Weights vs. Cardio

A FUTURE FORMER FAT GIRL WRITES: Did you do much weight training or resistance work to get your weight off--or was it through cardio exercise?

DEAR FUTURE FFG: I really focused on cardio when I was trying to lose the weight, and only added strength training when I was in maintenance mode. But the fact is that women just weren't lifting weights and doing Pilates back then like they are now. (In the mid- to late-80s, I probably would have felt as out of place in a weight room as I did the time I mistakenly burst into the men's bathroom at a night club in Mexico.) It's hard to say what I would do if I knew then what I know now about the benefits of strength training. But I probably wouldn't have changed much, even though my cardio (running, primarily) feels easier when I'm lifting regularly, and I know it's protecting my body from injury. I simply don't think I could have handled trying to fit in a whole different type of activity at that point. My commitment was too precarious--for a long time, I felt like I could slip back into couch-potatodom at any point. I really needed to keep this whole exercise thing doable, to avoid sabotaging myself by trying to make too many changes at once (something I'd done many many times before). So … If you're trying to get into the rhythm of exercise with the goal of staying with it for the long haul, you might want to give yourself some time to develop a cardio habit before you take on resistance work. Cardio undoubtedly burns more calories than strength work, so there's that. But there's the added benefit that focusing on cardio over strength keeps you from taking on too much at once. Focus on building the habit--you can always add more dimensions to it or change it completely once you're comfortable that you won't completely backslide.