Cardio while Bulking

[Red_Cobra]

I know alot of people say not to do it, but I don't want to get really big so that's not my problem. I just want to be really cut, while maintaining my low body fat % and my six pack. Lately, my abs have been getting covered up with fat, and I don't want that at all! Since Summer is coming up and I want to show off my abs, would it be okay to throw in some cardio to get rid of some stubborn belly fat?

[kazman32]

Sure, you can do cardio and still gain mass, I guess you younger guys equate bulking= muscle building?

bulking in my day meant eatting everything in site to gain weight period muscle,fat and water.

I don't advoctae that approach at all.

[Red_Cobra]

Thanks alot Kazman! I was feeling the same way too. I know alot of people who run and still gain msucle mass!

[Heaney]

i agree with kazman as well, if by gaining muscle you mean "bulking" then go ahead and do cardio....traditional "bulking" means eating everything in sight(trying to keep it clean of course) and not really worrying about some fat/water gained...sounds like you want a more contemperary version of bulking (ie. eating slightly above maintenance, keeping up with cardio) there are pros and cons to each, just really depends on if you dont mind a little fat/water gain

[Red_Cobra]

Thanks for the advice Heaney. Keep the comments coming people!

[Sick96stang]

Originally Posted by Heaney

i agree with kazman as well, if by gaining muscle you mean "bulking" then go ahead and do cardio....traditional "bulking" means eating everything in sight(trying to keep it clean of course) and not really worrying about some fat/water gained...sounds like you want a more contemperary version of bulking (ie. eating slightly above maintenance, keeping up with cardio) there are pros and cons to each, just really depends on if you dont mind a little fat/water gain

Are you saying you don't have to be in caloric surplus to gain muscle? To my knowledge you have to be in a caloric surplus to gain muscle, please correct me if I'm wrong.

The only reason I can see doing cardio while bulking is for maintaining cardiovascular health. In which case it's not a bad idea but the days you do cardio you will need to eat more to compensate for the calories burned from cardio.

[Red_Cobra]

I do eat alot of good healthy food, so caloric surplus is not a problem.

[Muscle1.]

Originally Posted by Red_Cobra

I know alot of people say not to do it, but I don't want to get really big so that's not my problem. I just want to be really cut, while maintaining my low body fat % and my six pack. Lately, my abs have been getting covered up with fat, and I don't want that at all! Since Summer is coming up and I want to show off my abs, would it be okay to throw in some cardio to get rid of some stubborn belly fat?

I'm getting ready for morning low intensity cardio right now..... Yes, it's great to do cardio. It's not JUST for fatloss.

[Heaney]

Originally Posted by Sick96stang

Are you saying you don't have to be in caloric surplus to gain muscle? To my knowledge you have to be in a caloric surplus to gain muscle, please correct me if I'm wrong.

The only reason I can see doing cardio while bulking is for maintaining cardiovascular health. In which case it's not a bad idea but the days you do cardio you will need to eat more to compensate for the calories burned from cardio.

what i said was "eating above maintenance" which would mean that would be have a surplus of cals, just not enough to promote significant fat gain...fort this you would need to factor in any cals burned while doing cardio and compensate by adding them to your diet

[Delgadido]

eat more if you do cardio. cardio will help with muscle recovery.

[kazman32]

Are you saying you don't have to be in caloric surplus to gain muscle? To my knowledge you have to be in a caloric surplus to gain muscle, please correct me if I'm wrong.

I gain muscle while losing fat, so do other's especially on a high-protien/high-fat diet, so no you don not have to be in a calorie surplus to gaim muscle, although it is eaiser when you are.

[Red_Cobra]

Okay, now I'm getting confused! Do I have to be in caloric surplus or what?

[kazman32]

Okay, now I'm getting confused! Do I have to be in caloric surplus or what?
__________________
no you don't.. but it is eaiser if you are..

[Sick96stang]

Originally Posted by kazman32

Are you saying you don't have to be in caloric surplus to gain muscle? To my knowledge you have to be in a caloric surplus to gain muscle, please correct me if I'm wrong.

I gain muscle while losing fat, so do other's especially on a high-protien/high-fat diet, so no you don not have to be in a calorie surplus to gaim muscle, although it is eaiser when you are.

From my understanding, yes you have to be in a caloric surplus. If you are eating at maintenance or below what is your body going to make muscle out of? If you are eating at maintenance then everything you are eating is just providing enough energy for you to maintain. Muscle can't be made out of nothing. If you eat above then your body has extra to help build muscle.

I doubt you gain muscle whie losing fat. You might gain muscle while losing BF% that is possible but to my understanding it's not possible to lose fat while building muscle. Somebody please correct me I'm wrong.

[Sick96stang]

Originally Posted by boyscouT

Cardio is great for overall (especially cardiovascular) health, nutrient partitioning, recovery, etc. Do it year round, regardless of body composition phase.

You do NOT need to be in a calorie surplus to gain muscle. You do however need to be in a calorie surplus to gain weight. People lose fat and gain muscle all the time, especially during newbie gains. Many people report LBM gains during cuts as well. It's all about a well balanced diet w/ on-point nutrient timing, a solid training program, and adequate rest.

Well let's say both diets are on point which are you going to gain muscle in faster and quicker a bulking or cutting diet? If we could all gain muscle and lose fat in a cutting diet what is the point of bulking?

First off lets get some things straight. To put on muscle you're going to have to put on some fat. If you want to try and stay lean when your bulking you're going to end up not adding much weight, probably over trained (from lack of calories) and very, very frustrated. YOU CANNOT PUT ON MUSCLE AND LOSE FAT AT THE SAME TIME UNDER NORMAL CIRCUMSTANCES!

Now I know some people have done it and it is possible but usually it only works for people that are untrained, very obese, or on steroids. Assuming the majority of my audience is drug-free with bodybuilders I think those three are out. Bodybuilding is not a two way street, it's a one way, your either bulking or cutting. I don't care how many crunches you do...when your bulking your six pack is going to be blurry. Deal with it. By working abs 2, 3, or a hundred times a week like some people do, your doing nothing but taking energy away from your other training and overtraining your abs. I only mention this because most people these days freak out over their abdominals.

Last but most importantly, TO PUT ON WEIGHT YOU MUST CONSUME MORE CALORIES THAN YOU EXPEND! YOU WILL NOT PUT ON WEIGHT IF YOU DON'T. This is why cardio is totally useless when bulking (besides maintaining cardiovascular health). All it does is take calories away from muscle building.

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/layne2.htm

[Sick96stang]

Originally Posted by boyscouT

I don't know about you but my cardiovascular health is one of my top priorities, FOR LIFE, not just for bodybuilding.

Not my words. But he said right there its useless except for cardiovascular health. I'm still confused on how an experienced body builder 1+ years of lifting could gain muscle while being in a caloric defacit. Can you please explain this to me.

[Red_Cobra]

First of all, thank you guys for the tips, but before you guys get into an argument over calories, I can tell you right now that I consume 2500-3000 calories per day, as well as 150-200g. of protein a day. Now, my cardio program consists of me jogging around my neighborhood, which is usually a mile. Lately my leg has been strained so it's been more walking than jogging, but it takes me around 15 to 20 minutes. I have done this before and I was in the best shape of my life, but I stopped because I thought i couldn't run and do cardio at the same time. I'm more interested in gaining muscle mass than gaining weight now, so should I or shouldn't I do cardio?

[verbatim9]

You can do all the cardio you want as long as you compensate with increased caloric intake for the cals you spent during cardio.

1 hour of low intensity running equals 600 calories
1 hour of walking 300 cals

So if you go walking for an hour eat 300 more cals that day.

[webster7]

I used to insist on doing my cardio but now i see the results of my training when i'm not doing the cardio
Its quite difficult to compensate the clean calories you expend
so better not to do it when u r bulking
worrying about your abs during bulking will make you frustrate
don't do it in summer if u want to show your abs. maintain your shape til winter and then bulk
and i don't think you will die of heart diseases by not doing cardio for a limited time since you are already doing weight training which also has its cardiovascular benefits and you are eating clean

[stella summers]

Originally Posted by Sick96stang

The only reason I can see doing cardio while bulking is for maintaining cardiovascular health. In which case it's not a bad idea but the days you do cardio you will need to eat more to compensate for the calories burned from cardio.

I disagree. Cardio + weights + proper dieting; regardless of cutting/bulking/maintaining = optimal.

The 'no cardio' rule when bulking I think applies to really skinny ectomorphs who struggle to gain weight, hence cutting the cardio to make it easier to create a calorie surplus. For most normal guys, some form of cardio should always be there....if you're looking to gain weight, just do your cardio and then eat a little more to make up the calorie deficit. Better nutrient partitioning, better CV health, less fat gain...definately do some form of cardio.

Cardio while bulking is fine, just as long as it isn't done in excessive amounts to which it starts to catabolize muscle. There are plenty of benefits of regular cardio including maintaining/loss of bf, improvement of cardiovascular system (obviously), etc.

[Sick96stang]

Originally Posted by stella summers

I disagree. Cardio + weights + proper dieting; regardless of cutting/bulking/maintaining = optimal.

The 'no cardio' rule when bulking I think applies to really skinny ectomorphs who struggle to gain weight, hence cutting the cardio to make it easier to create a calorie surplus. For most normal guys, some form of cardio should always be there....if you're looking to gain weight, just do your cardio and then eat a little more to make up the calorie deficit. Better nutrient partitioning, better CV health, less fat gain...definately do some form of cardio.

Cardio while bulking is fine, just as long as it isn't done in excessive amounts to which it starts to catabolize muscle. There are plenty of benefits of regular cardio including maintaining/loss of bf, improvement of cardiovascular system (obviously), etc.

If you want to lose BF you should be cutting not bulking. While bulking your going to gain some BF whether you do cardio or not that's just what happens when you're in a caloric surplus. You can limit the BF you gain by eating properly but you're still going to gain some fat. I agree with you about nutrient partitioning and CV health, just so long as you can compensate for the burned calories from the cardio somewhere throughout the day. So it's pretty much what I said except I forgot about nutrient partitioning.

[Red_Cobra]

What do you guys mean by nutrition partitioning?

[Sick96stang]

Originally Posted by Red_Cobra

What do you guys mean by nutrition partitioning?

Basically means where the nutrients go.

Cardiovascular work will increase nutrient partitioning towards muscle tissue and away from fat tissue. One should take advantage of this by consuming the bulk of their carbohydrate intake around this time. The benefits are that these nutrients induce fat storage, but will rather be stored in muscle tissue.

[Red_Cobra]

Oh cool. So let me see if I can get this straight. I should do cardio but in moderation and should increase my caloric intake. Also, I should increase my carbohydrate intake around the time of cardio. Does that sound about right?

[Sick96stang]

Originally Posted by Red_Cobra

Oh cool. So let me see if I can get this straight. I should do cardio but in moderation and should increase my caloric intake. Also, I should increase my carbohydrate intake around the time of cardio. Does that sound about right?

You got it.

[Delgadido]

Originally Posted by Sick96stang

You got it.

i would rep you for that but it needs to recharge.

yea cardio helps a **** load with mucsle recovery. it helps the blood flow constant through out your body so your muscles recover faster.
i think even just 20 min worth of low intensity of cardio should be done

[Red_Cobra]

Thank you so much! That makes me feel a lot better!

[Red_Cobra]

Same here.

Originally Posted by Delgadido

i would rep you for that but it needs to recharge.

yea cardio helps a **** load with mucsle recovery. it helps the blood flow constant through out your body so your muscles recover faster.
i think even just 20 min worth of low intensity of cardio should be done