Cardio First thing in the morning

**magico** · 04-11-2006, 06:29 AM

I have been doing 30 minutes of HIT cardio in the morning to loose fat and I have gone down 3 inches on my waist. Recently I had a one on one personal trainer and he told me that I could have been loosing muscle instead of fat. He explained that if I do cardio on empty stomach there is not much to use as fuel since I have been sleeping and not eaten for 8 hours .So when I do cardio what ever I have left will be burned quick so how will my body know weather to use fat as energy or muscle? Meaning my body could be catabolic state?

Is this wrong?

**helium3** · 04-11-2006, 06:45 AM

no he is correct,its a good time to lose weight but its not always the right weight! like to do my cardio before tea so my metabolism is high and helps digest the food plus it refills my glycogen stores.

**oldman** · 04-11-2006, 06:58 AM

I don't know anything about that HIT Cardio but cardio in the AM is best IMO. Sure you might lose some muscle but you have to just keep your HR in the fat burning zone and don't exceed about 45 minutes. I do cardio 7 days a week first thing in the morning, I am losing fat (went from 28%+ to about 12-13%) so far.. My strength is higher than ever so I know I am not losing muscle in fact my chest, legs and arms are bigger and more defined than ever.

You need to be careful who you listen too I hear PT's in my gym say that you should take in a high carb meal before cardio for energy?? WTF??!?!?

~Old

**biglouie250** · 04-11-2006, 06:59 AM

the pecking order in the body is 1)carbs 2)fats 3)protein

if your body is breaking down muscle to fuel itself that is called starvation. IMO you will be burning much more fat then protein, i wouldnt worry about it.

**biglouie250** · 04-11-2006, 07:00 AM

Originally Posted by oldman

I don't know anything about that HIT Cardio but cardio in the AM is best IMO. Sure you might lose some muscle but you have to just keep your HR in the fat burning zone and don't exceed about 45 minutes. I do cardio 7 days a week first thing in the morning, I am losing fat (went from 28%+ to about 12-13%) so far.. My strength is higher than ever so I know I am not losing muscle in fact my chest, legs and arms are bigger and more defined than ever.

You need to be careful who you listen too I hear PT's in my gym say that you should take in a high carb meal before cardio for energy?? WTF??!?!?

~Old

yea there are a lot of good PT's out there but there are also a ton of horrible ones. i guess thats what happens when you get certified for a profession after about 8 hrs lol.

**helium3** · 04-11-2006, 07:06 AM

if your goal is muscle gain and fat loss then why risk it,do cardio later in the day as ive just stated in another thread if you have low carbs/glycogen stores left in the morning you could end up in a catabloic state,ok if you are on gear then catabolic effects can be held at bay.i guess it also depends on metabolism.

**novastepp** · 04-11-2006, 07:30 AM

Originally Posted by magico

I have been doing 30 minutes of HIT cardio in the morning to loose fat and I have gone down 3 inches on my waist. Recently I had a one on one personal trainer and he told me that I could have been loosing muscle instead of fat. He explained that if I do cardio on empty stomach there is not much to use as fuel since I have been sleeping and not eaten for 8 hours .So when I do cardio what ever I have left will be burned quick so how will my body know weather to use fat as energy or muscle? Meaning my body could be catabolic state?

Is this wrong?

doing cardio in the am on an empty stomach is a great way to utilize the FFA;s in your system. but it is recommended to do it between 60-70% of your MRH. you arrive at this number by taking 220-(your age) *.60 ... but if you are doing HIIT cardio on an empty stomach in the morning you are definately at risk for losing some muscle instead of fat. try to keep the heart rate under control.

**oldman** · 04-11-2006, 07:30 AM

Originally Posted by biglouie250

yea there are a lot of good PT's out there but there are also a ton of horrible ones. i guess thats what happens when you get certified for a profession after about 8 hrs lol.

**magico** · 04-11-2006, 08:47 AM

OK

Great answers thank you

Would it be ok to do light anaerobic cardio meaning doing it to the point where you are just breaking a sweat after WORKOUT!!!! and sipping on a protein shake.

What I mean is do my workout get my protein shake and do light 40 min mild cardio.

**novastepp** · 04-11-2006, 08:59 AM

it is going to halt fat loss to some extent, but if muscle preservation is what you are worried about, then yes that would be fine. maybe just go for 30 minutes so you can get your PPWO meal in within the "anabolic hour"

**SwoleCat** · 04-11-2006, 09:08 AM

What is HIT cardio?

HIT is High Intensity Training, referring to weights.

HIIT is High Intensity Interval Training, which is used for increasing ones VO2 max. It's not a wise choice, especially on empty, for fat loss as it's too extreme heart rate wise to use stored fat and fatty acids for fuel.

~SC~

**MartyMcFly** · 04-11-2006, 09:36 AM

Originally Posted by magico

OK

Great answers thank you

Would it be ok to do light anaerobic cardio meaning doing it to the point where you are just breaking a sweat after WORKOUT!!!! and sipping on a protein shake.

What I mean is do my workout get my protein shake and do light 40 min mild cardio.

Do it first thing in the morning at 65% mhr. Some people do not even sweat at that rate. I do but I am a sweaty bastard who is also taking ECY. I would not recommend cardio PWO that is the time for your nutriants(sp).

**oldman** · 04-11-2006, 10:10 AM

Originally Posted by SwoleCat

What is HIT cardio?

HIT is High Intensity Training, referring to weights.

HIIT is High Intensity Interval Training, which is used for increasing ones VO2 max. It's not a wise choice, especially on empty, for fat loss as it's too extreme heart rate wise to use stored fat and fatty acids for fuel.

~SC~

thanks for the input.. so we are talking about two different things here. I guess my thinking was being in a fat burning zone verses a high HR zone for cardiovascular endurance??? maybe sorta kinda..

If that is the case slow down brotha and get your HR rate right and you should be good to go on fat loss and believe me I know fat loss.

~Old

**magico** · 04-11-2006, 10:28 AM

Originally Posted by SwoleCat

What is HIT cardio?

HIT is High Intensity Training, referring to weights.

HIIT is High Intensity Interval Training, which is used for increasing ones VO2 max. It's not a wise choice, especially on empty, for fat loss as it's too extreme heart rate wise to use stored fat and fatty acids for fuel.

~SC~

So What do you reccomend to do? I know you have mentioned to do cardio first thing in the morning.So I should do moderate pace.
What is your imput on Cardio after weights.

I guess my goal is to loose fat but still maintain Muscle....

thanks

**oldman** · 04-11-2006, 10:30 AM

http://www.fitnesstransform.com/calc..._heartrate.php

~Old

**Warrior** · 04-11-2006, 11:12 AM

Cardio first thing in the morning will liberate some fatty acids floating around in your blood due to your fasted state. But I wouldn't recommend any cardio that gets your heart rate up and beatin' too fast - as this may switch you from utilizing the fat and begin the process of tearing down muscle.

But... whether or not it eats up muscle or strength is for you to determine with a good log book. Logs help you keep track of incremental improvements as well as diets that could potentially eat up LBM. in other words, records of your resistance training (loads, reps, sets used) are crucial when dieting and trying to keep what you got... IMHO...

**FullMoonHowlingWolf** · 04-11-2006, 02:18 PM

Originally Posted by magico

I have been doing 30 minutes of HIT cardio in the morning to loose fat and I have gone down 3 inches on my waist. Recently I had a one on one personal trainer and he told me that I could have been loosing muscle instead of fat. He explained that if I do cardio on empty stomach there is not much to use as fuel since I have been sleeping and not eaten for 8 hours .So when I do cardio what ever I have left will be burned quick so how will my body know weather to use fat as energy or muscle? Meaning my body could be catabolic state?

Is this wrong?

I don't know what HIT cardio is, but if you want to continue burning fat, keep doing your cardio in the morning on an empty stomach and have a PWO shake as soon as your finished. Now here’s a tip that you can start doing at night before bed. Take casein protein 30-40 grams and 3 tablespoons of flaxseed oil, which will fuel your body all night during repair. There is a reason why they call it breakfast, to break the fast, fast meaning not eating. Casein protein is very slow digesting and will help against the anti-catabolic state that occurs once our body runs out of fuel while sleeping. Also, make sure you do your cardio in the morning right away and no longer than 60 minutes. I'd say 30-45 mins in optimal for burning fat without risking muscle, since most people don't wake up and immediately go for a run outside. They instead take 15 – 30 mins just to get to the gym and then start doing their cardio 30 – 60 mins, which puts them at a greater risk to start the catabolic state and risk loosing their hard earned muscle. Personally I wake up, brush my teeth while going to the bathroom and then I ride my bike to the gym (10 mins) and go right to the cross trainer for 30 – 45 mins and have my PWO shake as soon as I’m finished. This works best for me.

**magico** · 04-12-2006, 02:46 PM

OK
Lets say I take the shake at 10 pm and wake up at 6 am that is 8 hours of digestion you think I will have anything left to do that,I guess it would be up to your bodies metabolism.If I du cardio what will I burn fat or muscle?

**FullMoonHowlingWolf** · 04-12-2006, 03:25 PM

Originally Posted by magico

OK
Lets say I take the shake at 10 pm and wake up at 6 am that is 8 hours of digestion you think I will have anything left to do that,I guess it would be up to your bodies metabolism.If I du cardio what will I burn fat or muscle?

Answer, fat, but as long as you keep with in the guidelines of 60-70% of your MRH and don't exceed 60 mins. Check out SwoleCat's website and posts about cardio, fat burning, and dieting, etc. He's got tons of great information and as you can see he knows what he's talking about.

**n4529359** · 04-12-2006, 03:34 PM

fatty acids are used as fuel at lower intensities glycogen at higher intensities as glycogen starts to deplete , protein is used .

doing cardio in the absence of glycogen ie in the morning is a surefire way protein is used in the krebs cycle .

caffeine helps shift energy useage to fat from glycogen
and glutamine and bcaa's are anticatabolic to the muscles becasue it helps replace the protein energy surce with the high bioavailable aminoacids

**magico** · 04-19-2006, 05:32 AM

So to summ it up in teh morning I have to do 30 to 40 min at 60-70% of my MRH right? I will have no time to eat any carbs.Will a protein shake help just before I start?

**majorpecs** · 04-19-2006, 06:21 AM

Originally Posted by magico

So to summ it up in teh morning I have to do 30 to 40 min at 60-70% of my MRH right? I will have no time to eat any carbs.Will a protein shake help just before I start?

NO....do the cardio on a totally empty stomach, keep it under 70%, and drink a pwo shake consisting of protein/fat immediately afterwards.