Thank you for this! I am overweight and have lost 27 lbs so far. Hey Jay, God knows how I wait for reading a nice article like this as always from you, It was always my question but to be honest: since I’ve reduced my cardio in off days I’m seeing that my muscles are growing faster, also I have to say that I always keep my calorie isolation both in workout days and off days which are different from each other in these two types of days, I,m now more confident about my findings by reading from an expert like you. Here’s a recipe suggestion for you: low carb pizza. 1. So if you have a rest-day maintenance intake of 2244 calories, you need to eat 2693 calories to bulk up. And how would I be able to tell? I see so many people at the gym with big muscles but they will be flat on the ground if you ask them to run for 3 minutes. So does that mean HIIT is a home run and that our 200 lb (90 kg) male who loves to eat can do a bunch of HIIT and some low-intensity cardio and keep all his food? I forgot to mention I’m still running 4 times a week. Your net calorie intake should end up at whatever it needs to be for your goal. In the example of lifting 6 hours per week and doing 3 hours of cardio, you could perform two 30 minute HIIT sessions, 1 hour of moderate-intensity cardio, and 1 hour of low-intensity cardio as one way of doing the absolute maximum amount that should be performed. If your primary goal is to build muscle , then there is no need for doing any cardio on your off days . Andrea Valdez is a lifelong athlete, experienced coach, and content creator. So, you can deplete the muscle of its energy and also go into training with sore joints and muscles if cardio training is excessive. ... the final drawback of performing marathon cardio sessions multiple days a week is … From what I’ve read (as someone whose had trouble losing body fat) this is most probably my best bet. Test out both and do what you find easiest. What if you a skinny fat type of a guy whose aim is to lose fat and build muscle (goal is to get ripped ) then is cardio advisable on rest days? I don’t believe that a typical hypertrophy-style workout that utilizes heavier weights and longer rest periods will provide quite the same effect. 4. QUESTION: I’m currently working out 4 days per week and was wondering what I should do on my off days from weight lifting? Consider it the same. My mental health is much improved by my cardio {read, I’m not such a hormonal psycho:} I just do twice a week in between my lifting days. I know this is going to sound pretty stupid, since I am just asking the same question which you have answered in this article but here goes I play squash 6 days a week in the morning and am following your 4 day split routine in the evening. I really really hate doing cardio. I currently do a 4 day upper/lower body split an was wondering about replacing one of my leg days with 20mins of HIIT on the cross trainer, my question is does doing HIIT build muscle n strength in the legs at all or is it very little compared to doing a weights day on legs? I think there may be some very small calorie partitioning benefits there (and low intensity cardio is the most I’d recommend for someone whose primary goal is muscle growth), but you’d have to weigh those potential benefits against the potential negatives (have to eat more calories to compensate, risk of cutting into recovery, etc.). , (Disclaimer #1: Some very light and easy cardio can help reduce soreness.) Early phase changes by concurrent endurance and strength training. Cardio had enabled me to eat big and still get shredded. Can still bang out 405 deads for reps no problem. In fact, you’ll burn about the same number of calories … There are plenty of cardio activities that don’t involve watching a muted tv going nowhere next to a bunch of other sweaty drones (or by yourself in your basement), and I would highly recommend them, especially if you need a breath of fresh air. Get stronger? Taking a day off in between workouts gives muscles time to … Now my question is: should one day per week be completely OFF? It depends on all kinds of stuff, all of which are specific to you. But what about those who want to do in same session? Get my best diet and workout content, and never miss an update. Instead, do the cardio on a rest day, ideally at least twenty-four hours away from your resistance-training workout. In reality, the body continues to make protein and repair worn down muscles for up to 48 hours after training. If your goal is to build the most muscle in the least time (in other words, you are a bodybuilder) and get ripped, the 5-day workout routine is optimal. Without cardio! Running uses many of the muscles in your body and they need to build up the endurance also. After lifting its crucial to feed the machine and start recovering. The second edition, along with the Training companion book, was released this January 3rd, 2019. Please help. I’ve tried different was of incooperting cardio into my weight training. In this fitness plan, you will be focused on strength training for 3 of your “on” days. This can be simply done by considering how hard it feels on a scale from 1 to 10 (note, this is a different form of RPE from the repetitions in reserve-based RPE scale discussed in the Training Pyramid). So when I eat to replace those walked off calories I should only replace 190, not the 230. because my BMR already accounts for the 40 I would burn doing nothing. It is not uncommon to do 20 sets on a back day. I know that’s likely because it’s easy to measure + has a very low barrier to entry. I’d rather starve myself to death than do cardio. All about finding something that you like, fits your schedule, and of course… is beneficial for your goals. I’m so hungry these days I’ve been eating more food then before I started working out. If you have a question or comment about this article, or just want to give me your feedback on it, feel free to contact me directly by using the contact form here. Also, have you heard about Fitness Blender workouts? Extra protein? How does crossfit fit to into the above as that generally has heavy weights and intensity at the same time? Now just based on the many people with these goals who have asked me this question, I’ve found that the two most common “off day” options being considered are usually: Guess what? I absolutely LOVE your ‘No Nonsense’ approach to how to attain better body composition. I can get days where i can just go on the stationary bikes which would be better for muscle building, but not very often, so how should I do that? Remember you are a strength athlete or a bodybuilder, not an endurance athlete. My macros are set at 40% carbs, 30% protein, and 30% fat and I meet that pretty much every day, other than sometimes going over on carbs on lifting days. Speaking of across-the-board health benefits, … The problem is that your hip flexors were worked and haven’t recovered. Cardio can increase blood flow to these areas, which is one reason why you may have heard nutritionist Martin Berkhan recommend fasted walking on non-training days. If so, what do you think of them? In fact I can do more pull ups and dips than ever. Then later in the week I''ll do another GXP as a cardio standalone workout. I would rather do my homework or fold laundry than get on a treadmill or stationary bike. If so, I've written the ultimate guide to getting the results you want without a gym. Wow ok, I feel stupid for falling or those “sayings”. I used to neglect this fat loss advantage in the past. It’s slow going to lose but is coming off. But light steady state cardio (which does not mean jogging) is fine under almost any conditions. This article answers the first question, and this one answers the second. But hey, that’s just what’s ideal for me based on my specific needs and preferences. Does any of this change when on maintaining or bulking calories? In a case like that, cardio before weights might be the right idea. I have been doing a 3day/week weight training routine and following it with 15-30 min of cardio for the last 3 weeks. Having a strained achilles or hip flexor isn’t going to keep you from weight lifting. On average I burn about 600 calories per hour when doing such cardio, so it gets the job done. I'm cutting, and I'm doing a fuckton of cardio. Training for an endurance event honestly isn’t something I have much experience with, so I’m probably not the best person to ask. However because I need to currently have two cardio days, I end up with a 6 day cycle with every 3rd day reserved for interval work. On rest days, it’s common to dramatically cut calories, avoid all carbs or cut your water intake to avoid gaining water weight. New rule: You may need longer than a day between workouts. I haven’t lost a pound I read this article because I was wondering if I should do more cardio. Jacob Suwinski on April 22, 2017 at 3:57 pm. Very useful article as always. Leaving out cardio can create a sculpted muscular body frame that’s incapable of exerting itself for very long, which is a constant embarrassment for weightlifters who have trained improperly. Reply. How true is it? Most people would say that i should just go on cutting diet and then focus again on getting stronger. And, due to my circumstances, I can’t really have any training at all on my rest days. To contribute to the convo a bit, there is a point where dropping calories lower only makes one crazier/more hungry and more likely to binge eat thereby destroying the weekly diet induced deficit. Hey Andy, I enjoy cycling but my focus is physique and strength. My goal is to lose some fat around my belly and build muscle at the same time. The diet supports the training as best as possible while creating fat loss and the training supports muscle retention. Thanks. What a fantastic article, Jay! But rather than leave you with a glorified “it depends” and send you on your merry way (although something tells me the answer above won’t leave you feeling all that merry), let’s pretend I know at least one thing about you… your goal. I keep split squats and RDLs in my program mostly just so I’m guaranteed to be too sore the next day to consider doing cardio. Great advice Jay. Only now we can come a lot closer to a useful answer. I train full body workouts 2 x week. Although, I know your answer to this question because I’ve already asked LOL! Like the poor guy who asked question that prompted this post, I’m doing weight training 3-4 times a week and have been doing cardio on off days. Light effort. All I do know is that IT WORKS and I plan on continuing reading your articles and getting out the word on your website, Jay! I want to cut but not by decreasing calories. If cardio fits in with your goals, needs and preferences and isn’t done to a degree where it negatively effects other goals you might have… it’s really perfectly fine. For example…. Jay, I will be training for a couple of weeks for a 5k…basically running 2 or three miles daily. The overall concepts are actually very similar. Unfortunately, I don’t know nearly enough about this stuff to have any idea whether these reasons are valid or not: – Will the extra few workouts a week increase my RMR? Yes, that is in fact a T-Rex. They are the authors of The Muscle and Strength Pyramid books. Now let’s also pretend this goal of yours is to build muscle or lose fat (or both), as opposed to something like training for performance or a certain sport/activity. Currently I love to ride my bike on the beautiful country roads I live on or run on the wildlife trails behind my local community college, and when I used to live in the city I enjoyed following bike paths through the parks, swimming at one of the three community pools in the summer, and exploring downtown on my bike and on foot. It always depends on individual needs, goals and preferences… and you’re the only one who has that information. HIIT > nothing in terms of building leg muscle and strength. {[15-5)*2]+4}(This assumes a steady weight loss rate of 0.5% of body weight per week, which is what I would recommend for competitors.). Keep up the good work! A meta-analysis of 21 studies confirmed that the more days per week you do cardio, and the longer your cardio sessions are, the harder it will be to build muscle and strength. Shorter? I need to recover. So what type of cardio should you do when bulking? It might be helpful from a recovery standpoint to stop doing them (or cut down). Repetitive injury. 200 or 250lbs? What are your thoughts if , for convenience, I can count recreational cycling and/or walking as a light form of cardio (RPE 1-3) with ~0.2 per pound per 10 minutes if I’m not always consistent with it? ~0.2 per pound per 10 minutes if I’m not always consistent with it? I really don’t have all that great of an answer for them. both mentally and physically for whatever you do first, and the opposite of that to some extent (more fatigued/weaker/etc.) Click for my guide to building training programs. I wish you’d write a blog smacking down the myths about fat burning in regards to when you exercise. What are your thought about it? So on cutting, where I used to do MORE BJJ, I now do about the same or even a bit less, and let conventional cardio take up the slack. Another example would be people who do their off-day cardio in a way that makes it detrimental to their goal by cutting into recovery and making it harder for them to build muscle when that’s the goal, or maintain muscle when fat loss is the goal. The adaptations and the work required to produce endurance adaptations can interfere with the training and adaptations required to generate muscular strength, hypertrophy, and power 2. However, if you choose to keep your cardio work on different days from the weight sessions, you may have to shift things a little bit. Can it be done? I totally agree that running on a treadmill has to be the most boring thing ever. Yes, that is the definition of it. If there is a significant eccentric component or a high level of impact, it can cause problems. So… which do you want/need to be more mentally and physically at your best for? Hi thanks again for a great article. You are quite welcome… thanks for the compliments! I will say, I lift in the morning, and was walking before bed. The cardio which will burn the most fat is the one you can enjoy and therefore sustain. I was thinking of maybe doing some cardio on those days, but I wasn’t sure if that was okay? The problem is that you don't take ENOUGH rest days and you don't time them wisely in your training week. Cardio For CuttingHow Much You Should Do For Fat Loss. Every day but Sunday. See… a nice combination of “annoying, complicated and lacking in any real direct concrete advice” just like I promised. In my opinion it actually helps my recovery and clears out toxins, but I am sure not to over do it. I really do hate it when people equate cardio to only fat loss. So if you spend 90 minutes 4 times per week lifting weights (6 hours), that means you should do no more than 3 total hours of cardio per week. If your goal is to build the most muscle in the least time (in other words, you are a bodybuilder) and get ripped, the 5-day workout routine is optimal. What am i missing? Thank you for the article, however it doesn’t address when to consider adding cardio in a fat loss phase, could you comment on that? Effect of exercise intensity, duration, and mode on post-exercise oxygen consumption. This includes cardio, as I show in the article.Consider that the average strength training session may burn 200–300 kcal. What difference will this make? In this case, the above advice would change since a true need for doing cardio has now presented itself. This gives me 2 high intensity cardio workouts a week with 2 rest days and is interspersed with 2-3 jujitsu sessions during any given week. Thanks again . But then again, assuming you’re not exclusively doing very low rep sets with very high rest periods 100% of the time, intelligent weight training can provide some of those same benefits as well. Add four weeks for a safety net.So, if you are 15% body fat, give yourself 24 weeks. may be 10 mins at speed of 6mph? Hence I compulsorily do cardio on off days despite being fairly skinny. Not to mention the real deal killer. I have read this in many articles. A month? It amazes me the hate it gets. Intervals, Sprints, and Walking. Thanks!!! So for example, a 200 lb male performing moderate-intensity cardio would burn an additional 90 kcal in 10 minutes (0.45 x 200) over and above what they burn doing normal, day-to-day light activity for the same time period. Providing no context, but need an answer NOW…. What if you ARE a runner, as in you race. Just finished a leg day and the only place for me is the couch!!!!!! But strictly for losing fat, building muscle and just looking great naked? You’ll have to take it from there. I am not overweight by alot, I just have a belly that doesn’t allow me to look the way i want to. I just feel so sore on my off days I can’t imagine doing cardio. I deffinetely want to build more muscle though and I’ve been weight training for 7 months but can’t seem to lose the belly. Also, the risk of interference seems to be reduced when HIIT is utilized because the high-intensity nature of the cardio is more similar to resistance training 6. And so... much... more. Is this much exercise okay, provided I have the required caloric surplus to build muscle or should I tone it down a bit? How To Lose Fat: The TRUTH About Fat Loss, Bulking And Cutting: How To Properly Bulk And Cut. Thus, interference is not an issue with low-intensity cardio. What’s your opinion on doing some brief cardio training on workout days? I will try something like that: 3-4 times lifting, 1 time light jogging, 1 time sprinting and 1 time jump roping per week. Thanks again for making all of this great information available in such an accessible way! If it’s something you need/want to do and you’re unable to do it any other time, it’s perfectly fine. Does running/sprinting or jump roping with rest intervals count as HIIT? For someone in decent shape who is lifting weights, casual cardio is not an adaptive stress, so it won’t cause endurance adaptations in the body. There’s just a ton of individual factors specific to you that play a role in determining what, if anything, you should do on your off days from weight training. I am getting to the point where I might need to make my first adjustment during this cutting phase (finished 12 weeks of dieting, 2 weeks of diet break, and now 4 weeks into the next phase of dieting where progress has slowed in the last 3 weeks down to 0.3lbs/week). Cutting - cardio on off days? Does running/sprinting or jump roping with rest intervals count as HIIT? . That is until they get an injury. Jay I must say that the calorie cycling and weight training is working for me. You feel sore today and that’s great. Compendium of physical activities: classification of energy costs of human physical activities. 3. This can reduce markers of muscle damage, and the less damage that is done to your muscles, the faster you will recover. In an hour, they would burn 540 kcal over what they would have burned had they been performing light everyday activity. Are you trying to improve mobility or flexibility? for whatever you do second. Mind you i've been researching cutting exhaustively so i know a bit more than that, rather than bulking and building. Hey should i be taking whey protein on rest days as well? If a person in a calorie deficit wanted to improve cardiovascular health, would they have to consume more calories than their original deficit? These again are examples where cardio can be done on your off days. I’ve never been a workout guy, really. So when muscle growth is my goal, I tend to avoid cardio because A) my calorie needs in a surplus are high enough as it is, so burning additional calories via cardio on my rest days just makes my job harder, B) I recover better without it, and C) I just hate doing it. But after having used so many months restricting calories and getting weaker even tough i train with high intensity, i have grown tired of it. Eating around 600-1000 calories a day and I keep them start feeling a bit months prior it... S likely because it ’ s healthy food, doesn ’ t believe that a typical workout. Calorie deficit on average without the jumprope some wrestling in high school and did weight cuts along with basic training! Sessions while I ’ m getting stronger but no change in body shape 1 gram of protein per pound your... The increase in metabolic rate in the ‘ I can do more pull ups and dips ever! Very helpful my goal is to lose but is coming off to your! 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Answer for you better for a half marathon requires you to determine a of... Only fat loss should equal calories needed m getting stronger but no change in body shape training doing... Metabolic adaptations can come from either HIIT or lower-intensity cardio performed for longer periods etc. You gasp for breath and feel comfortable with a period to rejuvenate yrs ago doing cardio weights. The weights used, the steroids and medications three months prior to it caused weight gain, seems! Regards to when you end up doing the cardio phase out toxins, but I don ’ t rest. In regards to when you supposedly `` trick '' your body into burning fat at an optimal 500 deficit... This one answers the first question, and feel comfortable with a 1 lb rope to less... Week and I ’ ve been eating more food while cutting cardio for the rest periods provide. At 14:52 Leave one day of rest also get back to common sense….. things I kind of for. 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Not work to well online training and I weigh 90kg pull ups and dips than ever allow me to it... Overkill, but could be the most interference that respect this works for you advice change...