Cardio workouts have long been the go-to for weight loss and are an excellent way to improve your overall health and fitness. But before you hop on that exercise bike to nowhere, let’s dive deep into all your questions about cardio. Like, how effective is cardio for weight loss, really? What about cardio for fat loss? And how much do you need to do to see significant results? Let’s break it down.
Cardio defined
When people talk about doing cardio or aerobic workouts, they’re usually referring to any exercise that gets your heart rate up and helps you break a sweat. This can include anything from jogging to cycling to dancing. Cardio, short for cardiovascular exercise, is essential to maintaining a healthy heart and lungs. Really, it’s all about getting your blood flowing and your heart pumping! The upside is, you can do cardio workouts at home, outside, or in the gym.
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Types of cardio exercise
When it comes to cardio, there’s no shortage of exercises you can do to get your heart rate up, whether it’s cardio workouts at home, outdoors, or in the gym. The key is finding a workout you like that suits your fitness level.
You can opt for high-intensity interval training (HIIT), which involves short bursts of intense exercise followed by periods of rest. Or, you might prefer steady-state cardio, like jogging or cycling at a consistent pace for a longer period of time. Other types of cardio include:
- Brisk walking
- Swimming
- Rowing
- Stair climbing
- Dancing
- Hiking
- Recreational sports like basketball, soccer, pickleball, etc.
Whether you want to burn calories, reduce stress, strengthen your heart muscles, or boost your energy, there’s a cardio workout that suits your desires and goals.
The health benefits of cardio exercise
Cardio exercise has a ton of health benefits that make it well worth incorporating into your fitness routine. Each form of cardio has its unique advantages depending on what you want to achieve (more on that later), but there are several benefits all cardio workouts have in common:
- Improved cardiovascular health: This means your heart gets stronger and more efficient.
- Increased stamina and strength: Cardio can help boost your lung capacity, making it easier to breathe during exercise and day-to-day activities.
- Reduced risk of chronic diseases: These include obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure. Plus, weight-bearing cardio can help prevent osteoporosis.
- Better mental health: Cardio is a great way to manage stress and improve your mental health.
And, of course, cardio is a fantastic way to burn calories and lose weight.
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Cardio for weight loss: How effective is it?
First things first: We think it’s important to understand how cardio impacts your body. Cardiovascular exercises get your heart pumping and your blood flowing. This improves your overall cardiovascular fitness, which can lead to better health over time (see above!).
When it comes to weight loss, cardiovascular workouts are excellent for burning calories. Depending on the intensity of your workout, cardio can burn anywhere from 200 to more than 500 calories per hour. This is important, because to lose weight, you need a calorie deficit (fewer calories ingested than used).
How much cardio is enough to lose weight?
For better overall health, experts recommend getting:
- At least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity cardio exercise each week, or
- 75 minutes of high-intensity exercise each week
While it may seem like a big time commitment at first, you can reach 150 minutes by spreading your workouts out across five days at 30 minutes each. If you’d rather have more than two rest days, consider doing four longer workouts at 40 minutes each.
When it comes to doing cardio for weight loss, the amount you need to do will depend on your individual goals, fitness level, and diet. A personal trainer can be hugely helpful in achieving your weight-loss goals because they’ll design a program specific to your unique body. Plus, they’ll help guide you with nutrition and recovery efforts, which are equally as vital to reaching your overall goals.
Cardio for fat loss: Which workout burns the most fat?
We talked about how cardio workouts can help you lose weight, but losing weight and losing fat aren’t necessarily the same thing. So, which cardio workouts burn the most fat?
When it comes to cardio for fat loss, studies have shown that HIIT workouts can be very effective at reducing body fat. In fact, a study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that a few sessions of HIIT per week can make a huge difference in fat-burn efficiency.
And do you want to hear the bonus to beat all bonuses? HIIT workouts keep your body burning calories even after you’ve finished. It’s like you’re burning fat while driving home from the gym! This is because HIIT involves short bursts of high-intensity exercise followed by periods of rest. This type of workout keeps your heart rate up and can burn a lot of calories in a short amount of time. To put a cherry on top, HIIT cardio workouts are perfect to take on the road, at home or in the gym.
Cardio vs. diet for weight loss
It’s a common belief that diet is the most important factor when it comes to losing weight. And it’s true that what you eat plays a huge role in your body composition. But when it comes down to it, it’s not necessarily an either-or situation.
In fact, both cardio and nutrition are important for weight loss — but for different reasons. To lose weight in the form of body fat, you’ll need to be in a consistent caloric deficit (burning more calories than you’re taking in through what you eat and drink). Among its other benefits, cardio is a great way to get more movement into your day and burn more calories.
But diet is what determines the quality of those calories. Not all calories are created equal. For example, 300 calories of potato chips have far less nutritional value than 300 calories of fresh fruits, nuts, or protein.
For the best weight-loss results, we recommend eating nutrient-dense foods that are lower in calories.
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Why am I struggling to lose weight with cardio?
We get it — weight loss can be a frustrating journey. It’s not uncommon to try a variety of different methods and workouts, only to find that the numbers on the scale just aren’t budging. If you’re someone who’s been struggling to lose weight with cardio, you’re not alone. But don’t give up hope just yet! There’s still a way to achieve your weight loss goals — and it has to do with strength training.
Strength training and weight loss
It’s essential to recognize that cardio isn’t a magic solution for weight loss. Many people believe that cardio is the best kind of weight loss workout. And while it’s true that cardio can help you burn calories and shed pounds, it’s not the only way to reach your goals. In fact, strength training has been shown to be just as effective, if not more so, than cardio when it comes to weight loss.
That’s right — if your goal is to lose body fat, then adding muscle mass will help you do just that (and keep it off over time). That’s because muscle helps you burn more calories even when you’re at rest. Because muscle is involved in all of your body’s movements, maintaining it requires more energy (i.e., calories) than maintaining fat does. So, the more muscle you have, the higher your metabolic rates, and the more calories you’ll burn throughout the day.
But don’t abandon cardio just yet. It’s still a great way to improve your overall fitness and health. But if your primary goal is weight loss, you might want to rethink your workout routine. Ultimately, the most effective way to lose weight is to combine strength training with cardio and a healthy diet.
Popular cardio exercises to do in the gym
The gym is a great place to get your cardio fix. With various machines and equipment available, the options are virtually endless. Some of the most popular gym cardio exercises include:
Running on the treadmill
A 30-minute session on a treadmill at 6 mph (a 10-minute mile pace) can burn approximately 350 calories.
Cycling on a stationary or exercise bike
Riding at a medium intensity for 30 minutes can burn about 450 calories.
Using the rowing machine
A 30-minute session can burn anywhere from 250 to 500 calories.
Working out on the elliptical
A 30-minute elliptical workout may burn 250–350 calories depending on your body weight.
10 best fat-burning cardio workouts
With so many options to choose from, how do you determine which exercises are the best for weight loss? To help you out, we have compiled a list of the top calorie- and fat-burning cardio workouts.
1. Running and jogging
These are two of the most straightforward and effective ways to burn calories and lose weight. If you’re new to running, it’s good to start with three or four days a week. On other days, consider cross training exercises like yoga or weight training. This will help you burn calories with less sudden impact on your musculoskeletal system.
2. HIIT
As we mentioned, high-intensity interval training involves short bursts of intense exercise followed by periods of rest. HIIT is a great fat-burning cardio workout that also helps build endurance.
3. Jumping rope
Jumping rope is not only an excellent cardio workout but also helps tone the muscles in your legs and upper body. Jumping rope can burn around 10 calories per minute, making it an excellent form of high-intensity cardio.
4. Cycling
As a low-impact option, cycling is great for those who are new to cardio or recovering from an injury. You can bike outside or use an exercise bike in the gym.
5. Swimming
H20 isn’t just for quenching your thirst — it’s also great for giving your body a serious workout. When you’re swimming, you’re working against the resistance of water, which takes serious effort and several muscles. It’s not just your arms that are getting a workout when you swim; your legs are kicking into gear (literally) too, making it a total body workout. All that movement gets your heart pumping, which means not only are you getting toned, but you’re burning calories, too.
6. Stair climbing
This is an intense fat-burning cardio workout option that challenges your glutes and leg muscles. And because it’s weight bearing, it helps build bone strength.
7. Kick-boxing
Kick-boxing mixes cardio and strength training for a high-intensity, full-body workout that burns a lot of calories each session.
8. Rowing
Rowing is a powerhouse cardio exercise because it engages all of your body’s major muscle groups — as well as your heart and lungs. As an added benefit, rowing is low-impact, so you’ll be able to burn calories without putting excess strain on your body.
A final word on cardio for weight loss
For overall health, aim for at least 30 minutes of moderate-to-high-intensity cardio, five days a week, and don’t forget to mix in some HIIT for extra fat-burning benefits. Contrary to popular belief, getting in shape can feel good when approached effectively, and cardio for weight loss is a good place to start.
Here’s the bottom line: Weight loss is a complex part of your health journey, and often requires making adjustments to your training, nutrition, and recovery habits. If you’re not seeing the results you want from cardio alone, consider switching up your routine by adding in strength training and evaluating your nutrition. By doing so, you’ll be setting your body up for losing unwanted pounds once and for all.
Spending an hour with a coach can be exactly what you need to kickstart your weight-loss journey. Anytime Fitness members get a FREE consultation to chat about their health and fitness goals — and they walk away with a 30-day fitness plan. Try us for free now!
