I need some advice from some of the more experienced lifters. I have read articles on this website that say if you are "bulking up" you should avoid cardio because it will burn up hard earned muscle. Is this true and what has worked for you? Is cardio needed to burn fat.
Right now my body weight is between 235-240lbs. on a 6'1" frame. I want a physique similar to LL Cool J, muscular with cuts and symmetry. My body is not bad but I have those effin love handles. My diet is pretty clean with carbs coming from veggies and whole wheat breads. Thanks in advance.
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Thread: Cardio while bulking
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10-06-2006, 05:02 PM #1
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Cardio while bulking
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10-06-2006, 11:35 PM #2
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 difference. Better nutrient partitioning, better CV health, less fat gain...definately do some form of cardio.
O snail
Climb Mt.Fuji
But slowly, slowly!
-Issa
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10-07-2006, 02:37 AM #3
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10-07-2006, 08:24 AM #4Originally Posted by James.Unit
^^^^^^
This is the so correct!!! Lots of people who are reallly scared of cardio use bulking as an excuse not to do cardio. I just find it wrong when i see people who consider themselves fit shy away from cardio. Like you siad eat that extra bit if you do cardio. There is absolutely no excuse for not doing cardio!!
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10-07-2006, 10:23 AM #5Originally Posted by ShylockGoal of June football camp = 400lb squat
Farwell, my friends. I'll be back some day. Just need to get my head screwed on straight.
"Thank you O God for saving the earth from the asteroid.... the one you just sent"
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10-07-2006, 10:37 AM #6
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10-07-2006, 10:44 AM #7
i believe that people who ignore cardio when they're bulking tend to grow oversized not just with muscle mass but loads of body fat due to the high calorie intake. but also cardio should not be done excessively if you decide you want to bulk up.
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10-07-2006, 12:04 PM #8
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10-07-2006, 01:47 PM #9
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10-07-2006, 06:41 PM #10
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10-07-2006, 11:03 PM #11
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10-07-2006, 11:26 PM #12
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10-08-2006, 12:07 AM #13
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10-08-2006, 12:14 AM #14
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10-08-2006, 04:43 AM #15Originally Posted by ugamelb
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10-08-2006, 04:46 AM #16
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10-24-2006, 04:37 AM #17
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cardio while bulking
I agree with the comment that people with very low body fat usually should stay away from cardio while trying to put on muscle mass. But only to a certain degree. However, if you have some storage then you have excess to be burned up. I have found that cardio is best performed in the morning before eating. I believe this is because your body is already in a state of utilizing your fat storage to sustain its self throughout the night......wake up and do cardio on an empty stomach, get the blood pumping while your body is already feeding off storage weight and it will excellerate the effect. Then eat a good healthy meal and your metabolism will be in freight train mode right at the start of the day. I dont believe you necessarily have to bulk up your calories just because you are doing cardio...like i said before if you have excess storage to burn then you will have to shed that before worrying about cardio feeding into your muscle mass. Your diet still has to maintain a quality calorie,carb,protein ratio to continue gaining strength and muscle. I have also found that by doin my cardio at 5:30 in the morning then gettin the majority of my meals in me throughout the day before I am back in the gym to lift allows me to maintain my lifting energy. spicy Egg whites and grits at 6:30 right after cardio, protein shake and oatmeal at 9 am, spicy chicken and oatmeal at 12pm, protein shake and oatmeal at 3pm, protein shake at 5 pm then lifting. A buffer zone so to speak. Cardio has always drained me of my lifting energy. Now cardio is at 5:30 a.m. and lifting is at 5:00 p.m. after work. Even on days I am not at work I maintain this routine to keep gains constant. I do cardio mon-fri and lift mon-sat. 1 cheat meal a month..but a cheat meal to me is adding a little peanut butter to my oatmeal or cream of wheat. Utilizing actual cheat meals loaded with fat and calories will just make you stray farther from your plan then you have to work to get back on track. Thats like using the "im bulking" phrase to explain not doing cardio. Cardio speads the metabolism same as multiple healthy meals throughout the day does. Everyones body responds differently so experiment with what works for you but I have been seeing great results with this.
Last edited by Nailimixam3; 10-24-2006 at 04:52 AM.
If you always do what you have always done. You will always get what you have always got.
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10-24-2006, 10:52 PM #18
This's also something that puts me in a embarrassed situation. I have been fat since I was young. From this Jun, I spent 3 month losing 24 lbs weight in order to see my abs. But it seems I was only half way there even I was satified with my weight. There's still a lot of fat on my waist, but I was told I looked so skinny. I began to worry, and then I added more protein and carbs to my diet to gain lean muscle and I did gain about 4 lbs in more than a month. I began to worry again if I would gain more fat than lean muscle. I hate it that way, but most of the articles here tell me if I want to gain muscle, I need to avoid or minimize cardio. Is it possible for me to lose those fat on my waist while gaining moderate muscle (maybe 5 or 6 lbs in 3 or 4 months)
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10-24-2006, 11:01 PM #19
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10-25-2006, 01:01 AM #20Originally Posted by niebomin
1 - go all out on a cut until your bodyfat is low (around 10%), then bulk up from there
2 - bulk (muscle + fat) until you're happy with your size, then cut down
3 - do both. eat at around maintenance and do cardio 3 times a week while lifting heavy and focusing on getting stronger.
A lot of guys will say that 3 just isn't possible, but I think there enough real life examples to prove it is, especially if you're relatively new to lifting. The whole bulk- like-crazy then cut attitude is great for some people, but for guys starting out with a little more bodyfat than they'd like it's often not a great choice. As long as you're pushing yourself in the weight room, eating properly/cleanly and doing cardio, you should be able to do it.O snail
Climb Mt.Fuji
But slowly, slowly!
-Issa
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10-25-2006, 02:35 AM #21
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10-25-2006, 02:58 AM #22
Cardio while bulking is fine, and in fact, should be encouraged. One must simply replace the calories lost through caridovascular exercise, and the problem is solved.
"Glory, as anyone knows, is bitter stuff."
-- Yukio Mishima
"[T]here is no inner man, man is in the world, and only in the world does he know himself."
-- Maurice Merleau-Ponty
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11-15-2006, 10:30 AM #23
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11-16-2006, 12:28 PM #24
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04-11-2010, 04:42 AM #25
I need to start doing Cardio again then. I somewhat enjoy running but I was suffering from ITB (or that's what I think it is) and I could hardly run. So I decided to stop for awhile and let it heal and start seriously considering bodybuilding. I'm sort of on a bulk and want to do cardio but don't want ITB screwing me up again while I'm building my legs. I think maybe i'll just try walking on the treadmill or around the neighborhood for a start.
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04-11-2010, 05:25 AM #26
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I don't totally get the no cardio when bulking mentality. Say you're lifting weights all week and eating a calorie surpluss, and you do one HIIT session per week. I can't see that being detrimental to your gains. Surely it will just burn off the fat you put on that week.
I've managed to put on quite a bit of muscle and drop fat levels the past 7 months. Whether that will continue I don't know, but I'm still doing one cardio session a week.
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03-12-2013, 02:25 AM #27
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07-01-2015, 03:07 PM #28
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