Best Fat Enemies: Cardio Strength Training
Introduction
Cardio and strength training provides an all round exercise program. First of all, cardio exercises are great for your body, heart, brain, and for burning fat. But cardio does little for all your muscle groups. On the other hand, strength training is great for all your muscle groups. Moreover, all those big muscles significantly increase your resting metabolic rate. Most of all, cardio and strength training together provide benefits of both.
Cardio and Strength Training
Cardio
First of all, the cardio exercise part of the cardio and strength training workout raises your heart rate, makes you breathe faster and sweat. Also, cardio exercise uses large muscles over long time while keeping your heart rate to at least 50% of its maximum level. Furthermore, studies have shown that regular, moderate-intensity cardio exercise is one of the best ways to reduce belly fat. Moreover, a sweating cardio decreases your appetite. So you eat less.
Most of all, the best cardio includes walking, running, High Intensity Interval Training, cycling, elliptical trainers, stair climber, jumping rope, swimming, and rowing.
Strength Training
Most noteworthy, the strength training part of the cardio and strength training workout builds muscles that make you look strong and powerful.
Also, the many benefits of strength training are described elsewhere. And, strength training builds big muscles.
Strength training, especially with weights, causes muscles to contract. And, contracting muscles require energy. Furthermore, the source of this energy are the molecules called adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Incidentally, ATP is the body’s biochemical way to store and transport energy.Energy Sources
Now, during strength training, muscles get energy from multiple sources.
First, muscles use their own limited supply of ATP molecules. But, this energy source lasts for only 3 seconds.
Second, after those ATP molecules are depleted, muscles use their own limited supply of high energy compound molecules called creatine phosphate. In fact, creatine phosphate molecules are broken down quickly to form ATP molecules. And, this energy source lasts for 8 to 10 seconds.
Next, muscles use a carbohydrate called glycogen (a storage form of glucose). Also, this glycogen is stored in muscles and quickly available for generating ATP molecules. In addition, this energy source lasts for another 90 seconds. Most noteworthy, this process does not use oxygen. Consequently, a by-product, of this ATP creation process is lactic acid. Furthermore, a byproduct of lactic acid buildup is a feeling of tiredness and sore muscles during training sessions.
Finally, the last source of energy is aerobic respiration. Firstly, within 2 minutes after start of strength training, body starts to supply working muscles with oxygen. And the oxygen oxidizes glucose. Also, the body starts chemical processes to create, from the oxidized glucose, ATP molecules. Furthermore, the source of this glucose includes the muscle cells themselves, food in the intestine, glycogen in the liver, fat reserves in the muscles, fat reserves in their vicinity or anywhere else in the body.
Most noteworthy, aerobic respiration is the slowest method to produce ATP molecules. However, it’s able to supply ATP molecules for several hours or longer.
Now, the breathing rates of cardio and strength training are not the same. As a matter of fact, the breathing rate of most strength trainers is rarely as high as in cardio workouts. Therefore fat burning during cardio is much greater than with strength training.
Beneficial Muscle Groups for Strength Training
By the way, the following muscle groups are most beneficial. Consequently, its best to focus strength training on these muscles.
Metabolic Rate
Now, the metabolic rate with cardio and strength training lies somewhere between the metabolic rate of each one separately. Also cardio burns the most fat during the exercise, which causes you to lose weight. Consequently the metabolic rate drops a bit.
On the other hand, strength training results in large muscle groups get bigger muscles all over the body. As a result, there is a significant rise in your metabolism rate. Moreover your total body mass also drives the metabolic rate. By the way, every pound of muscle at rest burns six calories a day. While, a pound of fat at rest burns 2 calories a day. So, a large muscle mass at rest burns a lot of calories. For example, 100 pounds of muscle can burn 600 calories while at rest. And these calories come from burning fat.
Also more big muscles means you spend more time exercising those muscle groups. As a result more fat is burned. Meanwhile, after a strength training session, the metabolism rate remains elevated for a time.
Conclusion
In conclusion, cardio burns fat the most during the workout. Strength training grows big muscles, thereby driving up the metabolism rate and causing fat to be burned. Most of all, cardio and strength training complement each other for burning fat. Also, cardio and strength training provide more total benefits to your body than each one separately.