I’m currently cutting, on a 4-day upper/lower split with HIIT cardio twice a week on rest days. Would there be anything wrong with doing maybe 5-10 minutes of low intensity cardio (jog, x-trainer, row) directly at the end of my weights workout though, for the purpose of achieving some extra calorie burn for the cut?
My workouts last 45 minutes of weights normally, so I can’t see catabolism being an issue… what about the ‘15 minute window’ after weights, would this post-weights cardio interfere with that? Thanks for any help!
I’ve been doing that for the last couple of weeks for my contest prep. However, unless fat loss if your goal, and not trying to put on as much size as possible (at least at the moment), you wouldn’t want to cut into your recovery any more than you really need to. The HIIT cardio is pretty intense, so you’re actually ‘training’ 6x a week, keep that in mind when evaluating if your diet and sleep patterns are in order.
[quote]The Mighty Stu wrote:
I’ve been doing that for the last couple of weeks for my contest prep. However, unless fat loss if your goal, and not trying to put on as much size as possible (at least at the moment), you wouldn’t want to cut into your recovery any more than you really need to. The HIIT cardio is pretty intense, so you’re actually ‘training’ 6x a week, keep that in mind when evaluating if your diet and sleep patterns are in order.
S
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Thats a good way of looking at it. You must look at your ultimate goal, and where your current needs are.
However, some people grossly over/underestimate what needs to be done. I used to be part of the camp that said “If I have a little fat, I have to burn it off before I build more muscle” when in reality building the muscle first would have been the better option.
Give us your ultimate goal and then your stats (weight, BF% if you know it, strength levels etc) so we can better assess. A picture would always be better, but if thats not a viable option, the stats will do.
OK, well at the moment fat loss (cutting up) is my main goal… I’ve put on around 2-2.5 stone this bulk and am happy with my size for now, but with the summer holidays approaching I want to cut up.
24 years old, 81 kg (~185 lbs), been training with a weights/bulking focus for around a year, previously was a swimmer/triathlete at uni. Body fat levels I would guess are around 13%, but I’ve yet to find a reliable local measuring place. In my peak of activity at uni though (endurance swimming and running) I reached 7%.
I just started cutting as well and I am doing 20 mins of steady state cardio 5x a week immediately after training. So far no negative effects.
IMO 10-20 mins of moderate cardio after your weight session is not going to sacrifice you LBM unless you are in a big caloric deficit.
HIIT would also increase the chance of comprising your lBM I believe. I really prefer steady state for most of my cutting needs, unless I get to the point like Stu when I am at like 6% and need to drop the last bit of fat, then I would do HIIT.
My legs are too heavy and I’m totally feeble and uncoordinated after a workout to do cardio. Do you guys ease up on your legs if you’re trying to cut fat?
that’s a misconception, don’t ease up on the legs, hit them hard then cardio after…my girlfriend has a similar build Deb and believe it or not stationary bike (the sitting down one, petals out in front) has helped trim down her legs. Weighted vest and stairmaster after weights as well, it’s enough to make me hurl but my lady, well she’s a juggernaut.
She’s got a figure show and is heading to jen hendershott’s phat camp next month therefore she’s killing her legs!
[quote]The Mighty Stu wrote:
I’ve been doing that for the last couple of weeks for my contest prep. However, unless fat loss if your goal, and not trying to put on as much size as possible (at least at the moment), you wouldn’t want to cut into your recovery any more than you really need to. The HIIT cardio is pretty intense, so you’re actually ‘training’ 6x a week, keep that in mind when evaluating if your diet and sleep patterns are in order.
S
[/quote]
So if you are doing light cardio after your training session you are saying that it would make more sense to try to lift/eat to maintain your lean muscle mass rather than try to get bigger and stronger?
Dont take what I posted the wrong way. I just have the same questions as above…that and I had a hard time wording it haha.