Can just walking help you lose weight? What if you also lift weights?
EFFECTS OF CARDIO VS. CARDIO AND RESISTANCE TRAINING IN PEOPLE WITH OBESITY
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Cardio alone significantly reduced diastolic blood pressure, but adding resistance training did not improve it further.
Most assume combining training would amplify all benefits—but here, cardio had a unique edge on diastolic pressure that weights didn’t enhance.
Practical Takeaways
If your goal is fat loss, cardio alone can work—but if you want to build strength and lower systolic blood pressure, add resistance training 2–3x/week.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Cardio alone significantly reduced diastolic blood pressure, but adding resistance training did not improve it further.
Most assume combining training would amplify all benefits—but here, cardio had a unique edge on diastolic pressure that weights didn’t enhance.
Practical Takeaways
If your goal is fat loss, cardio alone can work—but if you want to build strength and lower systolic blood pressure, add resistance training 2–3x/week.
Publication
Journal
Journal of Clinical Exercise Physiology
Year
2024
Authors
Emily J. Parker, Korie M. Riely, Sydney Ellingson, Cali J. Modglin, Henry Lang
Related Content
Claims (6)
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 aerobic exercise for ten weeks without any other changes leads to measurable decreases in body weight, BMI, and body 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 both cardio and strength training for ten weeks lowers systolic blood pressure by about 8.8 mmHg, and doing only cardio does not lower it any more than doing both together.
In adults with obesity, doing only aerobic exercise for ten weeks leads to a measurable drop in the lower number of blood pressure readings, without needing strength training.