Walking or Biking?

[InHuman83]

Which is better for losing love handles, losing a bit on the chest and helping the core section?

I'm pretty toned/thin overall but I have a slight case of love handles and my chest just will not get smaller and toned. It's been getting bigger because of lifting but yet the part around the nipple will not tone up, it has that excess flab/loose look to it.

Btw, I'm not a serious lifter. I do have a routine and stick by it, but I only lift to keep toned up and have a decent build. Well getting there anyways.

[Rats!]

tone = gain muscle and/or lose fat. There's plenty of info about this already posted.

[InHuman83]

Actually my main question is what is better walking or biking. Since I know both have been said to be good for losing love handles, toning/losing fat.

So it's not a matter of toning but which one is better. I have only so much time to do stuff and I would like to be doing the better thing.

[Rad_MD]

http://www.primusweb.com/fitnesspart...e/calculat.htm

Enter your weight and duration of exercise in the calculator above. You can burn more calories in a shorter duration of time if you were to bike fast >16 mph than walking fast.

The answer to your question depends on how much time you actually have to exercise, ride indoors or outdoors, road (where you watch for traffic or a designated trail), how fast you ride, how fast you walk, whether you walk with hand weights or without, etc etc etc.

[InHuman83]

Well I Bike in the city but out in the nicer less traffic areas. I walk in the same section also.

I walk 5 miles which takes about a hour and 30-40 minutes depending on how I feel and how hot it is outside. When I Bike I go farther, maybe about 7-9 miles and it's for about an hour or a litte more.

I do this 4-5 times a week for cardio and just normal fitness since I don't get enough during the normal day.

Plus, usually Walking seems more psychical overall while Biking just seems on my legs.

So I wonder which would be better for me since I want an overall good fitness/cardio routine.

[gymrat]

Why not do both?

There is no right answer to which is "better". Whichever activity gets your heart rate up is probably going to be more beneficial to your goals. However, if biking is the activity you deem to be more intense, make sure you throw a couple of less-intense cardio days in there as well. Doing the same exercise every single day will not get you the same results as cross-training will.

[InHuman83]

Originally Posted by gymrat

Why not do both?

There is no right answer to which is "better". Whichever activity gets your heart rate up is probably going to be more beneficial to your goals. However, if biking is the activity you deem to be more intense, make sure you throw a couple of less-intense cardio days in there as well. Doing the same exercise every single day will not get you the same results as cross-training will.

Doing both would kinda take up too much time unless you mean alternate on different days.

But I'm not looking for cross-training really. I don't even know how that is really different. To me exercise is exercise as long as it's a steady plan along with a good diet. I just wanted to know what was mainly more effective for what I desired.

From your post and the guy with the Smirf icon (sorry forget your name), it seems biking is my best bet.

I'm not no serious fitness freak or bodybuilder. I just lift to gain some mass and strength while I exercise to just tone down. I'm justing looking for that average toned body, nothing above average or nothing below. Pretty much the body some people have without any work. Shame I wasn't that lucky

[gymrat]

Yes, I meant alternating the exercises on different days.

If you do the exact same activity every single day, your body will easily adapt to it and you won't see nearly as many benefits as if you were doing different activities every day.

You need to switch up your workouts to keep your body guessing - that's what I meant by cross training. Also, doing different cardio workouts will utilize different muscles and create more overall strength as well as increased cardiovascular capacity.

[InHuman83]

Originally Posted by gymrat

Yes, I meant alternating the exercises on different days.

If you do the exact same activity every single day, your body will easily adapt to it and you won't see nearly as many benefits as if you were doing different activities every day.

You need to switch up your workouts to keep your body guessing - that's what I meant by cross training. Also, doing different cardio workouts will utilize different muscles and create more overall strength as well as increased cardiovascular capacity.

Ahh I see.

So do something like this then?

Sunday- Bike
Monday- Walk
Tuesday- Bike
Wednesday- Walk
Thursday- Bike

[gymrat]

Originally Posted by InHuman83

Ahh I see.

So do something like this then?

Sunday- Bike
Monday- Walk
Tuesday- Bike
Wednesday- Walk
Thursday- Bike

You got it. The main piont is not to do the exact same thing every single day. In a few weeks, you'll want to change up your program again and maybe add some jogs to your walks or add some speed to your biking. Our bodies are incredibly adaptable and if you want to keep progressing, you've got to keep it guessing. The way to do that is with different and alternating forms of exercise.