Why Cardio Doesn’t Work

Cardio exercise is perplexing. In theory, it should work the same for everyone. But it doesn’t. Some people do cardio six hours, nine hours, or more per week, and still have belly fat to burn. It works just fine for others.

To get some insight into the reason for this, British researchers studied 35 overweight men and women who weren’t previously exercising. Subjects did cardio five times per week for 12 weeks. On average, they lost a respectable 8.2 pounds. However, the variance between individuals was huge. One of the 35 subjects lost a staggering 32.3 pounds, while one actually gained 3.74 pounds.

The scientists think they know why.

They classified the subjects into two groups: those who lost the least amount of weight (the "Compensators") and those who lost the most (the "Non-Compensators"). Turns out the cardio exercise made the Compensators hungry. As a result, they wound up consuming more than 250 extra calories per day… all but wiping out their weight-loss efforts. The Non-Compensators, though, did not experience an increase in their appetites.

If your cardio program is not working for you, check your post-exercise appetite level and calorie intake to see if you are a "Compensator." If you are, you might be better off with a program of high-intensity resistance and interval training.

[Ed. Note: Fitness expert Craig Ballantyne is the creator of the Turbulence Training for Fat Loss system. For a free online source of information, motivation, and social support to help you improve your health, lose weight, and get fit, sign up for ETR’s free natural health e-letter.]