to lose some weight and to shape up my muscles. But, even though I am on a diet, I am not seeing magnificent results. My best friend has told me that weight lifting is not the right activity to lose weight and that I should do some cardio with it. What I was wondering is should I spend equal time doing cardio and weight lifting, or is there some other way to do it. How much cardio is adequate?

wilmer1575 · Newbie Joined: 13 Aug 2005 Posts: 1

Hi, your friend is absolutely right. There is no better way to lose weight than with cardio exercises. These exercises will help you burn much more calories than the weight lifting. But to achieve maximal results you should combine these two activities and a low fat/low carb diet. However, it is also equally important not to do too much cardio exercises, because you might start to lose some muscle mass as well. So your question is very good. However, there isn't one answer to this question. This all depends on your fitness level and your goals. But, somewhere between thirty minutes and one hour is all the cardio you will need. Since you want to lose weight try doing cardio exercises four to five times per week. If sometimes you change your mind and want to build some muscles, lower the cardio exercises to three times a week.

tennischic · Newbie Joined: 18 Dec 2007 Posts: 11

You may be losing fat but not weight. If you are weight lifting, chances are you are putting on muscle. If your weight hasn't gone up then you must be losing fat. You are supossed to do about 50/50 weight lifting and cardio but if you enjoy weight lifting a lot more, focus on doing lighter weights with more reps.

How much cardio is adequate?

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