Losing muscle with carb fasted HIIT

[Eloquent]

I woke up, drank 25 grams of Whey protein.
And did HIIT. No carbs pre workout.


Simple question, did I lose muscle?
I did about 15-17 mins of HIIT..

I think I did, because I hit a plateau on my shoulder press 2 days later.

If I do the same but I do low intensity jogging for 15-20 mins, would I spare muscle that way?

Thanks.

[Starky1177]

I wouldnt do that...to risky for me...I would probably do TKD if I was going to do HIIT...but one time wont kill ya, dont do it often though (once a week max imo)

[masamune]

loads of people on CKD do HIIT without issue. you'll have to test the waters to see if it works for you. i did it the first month, but i find it's pretty unnecessary with a decent diet. i never lost any muscle.

[Eileen]

You don't lose muscle that easily.

Chances are you hit a plateau on your shoulder day because you were low on glycogen, not because running fast for 15 minutes had made your muscles shrivel up.

In any case, you had taken whey before your HIIT, so it wasn't actually fasted HIIT. Stop worrying.

[davpet]

I woke up, drank 25 grams of Whey protein.
And did HIIT. No carbs pre workout.


Simple question, did I lose muscle?
I did about 15-17 mins of HIIT..

I think I did, because I hit a plateau on my shoulder press 2 days later.

If I do the same but I do low intensity jogging for 15-20 mins, would I spare muscle that way?

Thanks.

Try this it works.

On an empty stomach first thing in the morning, I drink 40g of whey within 30 mins of starting 10-15mins HIIT. I then immediately drink another 40g of whey and wait one hour then eat breakfast.

I've been losing fat and getting stronger.

[TaoistWarrior]

You don't lose muscle that easily.

Chances are you hit a plateau on your shoulder day because you were low on glycogen, not because running fast for 15 minutes had made your muscles shrivel up.

In any case, you had taken whey before your HIIT, so it wasn't actually fasted HIIT. Stop worrying.

x100

I don't know where this "HIIT gives ya teh catabolismz" horror story came from, but there's no compelling evidence for it, just a lot of theories slapped together into a very weak argument.

There's no reason that a fat-adapted individual, provided with adequate fat and protein, will lose muscle doing HIIT at normative frequencies/intensities.

Especially if they drink whey/xtend/etc before their workout- why would your body ignore the inflowing AAs and say "yeah bro, even though its maladaptive to survival, let's break down hard-earned muscle tissue and just piss this dietary nitrogen away."

Don't worry OP.

[Starky1177]

Fat is good for slow consistent energy...your body needs carbs for explosive quick spurts of energy...if you have no carbs in your system, your body will convert protein (aka muscle) into glucose and use it as energy

Thats where it comes from

[TaoistWarrior]

Fat is good for slow consistent energy...your body needs carbs for explosive quick spurts of energy...if you have no carbs in your system, your body will convert protein (aka dietary protein) into glucose and use it as energy

Thats where it comes from

Fixed.

Again, why would it ignore protein you ingest prior to your workout?

The body in a constant state of AA flux. Sometimes breaking down, sometimes building up, etc. All we care about is net protein balance. And there's no evidence to suggest that HIIT decreases this any more than weightlifting or any other kind of training.

If you're supplying the body with adequate protein, it will be OK.

[Starky1177]

You'll burn through the 100 cals of Protein pretty fast, plus doesnt that protein you just ate have to be digested to be used? cuz if it isnt then its just sloshing around in your stomach as you run

[TaoistWarrior]

You'll burn through the 100 cals of Protein pretty fast, plus doesnt that protein you just ate have to be digested to be used? cuz if it isnt then its just sloshing around in your stomach as you run

If you take it immediately before your workout, you're not getting optimal utility from it for sure- but if you take a little whey 30-60 min before, it's digesting gradually; AAs are being released into your bloodstream.

[Starky1177]

even if you do that, its still only 100cals of protein, which I am sure would be burnt during the work out, and especially during the after burn (HIIT raises your metabolism a good amount through out the rest of the day)

[TaoistWarrior]

even if you do that, its still only 100cals of protein, which I am sure would be burnt during the work out, and especially during the after burn (HIIT raises your metabolism a good amount through out the rest of the day)

Yes but you're also eating the rest of the day. And it's not as though your glycogen stores are utterly empty- on TKD or CKD, you are replenishing them on a regular schedule. Throughout the week as you train, you are depleting them a little more, a little more. Then you refill at carbup/post-workout.

[Starky1177]

I suppose, yea you should have a protein shake after HIIT (treat like a leg work out)...But for myself I wouldnt want to exert my muscles that much when my glycogen levels are so low...I prefer LISS

[Eileen]

Bear in mind the fat is still there and still available for use. Even for explosive exercise, you only need enough to bridge the gap between that you get from fat and what you need for the workout.

Only if you are at staggeringly low bodyfat levels (like right before you step on stage) are you likely to lose muscle through any form of cardio.

[kudostojen]

I've always been a fan of HIIT because the time frame for it works for me and keeps me from getting bored. I do it while on a cal deficit, 3 days a week and usually after weight training.

I've never lost muscle while doing hiit. In fact, when i first started training i gained muscle and lost fat while doing hiit and on a cal deficit...but i was just starting out and beginners get the best of both worlds. lol

[n8nazty]

I lost muscle on Keto just jogging. I had to be very careful not to get my heart-rate over about 115 BPM. When I shifted to TKD (pre and post w/out carbs only), I saw better results, though I never did get over the bouts of dizziness and menal fatigue, presumably from shifting in and out of ketosis?

[bdathlete7]

I woke up, drank 25 grams of Whey protein.
And did HIIT. No carbs pre workout.


Simple question, did I lose muscle?
I did about 15-17 mins of HIIT..

I think I did, because I hit a plateau on my shoulder press 2 days later.

If I do the same but I do low intensity jogging for 15-20 mins, would I spare muscle that way?

Thanks.

Don't worry about what cardio you do. The myth that you will lose muscle doing HIIT fasted or w/o carbs is just that, A MYTH.

When you do HIIT your body will go to glucose, and if not there, your glycogen stores. Now if you are almost empty on glycogen(farther away from carb up) your body will use protein to convert to glucose but this will come from you Amino Acid stores and you are already refilling that with the whey you took preworkout and will take in much more during the day. So your body will not dip into your actually muscles.

As most people tell you the point of HIIT is to burn calories during the cardio and during the day which will still occur. HIIT early in the week will also allow you to burn off more of that stored glycogen from your re feed.

Another thing that must be looked at is that while in ketosis, your body is more efficient at using any glucose, meaning that the amount of glucose/glycogen necessary to fuel a HIIT session during keto is a lot less than the amount needed on a balanced diet.

Personally I would choose the cardio based on what you want. If you want to work fast twitch muscles, build up VO2 max, and increase speed, then I would do HIIT. If you want to work on endurance, do LISS. You can also combine the two, since HIIT releases stored fat while LISS will burn fat that is accessible.