Cardio on emtpy stomach vs Cardio 2 hours after you eat breakfast

[Lioness27]

I have been wondering if there is a significant difference in results if you go jogging on an empty stomach compared to going jogging 2 or 3 hours after you eat breakfast. My BF said that if you do cardio on an empty stomach, you burn 30% more fat.

[Squatticus]

this was disproved a long time ago

[ozziefitchick]

I think it's a bit of a loaded question to be honest, there are a lot of other factors to take into account ie what other training are you doing? are you going to run then do weights later? Are you just jogging? What kind of cardio and how long for will you do it fasted? What are you working towards? etc etc

Low intensity for fasted, slightly higher intesity and for less time when fed. That's what I have found has worked for me. But going to the gym twice a day (fasted cardio AM, weights PM) just gets too much, gotta live your life! I'm currently having better results doing my cardio only a few times a week and at the end of my (fed) weight session. Letting my diet and weights do their job.

[rockangel]

There is no difference in how much fat it burns.

I thought this was a good article
http://www.musclebomb.com/cardio_empty_stomach.html

I would not jog for hours without eating, fat burn or no.

[megdaig]

There is no difference in how much fat it burns.

I thought this was a good article
http://www.musclebomb.com/cardio_empty_stomach.html

I would not jog for hours without eating, fat burn or no.

Agreed. After about an hour of jogging/running your are on the aerobic/anaerobic threshold and your body switches to muscle glycogen for energy. If you're depleted of glycogen, the next available sources is your amino "stores" [muscle tissue].

[Lioness27]

There is no difference in how much fat it burns.

I thought this was a good article
http://www.musclebomb.com/cardio_empty_stomach.html

I would not jog for hours without eating, fat burn or no.

Wow thank you so much for the article!!! That is what I needed, an explanation of what goes on in the body. This was perfect and now I can prove my bf wrong lol

[UnaChispita]

Agreed. After about an hour of jogging/running your are on the aerobic/anaerobic threshold and your body switches to muscle glycogen for energy. If you're depleted of glycogen, the next available sources is your amino "stores" [muscle tissue].

Okay. So question (and maybe the answer is the same and I just don't understand).

I'm trying to lose weight.

I've been doing an hour on the elliptical in the morning before I eat.

Then I weight train in the PM.

I'm having good results.

Is dragging my butt out of bed at 4:30 in the morning to do cardio before work really not beneficial?

[wakechica]

Okay. So question (and maybe the answer is the same and I just don't understand).

I'm trying to lose weight.

I've been doing an hour on the elliptical in the morning before I eat.

Then I weight train in the PM.

I'm having good results.

Is dragging my butt out of bed at 4:30 in the morning to do cardio before work really not beneficial?

I think it depends on your goal. If it's just fat loss with no real muscle gain then yes, it probably is but I wouldn't worry about doing it at 4.30
If you want to burn fat and still maintain decent muscle I wouldn't worry about the cardio at 4.30 or too much at all. I've seen better results since ditching the cardio/keeping it minimal i.e. 20mins HIIT 1 or 2 times per week on non-lifting days purely because I need to keep fit.

[Miranda]

Okay. So question (and maybe the answer is the same and I just don't understand).
Is dragging my butt out of bed at 4:30 in the morning to do cardio before work really not beneficial?

no-one's saying you SHOULDN'T do cardio on an empty stomach, only that it has no extra benefits.

you're not automatically glycogen depleted in the morning. that depends on what you ate the day(s) before and what type exercise you did. your muscle glycogen may be somewhat lower, but it doesn't go gonzo because you slept for eight hours.

muscle glycogen is used by exercising said muscle in a manner that utilises glycogen. it can't be used for anything else. really, people should stop dishing out 'glycogen depleted' like it's the new buzzword. you don't deplete your glycogens at the drop of a hat.

anaerobic threshold is not a function of exercise duration. it's a function of exercise intensity. what you use primarily depends on execise intensity (walking > jogging > running > sprinting). the more intense, the more you shift toward glucose. and you'll know when you've depleted glycogen - that's when you 'hit the wall' and can't continue.

if you do cardio in the 'fat burning zone' or lower you will use primarily fat for fuel so you won't bonk on it anytime soon.

[ozziefitchick]

Is dragging my butt out of bed at 4:30 in the morning to do cardio before work really not beneficial?

Are you happy training twice a day? If so, keep doing it.
I use to do that - 45mins fasted cardio (LISS) in the a.m then go back after work (fed) and hit whatever muscle group I needed to.
I don't do that anymore though as I found it a waste of time, I also hate doing mindless cardio for that long. So now I just do 20mins cardio about 4x pw at the end of my lifting sessions. Works much better, am not burnt out and I can maximise the little time that I have

[UnaChispita]

I think it depends on your goal. If it's just fat loss with no real muscle gain then yes, it probably is but I wouldn't worry about doing it at 4.30
If you want to burn fat and still maintain decent muscle I wouldn't worry about the cardio at 4.30 or too much at all. I've seen better results since ditching the cardio/keeping it minimal i.e. 20mins HIIT 1 or 2 times per week on non-lifting days purely because I need to keep fit.

no-one's saying you SHOULDN'T do cardio on an empty stomach, only that it has no extra benefits.

you're not automatically glycogen depleted in the morning. that depends on what you ate the day(s) before and what type exercise you did. your muscle glycogen may be somewhat lower, but it doesn't go gonzo because you slept for eight hours.

muscle glycogen is used by exercising said muscle in a manner that utilises glycogen. it can't be used for anything else. really, people should stop dishing out 'glycogen depleted' like it's the new buzzword. you don't deplete your glycogens at the drop of a hat.

anaerobic threshold is not a function of exercise duration. it's a function of exercise intensity. what you use primarily depends on execise intensity (walking > jogging > running > sprinting). the more intense, the more you shift toward glucose. and you'll know when you've depleted glycogen - that's when you 'hit the wall' and can't continue.

if you do cardio in the 'fat burning zone' or lower you will use primarily fat for fuel so you won't bonk on it anytime soon.

Are you happy training twice a day? If so, keep doing it.
I use to do that - 45mins fasted cardio (LISS) in the a.m then go back after work (fed) and hit whatever muscle group I needed to.
I don't do that anymore though as I found it a waste of time, I also hate doing mindless cardio for that long. So now I just do 20mins cardio about 4x pw at the end of my lifting sessions. Works much better, am not burnt out and I can maximise the little time that I have

Thanks everyone.

Since I ruptured a disc in my back and haven't been able to lift, I'm more focused on losing weight...so I am not thrilled with losing strength, but I can't see any way around it.

It is a bummer that cardio in the AM on an empty stomach isn't giving me the benefit that I thought it would.

However, when I think about it, I probably would not be as disciplined to spend 2+ hours in the gym after work. Getting to the gym before work is probably giving me 5 hours a week I normally wouldn't do. Also, since I started meeting my cousin there after work, I can't bail on her...

...and I am never hungry early in the AM and love cardio because it is so mindless ...

...and getting up so early is forcing me to get to bed earlier and be on a stricter/healthier schedule.