How much Cardio do you do?

029924 · 07-Dec-04, 10:09 AM

Hi there, Im newish to the body building scene, and have been lifting for a few months. I have seen good gains in my arms and chest, but I still have a little belly on me.

I want rid of this so am thinking of taking up some cadio to reduce my belly. But how much do you do? I have read that doing cardio will stop me from gaining muscle and bulking up. Is this true? How much cardio do all you guys do?? Whats the limit of cardio before it becomes bad for my bulking which is what Im really going for. Just hate my belly!

Thanks

:

candyass · 07-Dec-04, 11:55 AM

Cardio is not going to stop you from gaining muscle size. What it will do is produce more slow twitch muslce fiber, which will make you slightly weaker. I wouldnt worry too much about this unless you are interested in powerlifting or olympic lifting.

But having said that, you still want to minimize this effect. To do this, dont do the usually plodding jog on the treadmill. Instead alternate a minute of heavy sprints with a minute of cooldowns.

As for me, I dont do cardio; I manage my weight with a good diet and olympic lifts. However, keep in mind that we're all different. The average amount of cardio that most people say you should do is 20 min twice a week. This might be enough for you, if might be too little, or too much. So feel free to experiment.

Blaze · 07-Dec-04, 01:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by candyass

Cardio is not going to stop you from gaining muscle size. What it will do is produce more slow twitch muslce fiber, which will make you slightly weaker. I wouldnt worry too much about this unless you are interested in powerlifting or olympic lifting.

But having said that, you still want to minimize this effect. To do this, dont do the usually plodding jog on the treadmill. Instead alternate a minute of heavy sprints with a minute of cooldowns.

As for me, I dont do cardio; I manage my weight with a good diet and olympic lifts. However, keep in mind that we're all different. The average amount of cardio that most people say you should do is 20 min twice a week. This might be enough for you, if might be too little, or too much. So feel free to experiment.

You said it!

Klinger · 07-Dec-04, 01:23 PM

Generally, 2 cardio stints a week (running or elliptical). My current goal is to gain a little mass, so I keep it to a minimum. When I started out about 3 years ago, my goal was to drop weight, so I did cardio 4x a week (along with an overhaul of my diet).

abarlament · 07-Dec-04, 03:14 PM

Recently I've been doing 3 or 4.

Lift2Live · 07-Dec-04, 03:17 PM

I do one day of cardio a week but, I am in a complete mass building phase and am minimizing any and all catabolic effects/activities. I usually do 35-40 minutes but I could probably do 2 20 minute sessions and benefit from that if they were intense enough. I might just do that. hmmm, perhaps me's will...

029924 · 07-Dec-04, 06:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by candyass

Cardio is not going to stop you from gaining muscle size. What it will do is produce more slow twitch muslce fiber, which will make you slightly weaker. I wouldnt worry too much about this unless you are interested in powerlifting or olympic lifting.

But having said that, you still want to minimize this effect. To do this, dont do the usually plodding jog on the treadmill. Instead alternate a minute of heavy sprints with a minute of cooldowns.

As for me, I dont do cardio; I manage my weight with a good diet and olympic lifts. However, keep in mind that we're all different. The average amount of cardio that most people say you should do is 20 min twice a week. This might be enough for you, if might be too little, or too much. So feel free to experiment.

Thanks for the help guys!

: I will try 2 x 20 mins a week doing sprints and cooldowns and see how it goes from there.

Cheers

kielbasa · 07-Dec-04, 11:45 PM

im currently doing about 60mins cardio a day if i do my bike, or 30 if i do skipping, + the jogging and situps n pushups.. each day i never let my self off.. ive lost 35 pounds last year and ive seen small differences now as i took up the cardio 2 months ago, but i cant see my self getting ripped down to a 6pack any time soon..

Cort · 08-Dec-04, 10:55 AM

2 - 3 runs per week. Each ranging from 1 - 4 miles.

falcon64 · 08-Dec-04, 11:57 AM

Hi Guys,
I started out doing 20min with a 5 min. cool down on a good commercial eliptical machine 3 days a week prior to a full body workout, but found that doing both in the same day was really taking away from my productivity so far as lifting was concerned especially considering I'm 46.

Now I do my cardio at home on the alternate days (still 3 times @ 20mins.) I don't have a problem with BF (right now about 13%) but IMO especially considering my age it's wise to continue the cardio to keep my plumbing in good shape!

kielbasa · 08-Dec-04, 08:09 PM

which plumbing are you refering too falcon? to keep the arteries flowing smooth... or...

: lol

falcon64 · 08-Dec-04, 08:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kielbasa

which plumbing are you refering too falcon? to keep the arteries flowing smooth... or...

: lol

LOL!

Yeah keilbasa the arteries, the other plumbing seems to be working fine on it's own.

Dragon · 08-Dec-04, 09:54 PM

Still trying to reduce fat so, on non-lifting days, at least 3 days a week 45 to 60 minutes per

Gilogy · 09-Dec-04, 09:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dragon

Still trying to reduce fat so, on non-lifting days, at least 3 days a week 45 to 60 minutes per

Ditto! But for one of those days I do a 20 minute HIIT session. Variety is good!