cardio - worthwhile or worthless for fat loss?

[jeremys]

obviously cardio is beneficial to athletes and their performance but im talking about dieting for a show, getting pretty for the summer, etc. hell, some people even debate whether it's healthy or not.

on the anabolic board, there is a bitchfest every week about this topic. i know that here, on the training board, we can keep it civil and organized.


rather than searching old threads (and only coming up with a couple results), it would be nice to compile the best info that pertains to this issue in this thread, be it studies or anecdotal evidence of some kind or whatever.

post up

 

[edgecrusher]

I think it is contingent on the indivdual's metabolic rate. Some people can get and stay lean in the absence of cardio, while others will be fruitless in there attempts. Basically, cardio (for the purposes we are speaking of) is just a way to use excess calories. There are other ways to do this, such as by extra weight trainging and GPP work. However, not many people can recover from the extra sessions.

So as I said earlier, I feel it necessary for some, but not for all.

 

[SeanHolmz]

I believe with a good diet and cardio twice a day (once when you wake up on a empty stomach) and once pre-weight training, also hitting weights as you would before maximizes fat loss while maintaining a good amount of muscle.

 

[SofaGeorge]

I rate cardio worthless for bodyfat loss. It will burn a small small amount... but diet does infinitely more.

One researcher pointed out a VERY beneficial aspect of bodyfat loss related to cardio - active people tend to eat less... and especially the over eat less.

Hence, cardio can be very beneficial for losing body fat.

 

[molnii]

be ripped I think cardio is a must (I'm a natural bb)