Can you get a body like this just from weight lifting?

Question

And obviously with a good diet as well.

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I HATE and I repeat HATE cardio. It discourages me from even trying to get in shape. I don't have a bad body now. I'm 5'7 and 145lbs but I'm very squishy and have very little muscle tone. If I did an hour of weights four times a week with a healthy diet would I be able to achieve a body that's similar to the one above? Or if I did just 20mins cardio 5 times a week with an hour weightlifting 4 times a week?

I am going up to school in a town that is VERY health focused (it was named the 3rd healthiest city in America) and I just want to get into the vibe and look damn good.

NotJustAnotherGuy · Accepted Answer

Short answer, yes. Longer answer, maybe.

Yes, you can with strict dieting. Typically my opinion on slimming down is you should do cardio (I'm guessing your goal requires about 10lbs less fat going strictly off from height and weight). Because with something like long distance running, your diet isn't all that essential to your weight loss since it's so hard to naturally eat an excess when you're burning that much. However, given that you hate cardio, maybe lifting is the better option for you. But it does mean you need to be more finicky about how much calories you consume.

Again the primary determinant of success is effort, method is only secondary to that. You can lose weight while lifting for sure. And for you, knowing you hate cardio, maybe it's the best approach. I certainly wouldn't want to advise you to do cardio instead and have you give up 3 days in.

With that said, you'll have to do a little lifting either way for that body, or at least some bit of strength training. Her arms are not frail like a distance runner's would be. They have some size to them that you may not have when you slim down due to how your body decides to distribute its fat.

Here's a throwback photo of mine, just to show you what simply leg cardio will do to your arms-- and this is probably partially the reason why I got into lifting and am now more of a jack of all trades type athlete:

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The girl in your photo has a low body fat percentage like I did back then, but her arms don't appear to be frail. That could be unbelievable luck with fat distribution, but more likely I think she's done some arm workouts.

So maybe lifting is the right course for you, but if you can't stay consistent with your diet, maybe you should try cardio.. or if cardio is really something you can't stick to maybe try circuit training? Which is usually a little mixture of both cardio and strength training- so you'll get a little of the comfortability of strength training with some of the efficiency of cardio. But again, the most important thing is to not give up at any point.

So in short, you CAN do it. And I hope you do, and wish you all the best in your pursuit of fitness. :D

stubbsy · Accepted Answer

Yes you can tone up with just weights, as long as your strict with your diet, because unless you get your body fat percentage down, you will always have that little squidgyness lol, so yeah, eat plenty of complex carbs, ie veg, chicken for protein, and cut out anything saturated, and try and eat fish, because fish has your essential fats, but remember, your diet is key here, and lifting weights is a form of cardio, so you will be doing plenty of cardio once you start on your core muscles and legs, but running or cycling you can miss out as long as you get enough exercise in to match your diet. Don't be scared to over eat, because you will be eating the essentials your muscle needs to grow, fat won't get a chance if you have you diet cracked, good luck,x ps, don't be scared to try supplements for burning fat like T-100 go onto bodybuilding.com and look up fat burners, but these won't work without a good gym routine,x

harveykinkle · Accepted Answer

It depends what you're starting with. You need to get your heart rate up somehow.

Sometimes I'm bored by it too and I'v recently discovered listening to podcasts lets you daze out and focus on that. I'm in love with Loveline right now. It makes me look forward to cardio :)

Stacyzee · Accepted Answer

Yes, some girl's are naturally built that way.

They have little fat, and look tone without even having to work out.

If you're not naturally that way already...then you have to work towards that.

You can try weight lifting , crunches, and dieting.

OpenToSuggestion · Answer

You need to have dicipline and dedication.

Do your weights and keep eating - but eat clean and have plenty of proteins.

Once youv'e built your muscles up, reduce your calories slightly to start losing the fat.

When your on reduced calories try to keep lifting the same weights(kg/lbs). At this point the intensity of your training doesn't need to be the same and you can do fewer sets.

If you can still lift the same weights easily you can reduce your daily calorie intake further.

If the same weights become pretty hard to do and you feel weak then you may have reduced your calories too much. In this case you will increase your calories a little.

Make sure not to leave out your legs. Training legs provides anabolic benefits and increases metabolism.

I'm sure you can find great advice on forums that are geared towards getting fit but to answer your question, yes! you can.

InquisitiveMale · Answer

Is it possible for some individuals? Absolutely. But is it possible for you in particular? Nope.

The only way someone would get that body without cardio is if they needed to gain/alter mass and not loose it. Also, Abs tend not to show unless you have a very low BMI. Which for the average person (yes, you're avg here) means... a shit tun of cardio.

UNLESS you spent a number of years making very very gradual changes to your body... in which case you'd be gaining that body through more or less dieting alone.

The reality of it... you're likely looking at 3-4 months of heavy cardio.

30-45minutes a day...

4-5days a week...

high intensity, high impact...

It sucks but that's life.

beastman88 · Answer

gotta do cardio, get those long lean powerful energy burning leg muscles working to burn those cals. tie in strength training and a good diet is a recipe for success. when I go to the gym I usually do 25 min of cardio or longer if iam just doing cardio. usually just do 20-25 min if iam going to do strength training. ill lift for maybe 30-40 mins. when I was a much bigger lad I focused soely on cardio because my bulk was a work out in itself trying to carry around an extra 100 pds every where. now I've gotten into the strength and conditioning and iam toning up nicely. so yes, cardio is very important if you want a lean body. listen to some music that will pump you up, think of something inspirational, think about that awesome body you're working towards.

WeaponZero · Answer

Assuming you have the genetics for that type of build, yes.  Cardio does nothing to change body composition on its own.  It merely "burns calories" which can be done equally well through strict nutrition practices.  What actually SHAPES your body though is resistance training.  For weightlifting regimens your best bet is to start out for 3-6 months following a compound based program like Stronglifts 5x5 or Starting Strength to build the "base" you need to progress onto a split based program.

lucky24 · Answer

Yes it is possible to get a body like that entirely from weight lifting but I still HIGHLY recommend doing cardio. I hate doing cardio too but it is very easy to incorporate in any workout routine. I play volleyball and tennis as a way to do cardio and when I can't play those I do jump ropes as a form of cardio. Other forms of cardio can include swimming, walking, sprint intervals, stair climbs, the list can go on

quovadis911 · Answer

U can get it with weights and a great diet, but you'd be better off going to a kickboxing gym or yoga and great diet to get that body. Using weights would require some advanced knowledge to achieve such a body, but kickboxing and yoga would not. Keep in mind diet is almost everything, you need an almost perfect diet to get that body.

kheserthorpe · Answer

Your time estimates suggest to me there are some serious gaps in your understanding of what you're doing when exercising.

For steady state aerobic work if you are out of breath you are pushing too hard.

On the other end of things an hour of weights is probably too long.

BoobMan · Answer

You should do a mix of weights and cardio.  Say, solid weight training twice a week and cardio 3 times a week with a couple of rest/recovery days in between.  Or you could go 3 days weights 2 days cardio given you hate cardio. But go hard when you go and use your rest days to recover.  I'm trying to do something similar to get healthier and look better.

Michaelmwm19 · Answer

If you want the abs, try getting an ab lounger and you will likely have to do some cardio to get abs like that.

When I weight lift I do notice my stomach feels more toned, when I don't do anything with abs.

deWho · Answer

YouTube bodyrocktv (the older stuff). or MY ABSOLUTELY FAVOURITE inspiration "zuzkalight"  I lost 25lbs and toned because SHE does the routine...

Anonymous · Answer

What's your diet like, I know you say "good" but...? do you easily gain muscle? It's really hard to tell, that body looks one of those cross-fit girls.

standUP · Answer

I can get a body like that just by asking her out ! lol

Sexydncr · Answer

I love cardio but am gonna start weight lifting. Lol try dance whether it be classes or clubbing.

Anonymous · Answer

youd most likely be more bulky with less cardio but you can have a fit body

Anonymous · Answer

lift weights and do sit ups.

Anonymous · Answer

What you eat plays a factor too

Anonymous · Answer

yes, that's no hard at all

bh6676r942 · Answer

Well yeah probably

Can you get a body like this just from weight lifting?

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