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Getbig Bodybuilding Boards => Training Q&A => Topic started by: 240 is Back on November 05, 2007, 08:50:01 AM

Title: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: 240 is Back on November 05, 2007, 08:50:01 AM
1) To raise the metabolism?

2) To burn fat stores?


#1 would entail doing high-interval training, maybe even with some carbs in the belly for energy.  You'd train for 16 minutes (I'm talking maxOT) on a stationary bike, very high intensity on intervals.

#2 would entail doing 45 min of cardio first thing in the morning on an empty stomach.  The body would have no food in the belly so it would use fat stores.  Low intensity cardio.

I believe most people use method #1.  Makes sense . But #2 seems like a better long-term solution, doesn't it?  Thoughts?  Also, an answer like "both" isn't what I'm seeking here.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: mitchyboy on November 05, 2007, 10:06:43 AM
I think doing cardio on an empty stomach is not a good idea, as your body utilizes aminos first, in other words muscle. For pure fat loss. have some aminos or protien supps on wakeing, than hit cardio.
 
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: BabyBallsMcgee on November 05, 2007, 10:09:38 AM
I think doing cardio on an empty stomach is not a good idea, as your body utilizes aminos first, in other words muscle. For pure fat loss. have some aminos or protien supps on wakeing, than hit cardio.
 
Muscle isnt the first source of amino acids the body utilizes.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: slaveboy1980 on November 05, 2007, 10:12:22 AM
1) To raise the metabolism?

2) To burn fat stores?


#1 would entail doing high-interval training, maybe even with some carbs in the belly for energy.  You'd train for 16 minutes (I'm talking maxOT) on a stationary bike, very high intensity on intervals.

#2 would entail doing 45 min of cardio first thing in the morning on an empty stomach.  The body would have no food in the belly so it would use fat stores.  Low intensity cardio.

I believe most people use method #1.  Makes sense . But #2 seems like a better long-term solution, doesn't it?  Thoughts?  Also, an answer like "both" isn't what I'm seeking here.

cardiovascular health and as tool used to burn calories.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: nycbull on November 05, 2007, 10:13:33 AM
waste of time,, I laught at these tools at the gym going for hours on the life stairs or whatever thay are calling those contraptions...Cardio ever few days for 10 minutes is enough to keep heart and blood pressure healthy, other than that it does nothing except bore the living hell out of you.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: Mars on November 05, 2007, 10:16:20 AM
id rather intensify my workouts for burning some fat. indoor cardio is indeed boring as hell.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: slaveboy1980 on November 05, 2007, 10:18:06 AM
waste of time,, I laught at these tools at the gym going for hours on the life stairs or whatever thay are calling those contraptions...Cardio ever few days for 10 minutes is enough to keep heart and blood pressure healthy, other than that it does nothing except bore the living hell out of you.

bullshit, its about priorities.

for cardiovascular health, you need high enough pulse, also 10min is not enough.

for fatloss; you can create caloric deficit without doing any cardio, and you will loose as much weight as from caloric deficit induced by caloric restriction and cardio. (as long as deficit is big enough)

for maximum muscle building doing too much cardio is not good (as it sends conflicting signals to the body)

but there are other considerations than maximal mass.....like overall health.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: local hero on November 05, 2007, 10:22:08 AM
cardio may be boring, but it enhances your training,, you wont know until you do it religously and not just pre shows, you get into a state where u can eat huge amounts with out gettn as fat as u used to

am, on empty stomach is best,,, but anytime thru the day is better than nothing, 45 mins treadmill, stair climber or cross trainer etc etc
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: slaveboy1980 on November 05, 2007, 10:24:51 AM
morning cardio on an empty stomach is not magic. NO KIND OF TRAINING CAN INCREASE FATBURNING, irregardless of intensity.

during the activity yes you will burn more fat compared to if you had eaten before the morning cardio. BUT: the rest of the day you will burn less fat. (so over a 24 hour period the fat burning will not be bigger even if you do morning cardio)

in other words: the body compensates and at the end of the day it doesnt matter!

you can do the cardio whenever you want to.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: slaveboy1980 on November 05, 2007, 10:35:01 AM
cardio may be boring, but it enhances your training,, you wont know until you do it religously and not just pre shows, you get into a state where u can eat huge amounts with out gettn as fat as u used to

am, on empty stomach is best,,, but anytime thru the day is better than nothing, 45 mins treadmill, stair climber or cross trainer etc etc

bullshit, empty stomach is not the best. it doesnt matter when you do it, as cardio (for fatloss) is about creating a caloric defecit. do it when you want to.


the empty stomach thing is a myth.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: slaveboy1980 on November 05, 2007, 10:41:08 AM
search on pubmed for:

Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2002 Nov;34(11):1793-800.

"Neither exercise produced an increase in 24-h fat oxidation above that observed on a nonexercise control day."
or
(http://cat.inist.fr/?aModele=afficheN&cpsidt=14020781)
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: local hero on November 05, 2007, 11:37:01 AM
well ive found that it is, so have countless others,,,,,, i couldnt careless what somthing wrote in a study says, all i know is i get ripped to fuck when i do cardio a.m....... as does everyother bpdybuilder i know.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: thewickedtruth on November 05, 2007, 11:43:54 AM
for overall cardiovascular health AND...


because I was sick of getting winded walked from the parking lot to work with it only being a litlte over a 1/4 mile then walking up 2 flights of stairs. I started running a few weeks ago on my off days from the gym for about 30 or so minutes doing sprints at the local track and already notice a difference.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: slaveboy1980 on November 05, 2007, 04:17:59 PM
well ive found that it is, so have countless others,,,,,, i couldnt careless what somthing wrote in a study says, all i know is i get ripped to fuck when i do cardio a.m....... as does everyother bpdybuilder i know.

yeah but not due to the reasons you believe.

you would have just as good results if you did your cardio at any other time of the day. (with everything else being equal)

once again factor confusion strikes in bodybuilding.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: D-bol on November 06, 2007, 06:11:40 AM
IMO, besides cardiovasular health and fitness cardio is not a great deal.
over 13 years of training I realized that most important are:
1) nutrition
2) regime
3) genetics

ok, you can add "smart gear use" but that only works well if you have the 1, 2, and 3 correct


Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: slaveboy1980 on November 06, 2007, 06:34:58 AM
IMO, besides cardiovasular health and fitness cardio is not a great deal.
over 13 years of training I realized that most important are:
1) nutrition
2) regime
3) genetics

ok, you can add "smart gear use" but that only works well if you have the 1, 2, and 3 correct




how narrowminded are you?....

not everyone is talking about maximizing muscular gains and cardio shouldnt be compared to the things you listed, thats flawed logic. if your goal is to add maximum amounts of muscle then yes then doing too much cardio is counterproductive.(

quote from a study: "That is, activation of AMPK by endurance exercise may inhibit signaling to the protein-synthesis machinery by inhibiting the activity of mTOR and its downstream targets."

http://www.ms-se.com/pt/re/msse/abstract.00005768-200611000-00013.htm;jsessionid=Hw7F5XNcg9JdwC3WYfQRvhqvL3fgWJP1GpKHbv31ZjTFv6bbpHDX!1821113646!181195629!8091!-1

but in general doing cardio is good and important, specially with so many people sitting all day in an office.

and for weight loss it can be very beneficial.

dont analyse cardio only by looking at the skinny fat whores who do endless hours of cardio in the gym every day.

everyone needs physical activity, not just lifting weights. but yes doing too much (for example running every day) will be terrible if your goal is to gain muscle.

the human body wasnt constructed so people can go lift weights one hour per day and sit on their asses the rest of the time.

the human body needs daily exercise of somekind.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: Overload on November 06, 2007, 07:11:38 AM
but in general doing cardio is good and important, specially with so many people sitting all day in an office.

and for weight loss it can be very beneficial.

dont analyse cardio only by looking at the skinny fat whores who do endless hours of cardio in the gym every day.

everyone needs physical activity, not just lifting weights. but yes doing too much (for example running every day) will be terrible if your goal is to gain muscle.

the human body wasnt constructed so people can go lift weights one hour per day and sit on their asses the rest of the time.

the human body needs daily exercise of somekind.

I think this is the bottom line.

a lot of people don't understand that the human body was built for "physical" labor, not pushing pencils.

The goal of cardio could be 100 different things, for me, i do it for health and to keep my stamina at 100% for lifting and physical labor in general. if i want to lose weight i change my diet.

All of us should do some kind of exercise every day but it doesn't have to be extreme or high intensity by any means. simple yard work will yield good results when added to a good diet and training routine.

i've never done morning cardio and never will, seems like a waste of time to me personally. i do cardio on the days i don't lift weights and with a good diet it's easy to get lean by simply adding a small amount of cardio on your non lifting days.

just my .02

8)
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: slaveboy1980 on November 06, 2007, 07:20:13 AM
I think this is the bottom line.

a lot of people don't understand that the human body was built for "physical" labor, not pushing pencils.

The goal of cardio could be 100 different things, for me, i do it for health and to keep my stamina at 100% for lifting and physical labor in general. if i want to lose weight i change my diet.

All of us should do some kind of exercise every day but it doesn't have to be extreme or high intensity by any means. simple yard work will yield good results when added to a good diet and training routine.

i've never done morning cardio and never will, seems like a waste of time to me personally. i do cardio on the days i don't lift weights and with a good diet it's easy to get lean by simply adding a small amount of cardio on your non lifting days.

just my .02

8)
good attitude, and common sense  ;)

activity isnt a choice its a necessity, and no just doing weights isnt enough.

as for morning cardio: i tried to explain it in several posts that its a myth and not necessary. i never do cardio in the morning..why would i wake an hour before i have to just to walk on empty stomach in the morning? moronic.

doing cardio on empty stomach will burn more fat than doing a walk later in the day (when you have eaten)but the rest of the day fatburning will be downregulated so in the end it will be equal.  no exercise can increase fat burning over a 24h period   = it doesnt matter when you do the cardio.  i posted that in several post on here, and few on MD, but seems like no one wants to listen.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: Overload on November 06, 2007, 07:27:03 AM
I agree with you. Morning cardio is not anything magical but alot of guys make you think it is.

i know guys who have seen good results with it but it's not anything special by any means IMO.


8)
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: slaveboy1980 on November 06, 2007, 07:32:38 AM
I agree with you. Morning cardio is not anything magical but alot of guys make you think it is.

i know guys who have seen good results with it but it's not anything special by any means IMO.


8)

im sure many people have seen good results when doing cardio in the morning. but its not because they did it in the morning and on a empty stomach. thats factor confusion. the reason it worked is because it burned CALORIES (which can be accomplished by doing cardio any time of the day) and because they are in a neg caloric state.

if you do morning cardio..do it for the right reasons! because you like to get a good start on the day or whatever, but it will not work better than doing cardio later in the day. (everything else being equal)

factor confusion.

Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: Bobby on November 06, 2007, 09:46:50 AM
If it's only caloric restriction that matters, why do so many pros do cardio? why not rely on nutrition to do the work.

Dexter Jackson doesn't do any cardio and he is the most ripped! what's his secret?
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: Overload on November 06, 2007, 01:44:03 PM
If it's only caloric restriction that matters, why do so many pros do cardio? why not rely on nutrition to do the work.

Dexter Jackson doesn't do any cardio and he is the most ripped! what's his secret?

If it ain't broke don't fix it!

if it worked for them for so many years i doubt they would change their prep unless they had a big reason.

most guys do the same prep style every contest because they know what works.

the leanest i've ever been i was only doing cardio twice a week and was eating 2500 calories a day.

8)
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: Bobby on November 06, 2007, 02:43:05 PM
2500cals is quite high, what are you 210-220? with those cals for cutting you must be something like that no ?
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: Overload on November 06, 2007, 03:13:02 PM
2500cals is quite high, what are you 210-220? with those cals for cutting you must be something like that no ?


I weigh around 230-240 most of the year.

My last BBing contest 5 years ago i weighed 204, that's when i was eating 2500 calories. i usually eat around 4000 calories a day.

i have a furnace for a metabolism, i'm one of the lucky ones.

8)
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: Bobby on November 06, 2007, 03:33:19 PM
That's quite big! I'm 175/200lbs and i'm eating 3200 calories a day now, it's quite nice i love to eat too ;D

Was your last diet for that contest?
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: Overload on November 06, 2007, 03:41:22 PM
That's quite big! I'm 175/200lbs and i'm eating 3200 calories a day now, it's quite nice i love to eat too ;D

Was your last diet for that contest?

I'm an eating machine!

My last "real" diet was for that contest. i still compete in powerlifting so i cut weight to get under 220 but i haven't done a real bodybuilding diet in 5 years. i stay around 10-12% bodyfat year round so i never get too fat.

8)
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: Bobby on November 06, 2007, 03:55:41 PM
Yeah, that's important. I'm currently 180 and going up slowly, only about 500 over maintenance to keep from gaining excess fat.
For the most part i don't gain very much fat, i can gain 20lbs and i get some water weight but very little fat gain. That is if the diet is clean, if it's dirty the fat starts storing immediately.

Powerlifting? hmm do you have any advice for presses? i'm weak on those and strong in the pulling exercises. I can do 160lbs db rows for 20reps, but chest db presses i can do 110s at the very most, for a few reps. Same for delts, 95s at the most there.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: Hedgehog on November 07, 2007, 12:59:44 AM
1) To raise the metabolism?

2) To burn fat stores?


#1 would entail doing high-interval training, maybe even with some carbs in the belly for energy.  You'd train for 16 minutes (I'm talking maxOT) on a stationary bike, very high intensity on intervals.

#2 would entail doing 45 min of cardio first thing in the morning on an empty stomach.  The body would have no food in the belly so it would use fat stores.  Low intensity cardio.

I believe most people use method #1.  Makes sense . But #2 seems like a better long-term solution, doesn't it?  Thoughts?  Also, an answer like "both" isn't what I'm seeking here.

Let me give you an alternative response, which is basically a version of #1:

To increase the general fitness level.

Doing so through various forms of cardio, and this could be sprints, walks, long walks, shorter walks ,
a game of hoops.

Getting your cardiovascular health primed, will  give you a better fat loss ratio once you keep your calories balance in the negative.

And overall wellness will be   improved, as well as slight quicker  recovery after workouts.

I usually take a brisk walk  for 20-30 minutes in the morning, 2-4 times a week. Not to lose fat, but rather to speed up recovery and get a better overall health.

I can't do high intensity cardio, as I am training for fast twitch muscle fibers only, but I have in the past, and it's very effective IMO.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: Andy Griffin on November 11, 2007, 12:42:09 PM
1) To raise the metabolism?

2) To burn fat stores?


#1 would entail doing high-interval training, maybe even with some carbs in the belly for energy.  You'd train for 16 minutes (I'm talking maxOT) on a stationary bike, very high intensity on intervals.

#2 would entail doing 45 min of cardio first thing in the morning on an empty stomach.  The body would have no food in the belly so it would use fat stores.  Low intensity cardio.

I believe most people use method #1.  Makes sense . But #2 seems like a better long-term solution, doesn't it?  Thoughts?  Also, an answer like "both" isn't what I'm seeking here.

Good afternoon and happy Veterans' Day...

I am just now getting back into shape after years of neglecting my physical state. 

I personally only do cardio right now (I will be working with someone at my gym on a lifting program soon).  What I have been doing is closer to the first method.  I go to the gym after work (it isn't open yet before I go to work).  I realize it may not be the way to get ripped, etc., but it has (along with some reasonable dietary changes) helped me drop about 20 lbs in 2 months. 

If I could ask you a quick question...what do you think about aerobics?  Could they be useful? 

Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: slaveboy1980 on November 11, 2007, 03:13:42 PM
Good afternoon and happy Veterans' Day...

I am just now getting back into shape after years of neglecting my physical state. 

I personally only do cardio right now (I will be working with someone at my gym on a lifting program soon).  What I have been doing is closer to the first method.  I go to the gym after work (it isn't open yet before I go to work).  I realize it may not be the way to get ripped, etc., but it has (along with some reasonable dietary changes) helped me drop about 20 lbs in 2 months. 

If I could ask you a quick question...what do you think about aerobics?  Could they be useful? 



yes, as they burn calories. any activity can be useful. choose the type of cardio you like to do.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: JasonH on November 12, 2007, 03:09:05 PM
The goal of cardio in my opinion is simply to become more aerobically fit - that should be the same goal for anyone who undertakes it regardless of whether they are a bodybuilder or not.

However, for bodybuilding purposes cardio is competely overrated - every time I've tried it it does nothing but to make my legs shrink so I don't bother - wheenver I want to lose bodyfat I just up my reps and drop my fat intake through nutrition - that shifts the pounds better than cardio ever can for me.
Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: slaveboy1980 on November 12, 2007, 05:11:25 PM
The goal of cardio in my opinion is simply to become more aerobically fit - that should be the same goal for anyone who undertakes it regardless of whether they are a bodybuilder or not.

However, for bodybuilding purposes cardio is competely overrated - every time I've tried it it does nothing but to make my legs shrink so I don't bother - wheenver I want to lose bodyfat I just up my reps and drop my fat intake through nutrition - that shifts the pounds better than cardio ever can for me.

 ::)..its not a question of being overrated.....its just a tool to create a caloric deficit (when talking about loosing weight/fat)

doing too much cardio isnt good if you wanna retain as much mass as possible,  but you have to use the "cardio tool" correctly, if you choose to do cardio when dieting. you can get ripped without doing any cardio at all, but for most people adding some cardio will be beneficial. (dont do hours of cardio per day tho).

cardio effects local glycogen stores, and yes if you do alot of cardio it will deplete glycogen stores in the legs...(can be "refilled" tho)




Title: Re: What is the goal of cardio?
Post by: Herc on December 05, 2007, 11:19:08 PM
cardio can help you loose wieght assuming you dont eat more to replace the calories you burnt.  Also I think it helps give a more vascular(vieny) look.  I just noticed that on myself but maybe its not true.  Its definatly good for your heart too.