Difference between cardiovascular exercise and strength training.
The fitness world loves the debate: cardio or strength training? Which workout is best, and which can you cut from your exercise routine? But, the reality is cardiovascular and strength training are two different, but equally important, forms of exercise.
CARDIO- Cardiovascular exercise, also known as aerobic exercise, is an exercise that increases your heart rate and makes your lungs work harder than normal. Basically, cardiovascular exercise challenges both your cardiovascular and respiratory systems to increase the heart’s ability to pump blood and the lungs and heart’s ability to move oxygen throughout the body.
Examples are running, fast walking, cycling, hiking, swimming, dancing, climbing stairs, playing sports like hockey, soccer, tennis, ice skating, basketball, jumping jacks, mountain climbers, burpees, jumping rope, cross-training, and kickboxing. There are countless ways for you to get your aerobic exercise in. Even going to the park with your kids or your pets and running around with them can do it.
STRENGTH TRAINING/ RESISTANCE TRAINING helps you build muscles and make them stronger. Strength training means moving your body against resistance. Resistance may include tools such as dumbbells, barbells and weight plates, resistance bands, or kettlebells.
This also means moving your body against gravity. Bodyweight exercises such as lunges, squats, pull-ups, and push-ups are highly effective for building strength.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CARDIO AND STRENGTH-
In general, cardio exercise works to improve cardiovascular adaptations that increase oxygen consumption. Strength exercises work at the level of the muscles and the nerves controlling those muscles to improve strength and neuromuscular control: balance and coordination.
In other words, when you choose a cardio exercise like walking or running, oxygen is used to provide your body with continuous energy for a while. This type of exercise improves your endurance (your ability to work out for a longer period of time).
On the other side, strength exercises like weightlifting put stress on your muscles, which causes them to adapt and get stronger.
WHY BOTH ARE IMPORTANT FOR OVERALL FITNESS?
Cardio is excellent for strengthening your heart, increasing your lung capacity, improving your sleep, etc.
But, strength is great for increasing muscle mass ( more muscle mass= more your body will burn at rest), increased bone density and joint flexibility, etc.
we can see there are significant benefits to both. Neither should be done without the other, they compliment each other.
If you want to lose fat, you should prioritize strength training to build lean muscle, which in return increases the number of calories your body will burn at rest and you should also do cardio which will work as a catalyst and will help you achieve your goal.
other than that, Alternating between strength training and cardio allows some muscle groups to rest while other muscle groups are exercised. The result is a more complete level of fitness rather than an overtraining injury.
