What happens to your body if you only do cardio? (2024)

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Your sleep may improve-

Not only will you fall asleep quicker, but your sleep quality will improve. Moderate aerobic exercise in particular is great for sleep.

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Your sleep may improve-

And the good thing is that you can reap the benefits almost immediately. "It's generally not going to take months or years to see a benefit, and patients don't need to feel like they have to train for the Boston Marathon to become a better sleeper," says Dr. Charlene Gamaldo, medical director of Johns Hopkins Center for Sleep at Howard County General Hospital.

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You may lose some weight-

Cardio burns calories and provided you’re in a caloric deficit (burning more calories than you're consuming) then your weight will drop.

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You may lose some weight-

In addition to burning calories while you’re exercising, if you do higher-intensity cardio, your body will also burn more calories after you’ve finished your workout. This is known as Excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC).

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You might actually gain some muscle-

Cardio gets a bad rep when it comes to building muscle, but it's not that simple. In fact, cardio can lead to muscular hypertrophy, i.e. muscle growth.

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You might actually gain some muscle-

A study actually found that there was "considerable evidence to support that aerobic exercise training can produce skeletal muscle hypertrophy."

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You might actually gain some muscle-

The study highlighted that cardio can “countermeasure for muscle loss with advancing age,” which is also great news. While resistance training is important, it’s good to know that cardio alone can also impact our bodies in this manner.

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You may hit a “plateau”-

If you do cardio every day, your body will eventually adapt and you may reach a plateau. This is when your body starts burning fewer calories and your fitness levels don’t improve.

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You may hit a “plateau”-

You can overcome, and even avoid, a plateau, by challenging yourself on a regular basis. This is where programming plays a big role. By changing some aspects of your workout routine you can keep adapting and evolving.

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Your joints may suffer-

While exercising is great for your health, some repeated movements in cardiovascular exercises, such as running, can have a negative impact on joints. The ideal scenario is to include both cardio and resistance training in your exercise routine.

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Your joints may suffer-

"Cardio-only workouts will put you at higher risk for joint pain, breakdown, and injury since strength training is necessary for increasing and maintaining bone density as well as strong tendons and ligaments," explains personal trainer Jericho McMatthews.

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Your brain function may improve-

Our brains’ executive functions are cognitive skills and abilities that allow us to regulate (e.g. emotions, decision-making, etc.) and organize ( planning, problem-solving, etc.). Cardio may just help us improve these brain functions, especially as we grow older, according to a study.

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Your brain function may improve-

The study in question found that “the effect of aerobic exercise on executive function was more pronounced as age increased, suggesting that it may mitigate age-related declines.”

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It’s not optimal to gain muscle-

While cardio can help you stay in shape and even gain a bit of muscle, it’s far less effective than resistance training.

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It’s not optimal to gain muscle-

If your goal is to gain muscle, then lifting weights is where the money’s at. You might not want to overdo your cardio and consume the precious calories you need to build muscle. Having said that, you shouldn’t discard cardio completely and lose all the other benefits you get from doing cardiovascular work.

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You can overtrain-

Overtraining occurs when your body is unable to recover, which often translates into chronic fatigue, aches and pains, decline in performance, low motivation, etc. Doing too much cardio can also put you at risk of overtraining.

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You can overtrain-

It’s important to include adequate rest between sessions. Overtraining doesn’t happen overnight. Instead, it’s usually a slow progressive process. It’s perfectly natural not to feel motivated every day and to be tired sometimes, but if you feel like this the vast majority of the time, maybe it’s time to listen to your body and take it easy.

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Your mental health will benefit too-

Exercise releases endorphins, which are essentially feel-good hormones. You can’t feel good and bad at the same time, right? Cardio is a great way to release happy hormones and improve your mental health.

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Your mental health will benefit too-

According to an article published in ‘The Primary Care Companion To The Journal Of Clinical Psychiatry,’ "aerobic exercises, including jogging, swimming, cycling, walking, gardening, and dancing, have been proved to reduce anxiety and depression.”

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Your bone density may increase-

High-impact cardio can increase bone density, which makes your bones stronger and less prone to break.

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Your bone density may increase-

A study conducted by Pam Hinton, associate professor in the Department of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology in the MU College of Human Environmental Sciences, confirmed that “both resistance training and high-impact endurance activities increase bone mineral density. However, high-impact sports, like running, appear to have a greater beneficial effect."

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You may lower your cholesterol levels-

Exercise in general can help lower cholesterol levels. For those who only do cardio, they too can reap the benefits. This is especially true in the case of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise.

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You may lower your cholesterol levels-

A study comparing different types of exercise found that "increases in calorific expenditure associated with aerobic exercise (via increased intensity and/or duration) have been shown to positively influence lipoprotein lipase activity, HDL cholesterol levels and the lipid profile."

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It’s good for your heart-

The clue is in the name, right? Your cardiovascular system will thank you for taking good care of it. It turns out that raising your heart rate for a period of time actually makes your heart and blood vessels stronger.

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It’s good for your heart-

From lower to higher intensity cardio, all seem to be beneficial for your heart. Ideally, you’d include both throughout the week, for instance going for a jog one day and doing a high-intensity interval training (HIIT) workout the other day.

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It’s good for your lungs-

Cardio is not only great for your heart, but it’s also really good for your respiratory system. It turns out, gasping for breath is actually a good thing!

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It’s good for your lungs-

When you do cardio, your lungs have to work harder to get oxygen to your muscles and this process makes them stronger and more efficient.

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It’s good for your lungs-

“Cardio helps decrease how frequently you have to breathe as exercise ability improves and can lead to reductions in fatigue and shortness of breath in chronic lung problems," explains clinical exercise physiologist Erik Van Iterson.

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It can reverse the effects of sedentarism-

It’s never too late to start doing cardio and reap the benefits. In fact, a study found that a “heart-healthy exercise routine” can reverse some of the consequences of sedentarism in late middle age (40-64).

Sources: (Health Digest) (Science Daily) (Women's Health) (WebMD) (American Lung Association)

See also: Tips on healthy aging for a long life

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