In adults with obesity, 10 weeks of cardio exercise improves metabolic health markers, and when combined with resistance training, it still improves metabolic health. Resistance training alone increases muscle strength, while cardio alone reduces body weight and fat percentage.

In adults with obesity, doing both cardio and strength training for ten weeks leads to a measurable increase in muscle strength, while doing only cardio does not produce the same increase.

In adults with obesity, doing aerobic exercise for ten weeks without any other changes leads to measurable decreases in body weight, BMI, and body fat percentage.

In adults with overweight or obesity, doing resistance training for 60 minutes three times a week for a year does not lead to a meaningful improvement in overall cardiovascular risk markers, even though it reduces body fat and increases muscle strength.

Doing strength exercises like lifting weights while losing weight helps keep your muscles and bones strong, unlike just walking or cycling, which can make you lose more muscle and bone.

Just building more muscle through weight training doesn’t always help your body manage blood sugar better — something else besides muscle size might be responsible for the health perks.