The thing we all love: CARDIO! :)

[barrybulkers]

Hey guys/girls,

There is something bothering me about this subject. Seems like there are a lot of different opinions on what would be the best way to loose body fat or maintain a good bf%. Fasted am cardio, keeping in the fatburning zone, HIT, HIIT, ... And the list goes on. I would like this thread a place were we all can discuss this subject providing personnel experiences, researches,... Anything that could help me/us get a good understanding and trying to figure out how to get the most benefit within the least amount of time! This may sound like a fairytale, but lets be honest here, i know spending hours a day on a treadmill will get you results, but who want that and maybe more important, who has the time for that? I hate cardio so when i do it, i want to get the best results possible from it!

Im curious about ur opinions!

[MACKATTACK]

I do cardio 5 days a week............when I was getting ready for my vegas trip 2 years ago I went HARD.

I did 30 minutes HIT, followed by 20 minutes of HIIT, followed by 10 minutes of constant. This was all done fasted in the AM. The fat just flew off. I did that for a 3 months stint, it was ridiculous, how effective it was.

Currently I do 30mins HIT, 10mins HIIT and 5 mins constant, fasted in the AM (on cycle and cutting).

Once every couple of weeks I will do just a few days of HIT (fast constant) for 45 minutes and I notice the difference between the two routines are night and difference.

HIIT just works and I have proven to myself, that HIIT and Fasted will melt fat, but u will lose a little muscle if not done with the right diet and supplements.

[barrybulkers]

I do cardio 5 days a week............when I was getting ready for my vegas trip 2 years ago I went HARD.

I did 30 minutes HIT, followed by 20 minutes of HIIT, followed by 10 minutes of constant. This was all done fasted in the AM. The fat just flew off. I did that for a 3 months stint, it was ridiculous, how effective it was.

Currently I do 30mins HIT, 10mins HIIT and 5 mins constant, fasted in the AM (on cycle and cutting).

Once every couple of weeks I will do just a few days of HIT (fast constant) for 45 minutes and I notice the difference between the two routines are night and difference.

HIIT just works and I have proven to myself, that HIIT and Fasted will melt fat, but u will lose a little muscle if not done with the right diet and supplements.

Thats interesting! I thought fasted HIIT was a no go since it depletes the glycogen and in the morning ur glycogen is already depleted. So it will break down muscle tissue? Or am i wrong here? When i used to do fasted cardio, i did it moderate and even then made sure i had my BCAA's before i started.
Btw ur a beast if u can do that cardio routine fasted!!

[MACKATTACK]

Thats interesting! I thought fasted HIIT was a no go since it depletes the glycogen and in the morning ur glycogen is already depleted. So it will break down muscle tissue? Or am i wrong here? When i used to do fasted cardio, i did it moderate and even then made sure i had my BCAA's before i started.
Btw ur a beast if u can do that cardio routine fasted!!

Well you gotta remember first thing in the morning your testosterone levels are at their daily highs, so that helps. Also, by supplements I mean BCAA's you can take which will help to restrict muscle loss. At the sametime if you are on a cycle then you do not have to worry about losing muscle and enjoy the fat loss.

But then it all replys back to diet. If your diet is on point then it goes a LONG way. All matters what you are looking to do. If you want to focus on just growing muscle and never losing any then NEVER do HIIT. But if you want a lean look and low BF% then do HIIT. At the same extent alot rely's apon genetics too. Its all trial and error person to person and learning how your system works. But for me HIIT and Fasted cardio works........

[CMB]

OK, so myself, I am right now doing cardio every once every 4 days. The three days after cardio are all weight lifting

On the days I do cardiovascular training, I do 45 minutes on usually the elliptical of high intesnity training. It is not a cake walk by any means, I struggle and push myself.


This has done absolute wonders for me...
-I found I can increase my calorie intake beyond what I would normally be able to consume without putting on large amounts of fat.
- I am hungry ! All the time! My metabolism is through the roof also helping me keep the body fat down.
- Health benefits are also significant. BP dropped about 15 pts compared to before I trained my cardiovascular system.

Before I started this new routine which included 45 minutes of cardiovascular training....my stats were 153lbs 11%... now I'm a steady 165lbs and still around 11%. I wouldn't imagine myself being any higher than 12% at the most. I give credit to the cardio to really assisting me in my quest to gain lean muscle, not fat.

[CMB]

As far as HEYMACK's cardio routine goes, I wouldn't do that unless I'm cycling. For the exact reason barrybulkers said.

When doing HIT cardio your body runs off of carbs. When you don't have any carbs, you body MUST get them through your fat stores AND you lean muscle mass!!! So yes, I agree that it is very effective at fat loss. But at the same time you will lose SOME degree of muscle mass.

As mentioned above, there are ways to mitigate muscle loss if you do decide to do fasted HIT.
- If you're on cycle you can certainly get away with it, provided you're running a half decent cycle.
- Supplement like creatine and BCAA's will certainly help to some degree.
- Also important is a diet rich in proteins to help conserve muscle mass.

Not trying to hate just giving my .02

[FONZY007]

I do hiit on the elliptical and have lost 30 lbs since the middle of February...

I up my speed and the level then lower ad slow down...

But if its a training day I just set high and continue to go for like 15-20 mins...

[kronik420]

IMO fasted cardio is necessary if you are trying to cut down to low bf% (say from 15% to 10% or into single digits..)

but if your trying to cut from say 25%bf down to 15% ish, then it is not necessary, in this situation it is more important to actually get the cardio done rather than what time it gets done.... so if the best time for you to do cardio ED is 11pm then so be it...

[FONZY007]

IMO fasted cardio is necessary if you are trying to cut down to low bf% (say from 15% to 10% or into single digits..)

but if your trying to cut from say 25%bf down to 15% ish, then it is not necessary, in this situation it is more important to actually get the cardio done rather than what time it gets done.... so if the best time for you to do cardio ED is 11pm then so be it...

Lol yea when u a fat ass get er done

[barrybulkers]

I like ur input! So fasted HIIT will do wonders, but make sure ur on gear and uve got ur supplements to go with it to prevent muscle burn! I'm definitely gonne give that a try when im back on!
As for now what do you guys suggest? I'll explain the situation.
Ive just had a show last week so my bf is still pretty low, but i wanne keep it that way! Lets say around 6%. At the moment i will be off for a few weeks. The only thing im taking is cjc and ghrp2. I have to say, that stuff works really good for me so i dont have a lot of trouble keeping bf low. My diet and training is on point! Im on a 3 day split right now (mo-we-fri) the 2 days in between i was planning to do my cardio. Or would it be better to get my cardio post wo? Also since im off gear, do you recommend the steady cardio for lets say 2 times 1hour if i do it on the "rest" days or 3 times 30-45 mins post wo? Or HIIT?
Really curious what your opinion is on this!

[Back In Black]

Ill come back to this later but when a cycle finishes and you enter PCT the recommendation is to limit, or even stop, cardio altogether until PCT is over.

[barrybulkers]

Ill come back to this later but when a cycle finishes and you enter PCT the recommendation is to limit, or even stop, cardio altogether until PCT is over.

Hmm i can relate to that. Perhaps i can leave the cardio out and see how it goes. Maybe in time make it a 4 day split just to get an extra day of burning calories and if thats not enough add a minimum of cardio to my training.

[MACKATTACK]

I wouldn't eliminate cardio, but you can def do like a super slow incline walk for 20mins after lifting (more maintenance then burning massive fat). But regardless I doubt you will maintain that 6% BF while off cycle.

[kelkel]

Try my way. Just don't do it. Hate it.

[barrybulkers]

I wouldn't eliminate cardio, but you can def do like a super slow incline walk for 20mins after lifting (more maintenance then burning massive fat). But regardless I doubt you will maintain that 6% BF while off cycle.

Yeah i will try to keep it as low as possible, but within a month i'll be back on so then i can bring it back down if needed without the fear of losing to much muscle.

So to sum it up, when off cycle, keep the cardio at a maintenance level trying to maintain the bf%.
When on cycle i can use HIIT, even fasted.

Im definitely gonna give this a try and see how it works for me!

Thanks a lot guys!

[tigerspawn]

Of course we all love cardio; it is for heart health.