Cardio v Weight Training - 3 tips for each!

Cardio or Weight Training... 

The good old question, should we be running or lifting weights?

My opinion, do whatever makes you happy!!

I was the girl who became a cardio bunny. Spin class 3 times a week and jogging every other day. But at the time, it's what I needed to get through that patch in my life. Cardio is AMAZING for endorphins, stress relief and mental health. There is nothing wrong with cardio once you enjoy it 😊Just like there is nothing wrong with doing more weight training than cardio.

There are added benefits to both and I encourage you to include both in your weekly routine!!!

Personally, I like the mix it up. Weight training 3 times a week, a spin class once a week, maybe a hiit routine here & there and yoga everyday. I do take two rest days where I will only do yoga/stretching! One of those days will be a yoga class and the other, yoga at home.
Again, I was the girl who trained insane 6 times a week and sometimes twice a day. I am no longer that girl. I don't have her body shape anymore and I am happy with that. My yogi life has taught me to love my body, honour it and give it plenty of TLC 💓

But at the end of the day as Adriene Mishler says, Find what feels good.

Lets begin with Cardio:

1. Heart Health

Hello to a happy heart. Who doesn't want this. It is our life. It is everything. Why don't we look after it now while we can?? 

Our heart is also a muscle. It needs some yummy training just as much as our glutes (yes you girls working for a bigger booty 😉) 

When training the heart, it becomes stronger and more efficient and can pump more blood out with each beat. So think about it, if you heart can pump MORE blood in one beat, it does not have to beat as often to keep the blood flowing.... and whaaaalaaaa 💫- a happy heart. 

Bonus points: Because we have more blood pumping around our body, we can train at higher intensities. Who doesn't wanna do that eh? 💪 (I can hear you all complain as you read that hahaha)

But as I said above, I love my spin classes. My heart rate can get up as high as 185 in a spin class. So please do not neglect it, that which keeps us alive & ticking.

2. Boost weight loss

There are different systems we use in our body when we exercise, during cardio workouts this is the aerobic system. Within this system we breakdown fat as well as glucose (broken down carbohydrates) to produce energy... this is good news for our waistlines 😋 There are a few ways to go about this. 

We can look at low to moderate intensity workouts such as slow jogging or a brisk walk where our body will be more likely to hit into those fat stores. Or on the other end of the scale, studies have shown that by doing sprint sessions (on a bike or treadmill) like 10 seconds on / 20 seconds for 20 minutes, the participants lost more fat than those who were doing steady state cardio for 40 minutes.

I say include both. Some brisk walking, a jog here & there and a Hiit routine 😊

3. Mental Health

The whole reason I fell in love with exercising and went a bit crazy at the beginning. I used cardio to battle my mental health. It is an amazing tool. And I am not saying to go out and jog a 10k every day (unless that is your fave thing to do 😊)  but the benefits outweigh the dread I promise!
Cardio (and exercising in general) reduces stress and anxiety, increases endorphins, increases relaxation after a good workout and just makes you feel amazing from the inside out!

Types of cardio: Jogging, running, sprints, cycling, hiit workouts, skipping, jumping, brisk walking, walking and lots more. Swimming would be another but I never swim so I always forget about it!
And don't forget, DANCING!! 💃

I could go on and on and on about all the benefits but this post would get too long. Lets move on to weight training:

1. Calorie BURN 

So I said above that cardio was the best route to take to burn fat BUT that is just in one workout. 
The secret delight to weight training is your body continues to burn calories AFTER you have finished training without you having to lift another weight. 

This is why I like to mix it up. I know plenty of people out there in the land of social media are very focused on weights and zero cardio (you do you 💪) but our first point in the cardio section should give you enough reason to include it. Heart Health. Forget what what you look like on the outside and remember its what is inside that counts. If you heart is basically crap, who cares what you look like... ya get me?

The calorie burn can continue up to 72 hours after your sessions so if you include some weight training 2 to 3 times a week, you'll be a calorie burning machine (Hangry much?)

(don't ask me about this picture.... I don't know what the F I got it from but it's cool looking haha)


2. Muscle Growth & strength

Everyone wants to be "toned".... first thing we were taught in college, there is no such thing as a toned muscle. You can't tone a muscle. So remember this:

Fat loss + increased muscle size = Lean (aka toned)

Basically when you shed off the fat over the muscle and train the muscle to grow stronger, whaaaalaaaa, you have that "toned" look. Which is pretty much low body fat and muscle mass 😊

But yes, weight training causes muscle growth and strength. And no, not big beefy muscles. Women would need to be taking steroids to become "bulky" so strip that word out of your vocabulary now!

Its so amazing to see strength grow, exercises becoming easier (the push up) and not to mention feeling like a bad ass lifting heavy weights. Yeeeeeooooowwwwww!
So go pick up some heavy stuff 3 times a week! You won't be sorry!

Insert girl crush.....

Katrin Davidsdottir - Crossfit Athlete 

Ps: Remember good form & quality over quantity when lifting weights. Which is a controversial topic surrounding crossfit.

3. Joint Health

A pretty overlooked topic in our age group these days. But strength training is so so so beneficial for them bones that hold you upright. Your joints that help you move. Without getting too scientific, here are a few reasons strength training helps our bones & joints:

It helps with strengthening connective tissue
Creates what is know as osteoblasts in the bones and in turn enhance the strength of the bone
Increases joint lubrication, stability and strength
Increases range of motion
Increases the ease of day to day movement (aside from DOMS of course 😉)

Remember we age right? Lifting weights now could help us avoid bone diseases. So what's stopping you? 

I know starting out can be scary so reach out to me with any questions or fears you may have, because even as a trainer, I still have those fears too. You are not alone.

I hope you enjoyed this little rant.

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Let me know your thoughts below and as always,

Strive for progress, not perfection.

Elisa x