# Do endurance sports make you gain fat?



## bikerbert (Jan 28, 2005)

Great article, enjoy!
T NATION | The Final Nail in the Cardio Coffin


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## hellcat405 (Jul 19, 2009)

I've had the same experience... I have a VERY hard time losing weight by riding alone, but if I hit the gym and do some high intensity circuit training with weights, the flab comes right off.


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## Mapei (Feb 3, 2004)

No, but endurance sports do make me fart.


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## Dr_John (Oct 11, 2005)

Hmmmm...yet somehow I managed to drop 40 lbs without much of a diet change and by cycling alone.


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## robdamanii (Feb 13, 2006)

Interesting, but nothing to write home about.

I'm not surprised to see a bodybuilding site cherrypicking studies that show aerobic exercise to be useless.

Aerobic exercise is well documented to be a way to drop weight and change body composition. The author of that article is unfortunately basing their article on the idea that people follow a training plan that doesn't involve intensity. Almost every training plan I've ever seen involves intensity. Variety is the spice of life, and it keeps the body on its toes.


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## ratpick (Jul 31, 2008)

Back when I was unemployed, I regularly took off on 120 mile rides and dropped a ton of weight (and I'm not overweight by any means ). If you have an overall calorie deficiency, you're going to lose weight eventually


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## burtonjohn (Sep 22, 2005)

I've managed to drop tons of weight just by increasing my weekly mileage (either cycling or running). But I think the problem some people have is that they overcompensate by eating much more so that it outweighs the additional training. In that respect, high-intensity stuff and/or weights can help out. But fear the beer, it is your enemy!


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## teflondog (Aug 23, 2011)

Endurance sports make you gain fat only if you eat an additional 2,000 calories after you've only burned 500. I remember when people in highschool joined track so they could lose weight. After running 5 miles during practice, they would get hungry and proceed to McDonald's afterwards. Needless to say, they were better off not joining track.

All it takes to lose weight is consuming less calories than you burn. Even bodybuilders would agree with that.


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