When it comes to losing weight, many people wonder: Is it faster to eat less, or to exercise more? The truth lies in how you combine the two.
If you don’t control your diet but do regular cardio, you’ll simply become someone with great cardiovascular endurance—yet still overweight.
If you don’t control your diet but focus on strength training, you’ll build strong muscles, but they’ll remain covered in fat.
If you’re young and choose to only eat less without exercising, you can still slim down and reduce body fat to around 23–24%. You might even see the faint outline of abs in the morning before eating, but stubborn fat often remains on the thighs and arms.
If you’re over 30 or have had children, eating less alone may reduce body fat to 26–27%, but the result is often loose and soft due to lower muscle mass and looser abdominal fat.
If you combine eating less with regular cardio, you can achieve a slimmer body with visible abs, but without much muscle definition. Some areas of fat may remain.
If you eat less and focus primarily on strength training, even at age 40 you can achieve a lean and toned physique. Fat from the waist, arms, thighs, and back will gradually disappear, replaced with muscle definition. Higher muscle mass also boosts metabolism, making it easier to maintain weight.
However, if you combine eating less with excessive training (two hours of cardio and strength daily, six days a week), your body may suffer. Overtraining with low calories leads to fatigue, poor recovery, disrupted hormones, hair loss, poor sleep, and weakened metabolism.
So, what’s the conclusion?
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Diet is the deciding factor for fat loss.
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Strength training is the deciding factor for body shape and muscle tone.
For anyone over 30 who wants a lean and defined body, the key is a balance of controlled eating and consistent strength training. Without dietary control, no amount of exercise will stop weight gain.
