Quote:
Originally Posted by dannystolfi
i feel like that much cardio and no lifting would break down muscle, i want to try to still get stronger but get cut at the same time
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What's up Danny. My needs are similar to yours. I am working to get lean. While you are entertaining the notion of increasing your cardio, I just plain and simply LOVE TO RUN. I love the gym and lifting but there's nothing that moves me better than a nice 2-3 mile run. I run 4-to-5 times a week- up to a maximum of 45min per run.
Initially I was under the impression that too much cardio will cause muscle loss- putting me in a catabolic state but I was completely wrong and here's why:
Does too much cardio make you lose muscle?
"One common exercise myth is that doing too much aerobic exercise, or doing it
too hard makes you lose muscle. While it?s certainly possible this could happen, only
extreme amounts of high impact, high intensity cardio would cause large muscle losses to
occur. For example, endurance training and bodybuilding don?t go well together. The
muscle loss issue is usually highly exaggerated. If you?re in doubt, don?t guess: Carefully
track your lean body mass with skinfold testing and adjust your cardio and nutrition
accordingly.
Losing muscle is most likely caused by three factors: Inadequate caloric intake,
inadequate protein or dieting without including a weight training program. You?re more
likely to lose muscle from not eating enough than you are from doing too much cardio. If
your lean body mass drops, it?s usually because you?re missing meals or not eating
enough.
Provide yourself with the proper nutritional support, including adequate meal
frequency, protein, carbohydrates and total calories, and it?s not likely that you?ll lose
muscle, even with daily 45-minute cardio sessions. It?s ironic that so many people are
worried about losing muscle from cardio when they?re skipping meals and eating meals
without protein."
-Tom Venuto "Burn the fat, feed the muscle"
This book has kicked ass for me. I do 45min cardio workouts 4-5 times a day. I am weight training 4 days a week, getting my proper nutrients in the proper amounts, and sufficient water and I am not losing muscle, I am losing fat!
It's important to make sure that you are consuming an adequate amount protein per LEAN BODY MASS LBS, and consuming plenty of water to support the metabolic process. You also might want to look into H.I.I.T. (High Intensity Interval Training) as well.
Hope this was helpful!
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