Role of Cardio
You want highly defined muscles? Think one word: Cardio. No, make that three words. High Intensity Cardio. Only "high-intensity" cardio can guarantee you the definition your want. Please listen closely to what I'm about to tell you. All properly trained muscle is "cut" and toned, it's just "covered up" with body fat. Because many bodybuilders don't know the right cardio technique they end up getting rid of their muscle along with the fat. So the role of cardio is clear: get the definition you want and keep your muscle. And with the proven cardio techniques I'm giving you here - that's just what you'll do.
Techniques of High-Intensity Cardio for "Fat Loss"
I have found high-intensity interval training to be the most effective, as well as least time consuming, way to lose fat and preserve muscle. Because this type of cardio gets pretty intense, you should approach it conservatively and increase the time as your fitness level increases. Start at 12 minutes of cardio and increase to a maximum of 20 minutes. Here's how it works:
3-Part High Intensity Cardio
Cardio has three components. Warm-up, Intervals, and Cool-down. The "interval" section has two parts: high level and low level. Using a "perceived exertion scale" of 1 to 10, where 1 represents very little exertion and 10 is an "all-out" effort, proceed as follows:
12-Minute Cardio Routine |
||
|---|---|---|
| Phase | Time | Intensity Level |
| Warm-up | 2 minutes | 5 |
| Intervals | 20 seconds (high level) | 8 |
| 10 seconds (low level) | 5 | |
| 20 seconds (high level) | 8 | |
| 10 seconds (low level) | 5 | |
| (REPEAT for 8 total minutes) | ||
| Cool-down | 2 minutes | 5 |
In the example above that's a total of 12 minutes: 2 minutes for warm up, 8 for intervals, 2 for cool down, (2-8-2). It's conservative, but it's exactly where you should start. Then you can gradually increase the "interval" section until you reach 16 minutes (2-16-2) - which is a total of 20 minutes.
Rules of High Intensity Cardio
- Start with 12 minutes per day, and gradually work up to 20 minutes a day
- Never do cardio for more than 20 minutes a day
NOTE: After you reach 20 minutes of cardio, to increase the intensity elevate the "high level" portion of the interval section. For example, raise level 8 to level 9. Remember: take your time with this type of cardio - don't push it. - Vary your cardio apparatus.
With cardio, as with free weights, variety is very important. When you do different types of cardio, your body is forced to make continual adaptations - and you progress faster. Here are my recommendations for cardio:- Stairmaster®
- Stationary Bike
- Stadium Stairs
- Wind Sprints
- Treadmill
- NOTE: When doing the treadmill, simply step off the belt to either side during the "low level" portion of the interval section.
- It's important to stay with the cardio type you choose for 4 full weeks before switching.
- Don't skip the cool-down section because it gives the blood a chance to "move out" of the working muscles and back to the brain. Without this cool-down, blood can "pool" in your lower extremities and make you feel faint, dizzy, and even make you pass out.
NOTE: If you're doing your cardio and free weights in the same workout, try doing your cardio FOLLOWING your weight training to enhance your load capacity during the weight workout. If however, you do your cardio on a different day, or different time of day than your weights, do the cardio before breakfast, that way you'll burn up the fatty acids more effectively.
Your "Fat Loss" Workout Programs
Remember our goal here. Maintain muscle and add cuts. Not cuts alone! So we start with our mass-building training regimen (See Training for Lean Mass) and modify it as follows: exercise and modify them.
- Add cardio to training day #2. Remember, start with the (2-8-2) timing and increase the "intensity" every week. Try this for 4 weeks. If you need more then...
- Add an additional day of cardio - training day #5. So you're now doing cardio on days 2 and 5. Keep following the "progressive intensity" schedule I gave you in the cardio section. Continue 4 weeks. If you still need more then...
- Add cardio to training day #4. Now you're doing cardio three days a week: on days 2, 4, and 5. If that's still not enough to do the trick, then...
- Add cardio to your off-day (#6). That's now 4 days of cardio per week.
- Begin cutting calories (see Nutrition for Cuts)
DON' FORGET: Do your cardio AFTER your weight training, not before. For bodybuilders who have trained at least one year, steps 1 through 4 should be enough. But if that hasn't given you the fat loss necessary to get the "cuts" you want, go to step 5, where you actually start cutting calories.
REMEMBER: When you cut back on calories, or add cardio, or both, you MUST continue with your high-intensity weight training. That means taking the last set to failure with full weight load. As you scale back on the calories - especially the carbs - your energy may diminish somewhat. If that happens, reduce the number of sets not the load. BE SURE TO MAINTAIN THE AMOUNT OF WEIGHTS YOU USE IF POSSIBLE.
Caution: Catabolic Spiral Ahead - Avoiding the BIG Mistake
A final word about fat-loss. The biggest mistake most amateur bodybuilders make is de-training with low weights and high reps, cutting back on carbs, and doing 45 minutes of cardio - or more.
First of all, when your body is not being “loaded” with weights (like with low weights and high reps), and does not have enough fuel (like cutting back on carbs), your body starts burning muscle for fuel as it tries to make up for the calories it is not getting. Here’s what actually happens.
As you know, your body looks at muscle as a liability because it consumes so many calories to maintain. When you cut back on carbs and increase cardio, your body starts consuming its fast-twitch fibers (the valuable size and strength fibers) as it preserves the slow twitch fibers it needs to do the cardio. And long duration aerobics produces cortisol, a catabolic agent that breaks down muscle proteins. Worse, as your strength diminishes due to less fast-twitch fibers, the amount of weight you can lift decreases. With less load, your body starts dumping even more muscle as it perceives it as unnecessary. This is KNOWN AS the dreaded Catabolic Spiral. Just look at marathoners, their body has literally eaten itself alive.