cardio question

[mexican_player2]

tommorrow i start doing my cardio, i already read teh guides and it says you should do it in the morning, well i cant do it all mornings cuz i have to sleep late because of school and wake up early at 5 40 am, so is there another way to still lose weight while gaining muscle??

like what if i do the cardio at night? or at 6pm or before i weight train??

thanks in advance

 

[EFFORT]

Keep the cardio away from your weight lifting workouts, don't want them close together.


If you can't do the morning cardio then do it whenever you can during the day (just not near your weight lifting workouts...this shouldn't be a problem since u can do cardio on your off days from training which should be 4 days out of the week.)

 

[Viroid]

Dont worry too much about doing it in the AM or near your workouts. Do it whenever you have time.

 

[SamoJednom]

I am pretty much in the same delema I think. I don't have time to run in the mornings + weather is like -10 with windchill. Very cold. On my off days when I am not working out there just is not enough time with school work, eating and other activities...

So is it maybe fine to run for like 40 mins of light cardio after your workout if you feel up 2 it or should you wait like a little bit before doing it!?

Cardio is important because I need to get my fat levels down but so hard to find time for any when am not lifting.... there was a reason I chose T/Thr/Sun.

 

[Viroid]

Samo, like i told mexican. Dont worry so much about it. Just do it whenever you have time. If youre trying to lose fat youre going to be hypocaloric so youre not going to gain muscle anyway.

 

[Warboss Alex]

mexican, Samo:

Post-workout cardio is fine but keep it to 20-25 minutes and before taking in your pwo drink (which should contain fast carbs - if you take this before cardio you might as well not bother as you'll be burning the newly ingested sugars for fuel).

You can do your cardio at night when you stop eating carbs (between two pro/fat meals). At the end of the day glycogen will be lower so more fat will be used as fuel.

Not as efficient as a.m. cardio but close enough.

If you can't do it at night then fit it in whenever and make sure to eat clean. It'll still get the job done.

 

[SamoJednom]

Well, I weigh 180 but got quite bit of fat I want to lose... I am eating to bulk but at same time cutting down the fat lol. All the food I eat is clean food!

As long as the cardio after workout don't affect muscle gain much am good with it... muscle only shows when u got low bf%

 

[mexican_player2]

thanks for the replies!


samo yeah me too, i am eating to bulk but i was getting too much fat and now i have a big belly i just want to reduce it a little,


viroid: warbross alex says you can lose fat while still gain muscle who should i believe?


MY problem is that when i started bodybuilding i didnt watch my diet i just drank a lot of protein weight gainer and i got a lil fat

then on vacations i started making a homemade protein drink with 10 eggs oatmeal, honey, banana, and i got a LOT of fat

so now i still drink my homemade protein drink but i split it in half and i drink one in the moring and one in the night

so now i just want to reduce my body fat as before vacations while i still gain muscle.

 

[EFFORT]

Samo no running for 40min

Losing fat and gaining muscle can easily be done. Cut carbs 3-5hours before bed and do your low intensity cardio during that time period (since you don't have the time in the morning) by walking on the treadmill for 45min-1hour. Also only don't take in fast carbs unless its post workout. If you drink a lot of milk remove that from your diet too.

 

[Viroid]

viroid: warbross alex says you can lose fat while still gain muscle who should i believe?

Technically, it is possible. If you eat say, 200cals below maintanace and time your meals/workouts, basically micromanage your diet, its possible. Everyone ive seen or heard of that has done it are miserable, slightly insane and have no life. the thing is, theres a better way so its really not worth it.

There are 3 circumstances in which you can (easily) gain muscle and lose fat at the same time. They are if you:

1. are a newbie to training (especially if youre fat)
2. are coming back from a long layoff in training
3. use drugs

With a cyclical diet and/or micromanaging your food intake it might be possible to gain a few pounds of muscle and lose a few pounds of fat (maybe) in 12-16 weeks. But if you think youre going to go from 170lbs at 20% bodyfat to 170lbs at 10% bodyfat in 16 weeks you are mistaken. Thats not possible to do naturally.

Its just a hell of a lot easier to do a clean bulk for 6-8 weeks and cut for the next 6-8 weeks for a better net effect. Youll gain more muscle, feel better, keep your sanity and you get to have a life.

so yeah, if youre fat newbie (over 25% bodyfat) it will be easier to do. If youre trained and youre trying to get shredded (say going from 10-12% to 6-8% bodyfat) youre not going to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time.

 

[Warboss Alex]

Everyone ive seen or heard of that has done it are miserable, slightly insane and have no life. the thing is, theres a better way so its really not worth it./QUOTE]

thanks a bunch mate..

 

[simba_]

mexican, Samo:

Post-workout cardio is fine but keep it to 20-25 minutes and before taking in your pwo drink (which should contain fast carbs - if you take this before cardio you might as well not bother as you'll be burning the newly ingested sugars for fuel).

You can do your cardio at night when you stop eating carbs (between two pro/fat meals). At the end of the day glycogen will be lower so more fat will be used as fuel.

Not as efficient as a.m. cardio but close enough.

If you can't do it at night then fit it in whenever and make sure to eat clean. It'll still get the job done.

Thanks for this, was about to make another thread to ask.

On another note, is there a significant difference between jogging for 20-25 minutes as compared to walking for 45-1 hour?
I'd perfer to jog, but if it's going to save me a substantial amount of hard earned mass, I'll walk.

 

[mrRuckus]

Technically, it is possible. If you eat say, 200cals below maintanace and time your meals/workouts, basically micromanage your diet, its possible. Everyone ive seen or heard of that has done it are miserable, slightly insane and have no life. the thing is, theres a better way so its really not worth it.

Seriously it's not that hard. It doesn't take much micromanaging. Actually I can eyeball food at this point and know how much it is. I know what to eat everyday because I tracked it long enough to remember. I can pull out 4 oz of chicken in a couple of seconds. Every once in a while I measure it to make sure I haven't veered off the path in my eyeballing but i get it within .1 oz all the time. It's no trouble.


I'm gaining muscle and losing fat right now. I'm neither miserable nor have no life... i can't judge my own sanity, though.

yes i'm confused by my double negative too

 

[Throttle]

But if you think youre going to go from 170lbs at 20% bodyfat to 170lbs at 10% bodyfat in 16 weeks you are mistaken. Thats not possible to do naturally.

So yeah, if youre fat newbie (over 25% bodyfat) it will be easier to do. If youre trained and youre trying to get shredded (say going from 10-12% to 6-8% bodyfat) youre not going to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time.

whoa whoa whoa... slow down with the moving target.

If you are able to go from 170/20% to 170/10% in 16 weeks, you'll be able to get there with either method. Sounds ridiculous to me either way... how about a more reasonable goal?

Of course it's easier to strip bodyfat at 25% bf than 10%. I don't understand the appeal of going significantly below 10%, but set that aside. There's deeper fallacies here:

Myth: You need a positive calorie balance to gain muscle and a negative calorie balance to lose bodyfat. Untrue. Just a little bit of care about when & what you eat & when you exercise go a very long way.

Myth: You need to micromanage your diet to achieve such a balance. Untrue. Mr. R can measure things within 0.1 oz if he likes, but that's optimization, and isn't necessary (and for some of us is wholly unsustainable) for building muscle while losing fat.

Myth: Bulk/cut cycling gets you there faster. Possibly. But most guys bulk very sloppily & simply loathe cutting cycles. They offload the micromanagement onto one cycle & then associate it with misery. Again, not very sustainable.

As an aside, my misery, insanity, and lack of social life have nothing to do with building muscle & losing bodyfat at the same time.

 

[Viroid]

Seriously it's not that hard. It doesn't take much micromanaging. Actually I can eyeball food at this point and know how much it is. I know what to eat everyday because I tracked it long enough to remember. I can pull out 4 oz of chicken in a couple of seconds. Every once in a while I measure it to make sure I haven't veered off the path in my eyeballing but i get it within .1 oz all the time. It's no trouble.

I'm gaining muscle and losing fat right now. I'm neither miserable nor have no life... i can't judge my own sanity, though.

Right, its no trouble for you. It wouldnt be hard for me either. But think in the context of this board. Who are we (expeirenced in training/nutrition/supps) giving advice to? Theyre mostly newbies. Theres no need to complicate things.

Doing bulking and cutting cycles is easier AND will result in more muscle gain.

 

[shaunuk]

Doing bulking and cutting cycles is easier AND will result in more muscle gain.

Well what a lot of us do is just keep adding muscle indefinitely whilst keeping fat under control. That way you don't take 3 steps forward and 2 steps back, just for 1 step forward (because people inevitably lose muscle when they do their daft 1800cal 'cutting' diet)

-shaun

 

[Viroid]

If you are able to go from 170/20% to 170/10% in 16 weeks, you'll be able to get there with either method. Sounds ridiculous to me either way... how about a more reasonable goal?

I never said that you could do that. Reread what I posted. Its not possible unless youre a newbie and youre taking massive amounts of drugs.

I don't understand the appeal of going significantly below 10%,

I dont see the appeal either, but most men have to be below 10% to get rid of the love handles and clearly see that "6-pack." Sprinters, cyclists, competing bodybuilders etc. will be below 10%.

Myth: You need a positive calorie balance to gain muscle and a negative calorie balance to lose body fat. Untrue. Just a little bit of care about when & what you eat & when you exercise go a very long way.

Im not arguing that, but why make things harder when there is an easier/better way because having a positive cal intake makes it A LOT easier to gain muscle and having a negative cal intake make it A LOT easier to lose fat. And thats a fact.

Myth: You need to micromanage your diet to achieve such a balance. Untrue. Mr. R can measure things within 0.1 oz if he likes, but that's optimization, and isn't necessary (and for some of us is wholly unsustainable) for building muscle while losing fat

I believe it does take "optimization" to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time if youre not in one of the 3 circumstances I outlined above.
It must be that what you call micromanaging your diet and what I call micromanaging your diet are two different things. With my definition, micromanaging your diet means knowing when to eat, what to eat and how much to eat. And for your average person this can be hard. And then the when, what, how much to eat can be different if youre a ecto, meso, endo. Your average person isnt going to do the research it takes to figure all this shyt out.

Myth: Bulk/cut cycling gets you there faster. Possibly. But most guys bulk very sloppily & simply loathe cutting cycles. They offload the micromanagement onto one cycle & then associate it with misery. Again, not very sustainable.

Yeah, just like most guys dont gain or lose anything when they are trying to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time. Its mostly about dedication and consistency. The only thing im arguing here is that, for your average person and your elite bodybuilders, bulking and cutting cycles are a hell of a lot easier and you get better results.

 

[Viroid]

Well what a lot of us do is just keep adding muscle indefinitely whilst keeping fat under control.

-shaun

You guys are the real skinny guys in the gym right?

 

[shaunuk]

Lol, not all of us, but me, I certainly am (though I am very new to the iron game..)

-shaun