Why Cardio Isn't Burning Your Belly Fat After 40

Nikkiey: Cardio feels extremely productive, right? You're sweating buckets, your heart's racing, your Apple Watch tells you that you burned 700 calories. Of course you feel like you're doing something right. But the uncomfortable truth is that you're not burning fat. You're burning muscle. You're burning out your adrenal glands. You're burning your time.

What's going on, everybody? Hey, you guys. Welcome to The WarriorBabe Show with Nikkiey Stott, co-founder of WarriorBabe. On this podcast, we talk about mindset, methodologies, and tactics that will help you lose body fat, build muscle, be strong, and feel insanely confident. I am your host, Nikkiey Stott, and welcome to episode number 294.

First of all, how many of you guys can recite that opening? After almost 300 episodes, I feel like I say that in my sleep. And I'm sure that every time you hear this episode open up, you can say those words. If you've been listening to the podcast for a long time, you can probably recite them.

Anyway, today it's going to be another one of those episodes where I'm just going to lean in. I'm going to deliver some truth bombs today that might ruffle some feathers. But it's one of those situations where you may not want to hear it, but you need to hear it. And I still see this somewhat everywhere. When you're someone like me who's really in the trees of the forest of the fitness world, you've got to pull yourself out to the high ground, up on the hills, or even above, on the mountains. A 30,000-foot view, so that you can look into the forest and be like, hey, where are people still steering the wrong way along their fitness journey? And how can I be the person that uses my voice to shake you guys and wake up the ones that need to hear: this isn't the way, this is the way. So this is me pulling myself up to a 30,000-foot view and still seeing that this topic I'm going to talk about is happening everywhere.

I feel like it could still be one of the many reasons that women are spinning their wheels. They're working so hard, but they're not seeing the results they're hoping to see. So if this is you, or you may know her, maybe this is who you are, right? We're going to dive into the mindset around how people still think that cardio is the queen, and it's the trap. I want to talk about the mindset and the method behind that.

Cardio is not the end-all, be-all solution to fat loss and getting your body to where you want it to be. Again, maybe this is you. The 5 a.m. treadmill, the 45 minutes on the Peloton, the evening HIIT classes, tracking the calories burned on her watch like it's the gospel, right? She's doing everything right according to what she's been told for decades. Yet that belly fat won't budge. The fat around her arms won't budge. The fat around her legs won't budge. Her clothes aren't fitting differently. She feels defeated.

If that hits home for you, then this episode is for you. Or if you know a friend that it may hit home for, this episode is for them, and you need to share it with them so that hopefully I can shake that person too.

So today I want to talk about why I feel like cardio backfires. I want to dive into the role of cortisol, the role of muscle loss, and the hormonal chaos that happens. I want to give you guys some solutions, which I'm sure some of you already may know. But I'm going to dive into a little bit more of those reminders. I'm a coach. I've got coach blood and coach at my heart. And we will repeat ourselves over and over and over again. I'm saying pretty much the same things, maybe just in different ways, either working with a client or sharing things in our space. Because maybe it didn't land for you the first time, but maybe it will the third time or the fifth time. You guys are probably shaking your heads, especially if you're a WarriorBabe. You've had your coach repeat things over and over again, and probably the fifth time it landed, or the 20th time it landed, right? So we're going to dive into all of this stuff. Let's just get into it.

First, I want to talk about where this obsession even started. Y'all grew up in a world, even me, I grew up in a world where it was calories in, calories out. That was king. That was die on the sword. Calories in? Okay, I need to go exercise those calories now. Or I exercise and I was allowed to eat those calories back. This messaging was so loud and clear. I mean, it still kind of is loud and clear. Eat less, move more, burn more calories, shrink yourself. Let's just chase skinny. And cardio was the promised land of weight loss.

There were infomercials about the Thighmaster, Jane Fonda, the neon spandex, step classes where the higher you jumped, the better you felt. The Thighmaster gets me. It was that weird thing that bends like this. You guys can imagine what I'm doing if you're not watching me on video. But let's just be real. Cardio, doing those things, doing the StairMaster, doing the thigh thing, doing the Jane Fonda, going for a run, it feels productive.

And honestly, before I dive in further into any of this, I just want to preface that cardio is still a good thing. Your heart is a muscle. It needs to be worked. Cardio is a great tool for that. The point and context I want to get across is for those of you who are overusing cardio, doing cardio every single day for hours on end, and still think that's the end-all, be-all. I'm not saying it's bad. I just want to change the narrative and the mindset around cardio so that you use it differently leaving this episode. Okay?

But yeah, cardio feels extremely productive, right? You're sweating buckets. Your heart's racing. Your Apple Watch tells you that you burned 700 calories. So of course you feel like you're doing something right. But the uncomfortable truth is that you're not burning fat. You're burning muscle. You're burning out your adrenal glands. You're burning your time. And nobody told you that. Or maybe somebody has, and it just hasn't landed in the way you needed it to land. So I'm hoping that I do that for you today.

You guys are told that cardio is the ultimate fat burner. I mean, geez, Orangetheory's marketing lives off of the afterburn effect, and it's just overemphasized. But you were never told that it would work against your metabolism as you age if it's overdone.

So let's zoom into what's actually going on inside your body. I feel this, even after 35, after 40, after 45. Let's be real, y'all know that I'm experiencing this if you listened to my life update episode a couple weeks ago. At certain ages, our hormones shift. Estrogen and progesterone decline. Your body becomes more sensitive to stress. Your recovery capacity drops. Muscle is harder to build and it's easier to lose. Can we all agree on that? Yes, yes, yes.

But nobody updates your playbook here. You're still doing what worked in your 20s or your early 30s, or what you saw in a magazine 15 years ago. Here's the truth bomb I need y'all to hear: the strategies that worked in your 20s will backfire in your 40s and in your 50s.

Let me break down the physiological toll of chronic cardio. Number one, what do you guys think it does? Muscle loss. When your body is in a calorie deficit and doing tons and tons of cardio, you create a catabolic environment. That means your body starts to break down muscle for fuel. Muscle is the most metabolically active tissue in your body. It's what keeps your metabolism high. It's what keeps your body tight. It's what keeps your insulin sensitivity in check. So if you lose muscle, you gain fat, especially in your belly, my friends.

When you are doing excessive amounts of cardio, the first thing your body is going to tap into is muscle. Muscle is metabolically active. It doesn't stop. It's always revving. That's why, yes, the afterburn effect is true. I'm going to get into this in the solution, but strength training does the same thing for you as an afterburn effect, because muscle doesn't stop. It's metabolically active. So that statement of "you are still burning calories at rest" is true. Cardio, though, only burns calories while you're doing it. But that's beside the point, okay? Well, it's not really beside the point. It's a little rant.

The point I want to get across here is you lose muscle. Is that counterproductive to what you guys want? Yes. You all want to build more muscle in a way that makes you healthy. Longevity. Being stronger to do things later in life. A lot of you think, well, I don't want to build muscle, that sounds like I'm going to get bulky. Let me just remind you, that's not going to happen. What I want to get across is how important muscle is to have on your body for longevity. Like Dr. Gabrielle Lyon says, it is the organ of longevity.

You're doing all this cardio. You're not eating enough. It's tapping into your muscle to give you fuel for that cardio session. And then when you lose muscle because you're doing this to your body every single day, you gain fat. Your metabolism gets weaker, right? Your insulin, your sensitivity, goes through the roof. You become more insulin...

[Ad] Ladies, are you feeling frustrated with body changes you're experiencing during menopause? It's time to take control. If you're between 45 and 65 years old and tired of struggling with body fat and muscle loss, WarriorBabe is here for you. At WarriorBabe, we've helped over 18,000 women just like you lose body fat, build toned muscle, and understand their bodies better with personalized plans based on hormone and thyroid testing and more. Imagine knowing exactly what your body needs to see real results, and results that last. Don't wait anymore. Take charge of your health and join our community of strong, empowered women. Visit warriorbabe.com/apply today to start your transformation. That's warriorbabe.com/apply. All right, let's get back to the show.

I just wanted to drill that one home. The second thing is cortisol overload. Cardio elevates your cortisol, your stress hormone. If you're already stressed, hello, life, hello, job, hello, kids, hello, menopause. Hello, feeling like a stranger in your body and feeling like, dude, something's off. Hello, hi, me, I'm there. Something's off. Something ain't right. That's stressful. And then cardio on top of that becomes literally gasoline on a hormone fire. Cortisol signals the body to store fat, and it's going to store fat around your midsection. It also tanks your thyroid. It disrupts your sleep. And it makes it nearly impossible to lose fat.

Let that sink in. I'm almost letting that sink into me, to remind me, dude, the things I'm doing, me feeling off. Let me just remind you, if you didn't listen to my life update episode: if things are off, that's your body trying to tell you something. It's not something you need to accept. You should feel lively and happy and full of life every single day. But when these things happen internally, when your hormones are starting to shift, or when you're stressed out and your thyroid tanks and you're not getting enough sleep, your body is trying to tell you something. Don't just accept it. Don't just accept that this is me getting older. I'm like, uh-uh, this ain't happening. I know what's up. I'm going to go get it checked and I'm going to be an advocate for myself. And I encourage you guys to do the same thing.

The last thing is metabolic adaptation. What I mean by that is the more cardio you do, the more efficient your body becomes, meaning you burn fewer calories for the same amount of work. Let me say this a little differently. You could be a cardio enthusiast, but your body adapts, and it's going to burn fewer calories for the same amount of work you're doing. That's not a good thing when fat loss is the goal. You're teaching your metabolism to do less with less. That's why you feel like you're doing everything quote-unquote right and nothing is happening.

[Ad] Ladies, are you feeling frustrated with body changes you're experiencing during menopause? It's time to take control. If you're between 45 and 65 years old and tired of struggling with body fat and muscle loss, WarriorBabe is here for you. At WarriorBabe, we've helped over 18,000 women just like you lose body fat, build toned muscle, and understand their bodies better with personalized plans based on hormone and thyroid testing and more. Imagine knowing exactly what your body needs to see real results, and results that last. Don't wait anymore. Take charge of your health and join our community of strong, empowered women. Visit warriorbabe.com/apply today to start your transformation. That's warriorbabe.com/apply. All right, let's get back to the show.

So let me make this super practical for you guys, to maybe understand a little bit more. I'm thinking about the people that receive information in different ways. How do you know if you're stuck in a cardio trap? Here are some red flags. Saying red flag just makes me think of dating and being on a dating app. Just think about that. You're on a fitness dating app right now, and all of these BS things are being told to you, and you're having to swipe right and left on what you believe, what you want to go after and what you don't. Okay, these are the red flags once you get into a fitness routine for yourself.

You're working out five days a week, but your body isn't changing. You panic if you skip a cardio session. You track calories burned obsessively. You're constantly tired or wired. You're sleeping like crap. And let me also add here, there could be a slew of other things going on, hormonal changes that are also doing this to you. But if you're the cardio queen and this is the trap you're stuck in, your hormones may be doing this because potentially you're running yourself into the ground. You're always sore, but you're not getting any stronger. You crave carbs and sugar consistently and constantly. You're gaining weight despite doing more.

These are not signs of aging. These are signs of hormonal dysfunction and metabolic downregulation. I just want to be super clear. As I said earlier, cardio isn't evil, but using it as your primary fat loss tool is entirely outdated. And for women in their later 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s, it can be downright destructive if it's not balanced with the right recovery, the right nutrition and strength training.

So here's where I want to change the narrative in your mind about cardio. Again, I'm looking down from a 30,000-foot view and I see this is still a huge thing within the space. A lot of women are still doing it. I see it every single day. I'm saying cardio is not bad, but I want to flip the script. I want to change this narrative that's in your mind, and I want to introduce you to a better way, a smarter way, one that works with your physiology, not against it.

I need you all to hear me loud and clear. Those of you who have been following me for a really long time know that I've always said nutrition is king and strength training is queen. Strength training is queen. If you want to lose fat, if you want to look more quote-unquote toned, if you want to feel strong, if you want to age properly, strength training is your non-negotiable. And I'm talking about progressive overload type of training.

You can go back in episodes, and maybe I'll do a new, updated one on progressive overload and exactly what it means. If you don't want to wait for that updated episode, I recommend you go back into the 300 episodes. You can even go to themacrohour.com, hit Control-F on the computer, type in progressive overload, and it's going to show you which episodes cover it. That's probably an easier way to do it, but that's just what I know off the top of my head. But broadly speaking: compound lifts, intentional programming, doing three to four days of resistance training.

I'll be totally vulnerable and transparent with you guys, because I'm in the thick of trying to rebalance myself right now in the season I'm in with my hormones and my thyroid. I am doing anywhere from two to three strength training sessions a week, and I'm doing a day of yoga and a day of Pilates. I used to be the one in the gym seven days a week. And in another part of my season, I was in there four to five days, and it's progressively gotten less. When I say less is more, please trust me now, believe me later. Less is more. Focus on getting stronger, not getting smaller. Focus on proper recovery. Okay. So strength training is queen.

The next thing I need y'all to know to rewrite this narrative is that walking is the unsung hero. Walking doesn't spike your cortisol. It lowers it. It improves your insulin sensitivity. It supports digestion. It supports recovery. It supports blood sugar balance. You don't need to run. I'm not saying you can't run, but you don't need to run. You need to walk, and you need to aim for anywhere from 8,000 to 12,000 steps a day. That's an absolute game changer.

Especially as we go into these winter months, I know a lot of people sit more because we're not outside as often. Just be more mindful and bring awareness to your steps in the day. Get out. Get on a treadmill. Get to the gym. Warm up for 15 minutes and get some steps in. Close down your session with 20 minutes of walking, something to get those steps in. For those of you who still get outside during that time, amazing. But walking is underrated. It's very underrated.

The last thing is fuel. Don't deprive yourself. Nutrition is king. You can't starve your way to fat loss. Let's call it what it is, let's bring the truth: the majority of women are not eating enough. So you combine cardio with not eating enough, and that's just screaming metabolic disaster. Instead, what you need to do is eat enough protein to preserve your muscle, to hold on to your muscle. You need to fuel yourself around your workouts. And you need to prioritize whole foods that will balance your blood sugar throughout the day.

If you can do those three things, even just to start, you don't even need to get into the world of macronutrients or tracking or trying to flip your whole world upside down when it comes to your nutrition. If you could just do those three things, it would be an absolute game changer on top of walking and strength training. Protein is king. Eating around your workouts will make your hormones very happy. And focusing on not just eating processed food, but making a conscious effort to eat more whole foods, will make your body so happy.

And I know it's not easy to change, guys. I know it's not. Trust me, I've coached thousands of women. I know it's not easy to change. And cardio is familiar. It's emotionally rewarding. It feels so productive. I've even had women tell me, I don't get the same high from strength training. I hear you. But I challenge you to learn how to ease your way out of doing so much cardio.

Here are some tips to ease yourself out of doing so much cardio without panicking, and how you can still find that high with strength training. You can. It just takes time. Trust me, I promise you, you will. I've seen it take women six months. It may take who knows how long, but you will find a different love for strength training, just as you do with running.

If you are an over-cardio queen, the way to ease out of it without panic is to replace one of your cardio sessions with strength training in the week. Then add a walk instead of a run. Get curious about your recovery. How do you feel after your workouts? Most importantly, pay attention to your biofeedback. How's your sleep? How's your hunger? How's your energy? How's your mood?

It's not about you abandoning cardio. You don't have to give up cardio. I want to continue to drill that in. Because at WarriorBabe, we're all about finding what you love to do within your lifestyle so that you can continue to make it a lifestyle. You like to do CrossFit? Awesome. Work that in. If you're doing CrossFit five times a week, we're probably going to ask you to bring it down a little bit, but we're still going to ask you to keep it in, right? If you love doing cardio, if you love doing Orangetheory, you can keep it in. But we've got to balance it the right way for what we know is right for you, and use our education to make sure you're getting the ultimate transformation that you want. Okay?

If you want long-term fat loss, it's about reclaiming control of your metabolism. You need muscle. You need hormone balance. You need nervous system regulation.

So I just want to end with this, guys. If you feel like you failed and you're doing this all wrong, like, man, I've done cardio over and over and over again, you've not failed. You're not broken. You've been misinformed by decades of marketing, decades of toxic diet culture and decades of bad science. And it's not too late to pivot. Strength training, walking, nourishment, exercise being queen, nutrition being king, proper recovery. These are the tools that work with your body, not against it. They work for the long term. They support your hormones. They honor the season of life that you're in.

And like I said before, if you're following what you did in your 20s or 30s, it's going to be chaos in your body. You're trying to do the same thing you did then when you're in a different season of your life now. All of these things can help you finally feel confident, strong and energetic, like you were always meant to be. If things feel off, like I said earlier, your body is trying to tell you something, and you need to honor that. You need to pay attention to it. And if you can course correct and advocate, and remember less is more and all the things I said, you're going to feel like that energetic, strong, confident woman again.

As I wrap it up, if this episode hit hard for you, share it with a friend who's stuck in the same cardio loop. Post it to your Instagram story. Send me a DM. Tag me at @nikkieystott or @themacrohour. Let me know what's up. How can I help you guys?

Just remember: cardio is not bad. You just need less of it, and more strength training, eating right, and making sure you're fueling your body appropriately. You're not meant to be on the hamster wheel of cardio, cardio, cardio, right? I can see everybody in the forest, like I said at the beginning. I want to pull you guys out. I want to shake you guys and wake you up. All right? I love y'all, and I will see you in the next episode.

Hey, really quick, before you go, I have one small favor to ask. If this episode brought you value or sparked something in you, take just a moment to hit that review button. Your rating and review make all the difference in helping more women discover the tools they need to transform their fitness and their confidence. It takes less than a minute, but it can change the path of someone else's journey. Thank you so much for leaving that review. I appreciate you so much.