Getting Cut!

[retired_ooooooommff]

Hey there,

On cardio days i tend to do 40mins first thing in the morning on an empty stomach, is this depremental for holding muscle mass? I do consume a high protein complex carb drink immediately after and continue to do so every 2-3 hours during the course of the day, but would it be more beneficial to consume protein prior to early morning cardio? or would this mean i would simply use that for energy and burn less fat?

 

[stalefish]

i wouldn't say its beneficial for retaining muscle, but is more accelerated on releasing fat stores and burning them.
If you were to do HIIT in the morning, then that form of cardio would help retain muscle (not only that, it also burns the fat like crazy... keeps your metabolism revved for the rest of the day).

On my cutting cycle, i would either perform HIIT in the morning or if i wasnt feeling too hot, i would just do a brief 20-30 minute jog (anything longer would most likely put the muscles in danger zone).

Having a protein shake would limit fat stores being released, as protein is another good source of energy, if you got more in you, your body will use that too. If you want maximal results, do HIIT in the morning and when your finished dont eat for 45 minutes or so, this way your revved up metabolism from HIIT is still burning the fat

Then when it comes time to eat, have a Big Breakfast. With Plenty of protein, carbs and good fats. I like to go for something thats around 600ish calories (even when im on my cutting diet).

What i would suggest is, take a bodyfat measurment of yourself and find your lean mass and body fat lbs. Try whatever cardio/having protein shake before cardio, for a week and see how much muscle/fat you lose and then try something different and compare the results. This way you can pinpoint exactly what is beneficial to you.

good luck man

 

[karl78]

What i would suggest is, take a bodyfat measurment of yourself and find your lean mass and body fat lbs.

How do I do this? Can you tell me what instrument I need for this?

 

[stalefish]

there are several ways to determine bodyfat.

1. Skin fold calipers
2. Bio-Electrical Impedance
3. Hydrostatic Weighing

I would just go with Skin fold calipers... but if you can try them all .. then by all means.
You can buy your own Bodyfat calipers at Fitness stores around you, or your gym should most likely have what you need to determine your bodyfat.

If you have access to BEI and hydrostatic weighing than try them too, see what the most common reading is.

But anyways, once you have the bodyfat calipers, the instructions will most likely tell you how to use them ... and if not .. there are many websites that tell you where to measure and what to do to figure it out.

hope it helped

 

[abear]

there's a big debate over eating before cardio and not eating. my personal opinion is that not eating before cardio wouldnt be something i'd do for too long a period of time.

remember its more about calories burned vs consumed over the course of the day over whats burned in and around a workout.