There’s no doubt that good nutrition AND exercise are important for weight loss. Yes, you can lose weight by simply changing the quantity and composition of your diet, but how long can you keep it off without exercise? If you try to slim down through diet alone, you’ll eventually reach a plateau as your metabolism adapts to calorie restriction – and what about your overall health? The health benefits of exercise are hard to deny.
So, should you exercise when you’re trying to lose weight? Absolutely! Recently, a study looked at what type of exercise is best for weight loss in people who are overweight or obese. Strength training versus endurance exercise – does one offer an advantage over the other?
Exercise for Weight Loss – Strength Training versus Endurance Training
Researchers at the Technical University of Madrid and La Paz University Hospital compared the effectiveness of the two forms of exercise – endurance and strength training – for weight loss. In this study, 96 obese men and women between the ages of 18 and 50 took part in a 22-week diet and exercise program. Consuming a low-calorie diet (30% fewer calories than they needed for maintenance), each participant was assigned to one of three exercise groups: strength training only, endurance training only, or a combination of the two.
The participants carried out their routines three times a week for a similar length of time and intensity with the intensity gradually increasing each week as their exercise tolerance improved. The endurance group exercised by running, cycling or using an elliptical machine, while the strength training group did upper and lower body exercises with an emphasis on compound movements. By the end of the study, all the participants had lost weight, body fat, waist circumference and gained lean body mass. Surprisingly, the results were similar regardless of whether they strength trained only, did only endurance exercise or did a combination of each.
As this study suggests, obese people can lose weight and improve their body composition through a combination of diet and exercise. Doing any form of exercise, at least initially, will lead to weight loss, especially when combined with a lower calorie diet. What’s surprising is all three groups improved their lean body composition equally, which is surprising since the endurance group did no strength training.
Another study published in the Journal of Applied Physiology in 2012 looked at the effects of strength training, aerobic training and a combination of the two on body weight and body composition in overweight and obese adults. Aerobic training was performed at a moderate intensity, 65 to 80% of V02 max. This study found aerobic training led to greater fat loss than resistance training and the amount of fat loss was similar between the aerobic training only and the resistance training/ aerobic training group. Both groups that did strength training gained more lean body mass than those aerobics only group.
Based on these studies, you might assume that aerobic exercise is the best form of exercise when you’re trying to lose body fat. No doubt, you burn more calories doing exercise that boosts your heart rate for longer periods of time, but resistance training is vital for long term weight maintenance. Neither of these studies looked at how the participants fared longer term. One concern is the effect aerobic exercise has on metabolism.
Does Endurance Exercise Slow Your Metabolism?
A study looked at 30 young adult males who did endurance training only, resistance training only or a combination of the two. The purpose? To see what effect each program had on resting metabolic rate. As it turns out, the guys who did resistance training or a combination of resistance and endurance training experienced an increase in their resting metabolic rate, 6% for the resistance trainers and 5% for the group who did both. Bad news: The endurance training group experienced a 2% drop in their metabolic rate at rest, which would likely make it more difficult to maintain weight loss. Other studies show resistance training can increase resting metabolic rate by as much as 10%. Endurance training may lead to faster fat loss initially, but resistance training pays off longer term by helping you burn more calories at rest.
The Bottom Line
What can you conclude? Any form of exercise, especially when combined with a lower calorie diet, will lead to weight loss initially, but endurance exercise will likely slow your resting metabolic rate while resistance training will boost it as you gain lean body mass. You NEED the increase in resting metabolism that strength training offers. Resting metabolic rate gradually slows with age, which is one reason people put on weight as they grow older.
Plus, strength training has benefits that go beyond changes in weight and body composition. For one, endurance exercise won’t lead to significant strength gains or offset the loss of strength and power that comes with aging – but strength training will. What about bone health? Heavy resistance training, by pulling on bones, helps stimulate new bone growth and prevent osteoporosis. Strong bones and muscles are essential for staying functional as you age. Being in shape aerobically won’t get you very far if you bones and muscles are weak. By strengthening your muscles, you also reduce your risk for back injuries and help keep your joints healthy by strengthening the muscles that support them.
The take-home message? Don’t take the short-term approach and try to lose weight by pumping out an hour of cardio a day. Give equal attention to strength training so you can build stronger muscles and bones and boost your resting metabolism.
References:
Journal of Applied Physiology, 2015; 118 (8): 1006 DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00928.2014.
Training for Weight Management. Len Kravitz, Ph.D. and Randy Malone, M.E.D.
Sports Med. 1991 Feb;11(2):78-101.
Journal of Applied Physiology Published 15 December 2012 Vol. 113 no. 12, 1831-1837 DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.01370.2011.
J Appl Physiol. 1998;85(2):695-700.
J Appl Physiol. 2000;89(3):977-84.
J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2002;87(3):1004-9.
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