Tag: Cardio
Avoid The Skinny Fat Look With This Muscle Building Cardio
Cardio Like a beast.
Yeah, you read the title correctly. As a bodybuilder you probably already have an inherent dislike for cardio training simply because of the effect the practice can have on your muscle growth and maintenance. Consistent steady state cardio will certainly improve your endurance, but it will do nothing for your physique except eat away at that hard earned muscle.
While cardio should certainly be a staple of your program, no matter how much you hate it, it truly depends on the type of cardio you’re performing in the gym that will determine whether or not you see the results you seek. So what exactly should you be doing in the gym and what should you run away from (pun intended)?
No Steady State Cardio
When it comes to burning fat and maintaining your muscle mass, you want to avoid running at one consistent pace. For example, if you’re simply jogging the entire time while you’re doing your cardio but you’re not increasing or decreasing that pace then you can be sure that your body will dip into it’s muscles stores for energy. This is especially true if you find yourself on a cut and in a calorie deficit.
If your cardio levels are boosted yet your lifting numbers either remain consistent or even drop due to the lack of normal energy stores you can bet the body is going to adapt more to the cardiovascular training and your muscle growth will stagnate and even move backwards.
Take It Easy
The best kind of cardio for burning fat and keeping muscle is the kind that doesn’t rip your body apart. Namely, walking. You metabolic rate will rise for sure though it won’t nearly be at the levels that you’d expect from lifting or doing interval training, but it won’t break down your muscle and it will leave with enough energy that you’ll be able to hit the gym hard if you’re doing two-a-days.
Ramp Things Up
The other option for fat loss and muscle maintenance in terms of cardio training is performing HIIT. By doing interval training at high intensity your metabolic rate will skyrocket which means more calories are burned. But unlike steady state cardio HIIT training means you’re pushing your body, specifically your muscle, to the max. Notice how sprinters are always in great shape, lean but still muscular? That’s because they are constantly utilizing their muscle by pushing themselves to their limits.
They also don’t worry about training on a calorie deficit as they need as much energy as possible during their training sessions. The action of sprinting has a similar anabolic response as you’d find in lifting. HIIT including sprinting can be looked at as more muscle building cardio than traditional cardio.
Try out these methods and watch the fat burn away and your muscle continue to grow.
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Lose 10lbs Within a Month Using This Cardio Technique
The Best Cardio Technique For Losing 10lbs In A Month
Many people quit the fit lifestyle when they can’t seem to lose weight even after hitting the gym for a couple of months. There are a few reasons for their inability to lose weight of which unawareness of the right techniques is the biggest one.
In this article, we’ll be presenting a cardio technique which can be followed by beginners and pros alike to lose 10lbs of fat within a month. You can perform this technique if your gym has limited cardio equipment or even if you don’t have a gym membership.
Pre-Requisite – Diet
Before we begin, you need to have a customized diet plan in place to see the desired results. You need to be on a calorie-deficit diet plan if you’re looking to lose weight. A calorie deficit diet means that you’ll be expending more calories than you eat.
Your daily caloric intake should be made up of 40% carbs, 30% protein, and 30% fats. You’re setting yourself up for failure if you’re relying solely on cardio to lose weight and not following a customized diet plan.
If you want to lose 1lb of weight every week, you should reduce 500 calories from your existing daily calorie intake. We don’t recommend shaving off more than 1,000 calories from your diet in a single week.
Different Cardio
In this technique, you’ll be performing cardio twice a day. Don’t worry, you don’t need any fancy equipment (or any machines at all) while following this system. The two cardio sessions would consist of –
LISS – First Workout
LISS or Low-Intensity Steady State cardio is a form of cardio exercise where you maintain the same low-intensity cardio pace for a set amount of time. The LISS cardio session is to be done first thing in the morning after waking up, and on an empty stomach.
The low-intensity steady-state cardio is a form of aerobic exercise where your body uses oxygen as a form of energy to burn fat. Some examples of LISS are road biking a walk in the park or on the treadmill, swimming.
Your LISS cardio session would range between 30-45 minutes. If you’re a beginner, LISS is a great way of building up your fitness level. Adding LISS to your fitness routine can help your body metabolize fat.
HIIT – Second Workout
Your second cardio session should be HIIT (high-intensity interval training). You need to do the HIIT workout in the evening, ideally after your weight training workout. In a HIIT workout, you focus on quick bursts of high-intensity cardio followed by a rest period.
An example of a HIIT workout is – sprinting all-out for 30 seconds, followed by a short period of rest or walking before sprinting again. This cycle of work-rest periods is repeated for 10-15 minutes.
HIIT is an anaerobic exercise and uses the stored ATP and glucose in your body as fuel to burn fat. Performing the HIIT after the LISS workout will help you in burning the metabolized fat.
Each of the cardio techniques has its benefits. Using both of them in your training program will help you get the best results.
Header image courtesy of Envato Elements
How often do you do cardio?
Let us know in the comments below. Also, be sure to follow Generation Iron on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Best Cardio Methods For Bodybuilders Who Hate Running
A little bit of cardio does wonders.
We’ve heard it a million times – “I love working out I just hate running.” Since we were young running has been touted as the ultimate form of cardio. Those weekend warriors with their Nike spandex gear don’t make it any easier. With watches that track every step and instagram pictures to boot – these guys wear every mile as a badge of honor.
Well we’ve got news for those guys. While running is definitely good in moderation, too much of constantly pounding the pavement will wreck your joints especially your knees. Compounded with the massive size of most bodybuilders it’s no wonder it’s not every athlete’s cardio of choice. Well good news. We’ve got 5 five exercises just as good…nay, BETTER than running that will be right up your alley.
20 minute 10 meter sprint
We first heard about this one Men’s Health. The first thing you need to do is mark out a length of 10 meters (about 10 steps), this will be your work area. You want to cover that 10 meter distance once within one minute (too easy right?). Now you want to cover 10 meters 2x within the same amount of time. Keep going until you can complete 20 meters in one minute.
This exercise starts slow but gets turned up real fast. Don’t cheat in the beginning, trust us you’ll need the rest. Mere mortals will make it to about 13, studs will make it to 18, and Gods will make it to 20 meters in one minute. Which one are you?
Burpees
Ah this brings me back to my military days. You start off straight up, arm to sides. You then drop down and complete a full push up, you get back up into starting position and then jump high into the air with arms extended. When you land, get back down into pushup position and repeat.
Performing just 10 reps fast can rev your metabolism as much as a 30 second all out bike sprint, burning 2 calories per burpee for a 180 lb man. Aim for 10 burpees within 60 seconds.
Kettle Bell Swing
This explosive cardio exercise works the big muscles around your glutes and quads, and sends your heart into overdrive, according to research from the University of Wisconsin.
In a recent study participants burned 2o calories per minute with an average heart rate of 93% of their max, sustained over a 20 minute workout.
Next time someone invites you to go for a run, tell them you’d rather protect your joints and raise your heart rate instead.
How The Barbell Burpee Will Increase Full Body Strength
This variation of a traditional burpee is great for a workout.
The burpee alone is a challenging workout, let alone adding a bar. One that is comprised of both strength and cardiovascular movements, this workout is the perfect bodyweight exercise to increase full body strength and increase endurance. The burpee is further proof that bodyweight exercises can be just as demanding as any with weights.
But the barbell burpee is unique in that it adds additional elements to an already difficult exercise. Working with a combination of traditional burpee movements including a squat and a pushup, the barbell burpee adds the extra component of a power clean and push press with the barbell to make this is a highly effective exercise to do with a bar.
Used as an aerobic exercise in combination with strength training, the barbell burpee will increase cardio, strength, balance, and flexibility to give you an all-in-one workout to help burn fat and keep you on your feet and working your chest every time for however many reps you want.
Although difficult, the barbell burpee has great benefits and is worth adding to your fitness regimen. Able to attack all of your muscles, including your legs, glutes, core, back, chest, arms, and shoulders, along with the ability to raise your heart rate and get you breathing hard, this burpee is the perfect compound exercise to do with a bar each time.
For those looking to burn fat and increase endurance, as well as aid in power performance, the barbell burpee is great for athletes of any kind. Working many muscles at once also allows you less time working out with the barbell burpee.
All-Around Workout
The barbell burpee allows for increased strength in a variety of muscles including your lower body and upper body. Your legs and glutes are targeted during the jump back into a pushup position as well as the start to the power clean portion of the exercise. Once on the ground, your shoulders provide support as you descend into that all too familiar pushup using the bar as a point of support, especially with the jump up.
With more balance required for the burpee, your core activates and your arms and chest join the workout until that pushup is done as part of this burpee. The fun begins when you lift the barbell into a push press and rely on your fitness to take over as you lower the bar and continue with more reps.
By adding weight, your overall strength increases significantly as opposed to sticking with just your bodyweight (1). As a complex compound exercise, the barbell burpee is sure to fire you up on all cylinders and those gains will really show.
Promotes Fat Burn
As a physically demanding exercise, the barbell burpee is one that will burn off loads of calories, only supported by the fact that so many different muscle groups are being worked. With the ability to increase endurance, your metabolism will work harder for you and your ability to burn more calories will only intensify (2).
Fat loss happens when you consume less than you burn and while dieting can be tricky, the barbell burpee is one exercise to give you a great boost in calorie loss to start you on the right path towards fat loss and the jump and cardio portion of this is great for that.
Increases Endurance
When it comes to increasing your endurance and lung capacity, this workout is one that will do the trick. While running, cycling, or other cardio exercises will get you there as well, the barbell burpee is one that will boost your endurance while at the same time increasing strength and muscle growth (3). A long session of barbell burpees can be all you need for a good day’s work in the gym.
As fatigue sets in, your endurance will allow you to work longer and harder in all other aspects of your training and athletic performance. Along with working your circulatory system, muscular-skeletal system, and central nervous system, the barbell burpee will give your cardiovascular system a great boost to ensure a more effective and longer-lasting lift to add to the rest of your workouts to keep your working hard.
Enhance Explosive Power
Along with increased strength and endurance comes the ability for more power and explosiveness with workouts and competition. Barbell burpees will target your fast-twitch muscle fibers which allow for shorter bursts of speed and power (4). The back and forth jumping into and out of the pushup position mixed with the power of the press at the top will help generate increased speed and power for those looking to get the edge in their workouts.
Having speed and power is not only important for sprinters or jumpers, but for anyone looking to step their game to the next level and this burpee is great for that as you get moving on your hands and feet for a great workout to keep your gains flowing.
Time Efficient
Barbell burpees are time efficient since they include multiple muscles in many muscle groups, as well as targeting your cardio. While you do need a barbell for the barbell burpee, if one is not available, then a traditional burpee will provide almost all of the same benefits. For those who work or feel tight on time in the gym, adding barbell burpees to your workout routine is somewhat of a must.
You will look great, feel better, and know that even if you spent minimal time in the gym and more time off your feet, that you accomplished more with a barbell burpee to keep you doing things you love and start seeing gains.
How To Perform The Barbell Burpee
You will need a barbell and whatever desired weights you want. Place the barbell on the ground and grip the bar with your hands slightly more than shoulder width apart. Kick your legs back into a pushup position and lower to the bar. Push back up to complete the pushup and take your hands off the barbell.
Once on your feet, execute a power clean by lifting the bar to your waist, thrusting to your chest and completing a push press over your head, driving through your feet. Lower to the ground and repeat from the beginning. Keep a tight core and good form throughout to avoid strain or injury from this burpee exercise and rest is important to start seeing growth with all your reps.
Wrap Up
Burpees are never fun and can offer a real challenge for those still working on their fitness. But burpees are a great overall body exercise to get lean and put on muscle while also building a great foundation for endurance. Adding a barbell to the traditional burpee will only add to the fun and increase your gains. The barbell burpee can be challenging and will require balance and flexibility.
You will get better at the barbell burpee and be more fit, only encouraging those gains and increasing your confidence. Don’t let this deter you from maximizing your gains and allow yourself to thrive by adding the barbell burpee to your workout regimen so the rest of your workouts only add to it.
Let us know what you think in the comments below. Also, be sure to follow Generation Iron on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
*Images courtesy of Envato
References
Baker, J. S.; Davies, B.; Cooper, S. M.; Wong, D. P.; Buchan, D. S.; Kilgore, L. (2013). “Strength and Body Composition Changes in Recreationally Strength-Trained Individuals: Comparison of One versus Three Sets Resistance-Training Programmes”. (source)
Ratamess, Nicholas A.; Rosenberg, Joseph G.; Klei, Samantha; Dougherty, Brian M.; Kang, Jie; Smith, Charles R.; Ross, Ryan E.; Faigenbaum, Avery D. (2015). “Comparison of the Acute Metabolic Responses to Traditional Resistance, Body-Weight, and Battling Rope Exercises”. (source)
Kazior, Zuzanna; Willis, Sarah J.; Moberg, Marcus; Apro, William; Calbet, Jose A. L.; Holmberg, Hans-Christer; Blomstrand, Eva (2016). “Endurance Exercise Enhances the Effect of Strength Training on Muscle Fiber Size and Protein Expression of Akt and mTOR”. (source)
Serrano, Nathan; Colenso-Semple, Lauren M.; Lazauskus, Kara K.; Siu, Jeremy W.; Bagley, James R.; Lockie, Robert G.; Costa, Pablo B.; Galpin, Andrew J. (2019). “Extraordinary fast-twitch fiber abundance in elite weightlifters”. (source)
Best Cardio For Bodybuilders Without Losing Muscle
Don’t fear the sprint.
For bodybuilders, the very utterance of the word cardio seems to send chills down their spines. Many of those who look to build muscle seem to equate cardio with muscle destruction. They automatically assume that the inclusion of any form of cardiovascular training into their routine will mean losing all of their hard earned muscle. It’s an ideology that has been refuted, yet it still seems to find its way into the culture.
Cardio for an ectomorph who has trouble with keeping on muscle may be something to worry about. For most others who can gain either fat or muscle easily, those with slower metabolisms, cardio training can be their best friend.
People looking to shred their bodies but refuse to utilize cardio are essentially handicapping themselves and ensuring that they never get the defined and aesthetic form that they constantly seek. It burns away excess fat and jump starts your metabolism and, if you have the right diet plan, won’t affect your muscle gains at all.
So now that it’s been established that cardio isn’t evil, the question becomes a bit more intriguing. If cardio is a must for getting shredded and ridding your body of excess body fat, then which exercises should be in your program? We compiled a list of muscle friendly cardio exercises that will have you looking more shredded than ever.
Cycling
This is perhaps one of the more underrated cardiovascular exercises that many bodybuilders never consider. Though walking on the incline treadmill can be a great source of cardio, studies have found that cycling or bike riding can prove to be more impressive for a couple of reasons.
For one, it’s just a more intensive and explosive exercise than walking. Second is that the hip flexion are engaged in the motion which can improve your squatting ability as well as increase your chances of hypertrophy when combined with resistance training.
Sprinting
Another great exercise that can improve your chances of hypertrophy, sprinting is perhaps the biggest gem of cardio based exercises. Though many bodybuilders, particularly larger individuals, may find jogging to be a bit easier to bear, sprinting can actually improve muscle growth.
Like mentioned before with cycling, the hip flexion are engaged while sprinting. The exercise is a multi-joint movement that stimulates muscle activation and can improve leg development as it that same activation simulates the tension of squatting or using the leg press.
Rowing Machine
We’ve spoken about two cardio exercises that work the lower body extensively, but what about the upper body? Well, it seems that the rowing machine can be a great tool for athletes looking to build definition in their upper bodies. When paired with resistance training, the rowing can prove to be very beneficial for upper body development.
The rowing machine works your back and core during the pulling motion and even works your legs greatly during the pushing portion of of the movement. You get the benefit of muscle development while performing cardio at the same time.
Which cardio exercises do you have in your routine? Let us know in the comments below and be sure to follow Generation Iron on Facebook and Twitter.
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