cardio for bulk and cut

R

ramzik

New Member
If trying to bulk, should cardio be left out completely, or is some cardio on off-days a good idea even then? (And if so, how much - about 30 min 2-3 times a week?)

If trying to cut, should I definitely do cardio on off days or is it possible/probable to lose weight without cardio just following the HST routine?

Thanks for any info.
 
I would highly recommend at least some cardio while bulking. It will help reduce fat gain. At the same time, it make for an easier transition to cutting if you don't have to add a lot of cardio from doing none before.
 
For some reason, this is a new concept to me =)

...Perhaps I have always held to the traditional "bulking and cardio are opposite goals"

I would be interested in more specifics on this topic! I know Bryan suggests doing 20-40 minutes of brisk walking on off days during a bulk, but is there more to it?

Should the intensity/duration be increased?

Can HIIT be performed?

And with calories, I'm assuming you need to find out how much more to add to compensate for the deficit? (sorry for spelling)

I managed to plunge from 22%BF to 12%BF in a little over two months. Now I'm a bit paranoid about gaining more fat =) While I've had to just bit the bullet and go w/the hypercaloric diet, anything else I can do to hold my lowered BF level would be of great interest =)

Thanks!
 
Techo, how on earth did you manage to drop 10 % in two months ? How old are you, how often do you train etc.

No matter what I've been doing lately, seems I'm just adding on the fat, especially around the waste.

I'm 39, just moved to NY from MN and haven't been to the gym since May 5th. Work hours are very long now, so I'm finding it hard to find the strength /motivation/time to work out.
 
Well I wish I could say that it was without any muscle loss, but I'd be lying... Darn, I tried to dig up my old "Fat Inferno" thread that I tracked during that period. You can always look at my Dec '03 Fitday journal and just click forward thru the days to see my calories, body fat (under journal), weight, and activity change... hehe, a bit time consuming but most of its there. There might be a bit more cardio that wasn't listed...

Ignoring the muscle loss, it was pretty exciting. My body fat dropped so fast that people at work thought I was ill =P In summary, it came down to calories in vs calories out. I had a 500 calorie defecit and did cardio. Toward the end I started doing 8 MPH runs for 45 minutes 3x a week. I was 23 at the time. I tried to keep my protein at 1g/lbs and did HST to fight the catabolic enviornment as much as possible... Although I had to becarful during the SDs because calories needed to go up and cardio needed to go down (else MORE muscle loss).

I weighed in today at 14%. Don't know how accurate it is, but I sure hope that isn't right... I worked my @$$ off to get to 12% and now I have to see it go?

I can give you more info if want, but you might also want to check out Ultimate Diet 2.0 since I hear great things about that for fat loss w/minimal muscle loss...
 
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