Q&A: If I want to lose weight should I do cardio or weight training?

Unfortunately the answer to this question is not one or the other.  Both play an important role in weight loss, and let's not forget the importance of proper nutrition.  To understand why, let's re-examine the purpose of each component.  Weight training builds muscle and keeps it active.  Muscle is the only metabolic tissue in the body which means it is the only place fat can be burned.  Doing proper cardiovascular training puts the body in a state where muscle can potentially burn a lot of fat.  And if you have eaten properly, the chemistry in your body is correct and those first two components will work effectively.  Therefore for optimal fat loss (notice I didn't say weight loss since we are all concerned about being lean which means losing body fat) you really need to address all 3 of these pieces.  If any component is missing you may make some progress but you are not likely to accomplish the goals you set out to achieve.  

You can check out a previous blog called "plain and simple truth" for a more in depth look at the 3 components necessary for body transformation!