Fitness Myth: To lose weight, keep doing cardio exercisesContrary to conventional wisdom, dedicating your fitness regime to only running, or cardio-based exercises in general, will not result in weight loss in the long-run.Without a doubt, cardio is good for keeping your overall health in the pink. However, when it comes to losing the extra pound, spending too much time running, swimming and the like will prevent weight-loss.One of the reasons is that too much cardio causes muscle atrophy (loss of muscle mass), and muscles are required to keep our metabolism up. When your muscle mass starts to drop, so will your metabolism, leading to weight gain as your body now requires fewer calories to function on a daily basis. Besides, excessive cardio can cause an increase in cortisol, a stress hormone in the body which impedes fat loss.Many people believe that the longer distance they run, the more calories they burn. While this is not entirely false, bear in mind that the body is a smart mechanism and will become more and more efficient as your training progresses. This means that your body is using fewer calories for the same or even longer distance covered. So what should you do if you’d like to lose weight the healthy and effective way? The recommended program to go for is one which comprises both weight-training and cardio workout.