Increasing cardio for more fat loss but dont want to lose muscle

[highaltitudebc]

On a keto diet and i am looking at increasing cardio time from 30 min to 60.Gonna keep my BPM under 130.not gonna do an HIIT.Just wondering if by doing this i will lose muscle mass? i Plan on taking BCAA's before cardio. I read it will prevent muscle from being used as a fuel source.So far keto diet is working well. I was 211 lbs and after 2 weeks i am down to 198 lbs.Thanks for an info or help you can give me.

[Praetorian]

There are two types of cardio for fat loss and muscle maintenance...low intensity ie moderate paced walking and CORRECT HIT....notice the "correct" in caps....this is for a reason because most people who think they are doing HIT are not. HIT is sled pulling/pushing or hill sprints etc. Interval running walking on a treadmill is NOT HIT and neither is stair climber or fast elliptical these are steady state cardio and com with all the negative sides like muscle loss. If on a keto diet I would suggest moderate paced walking outdoors and gradually adding time each week...ie if week one you walked for 20min per day then week two you walk for 25 or 30 min depending on how much fat you lost the previous week. You never increase from 30min to 60min that is a recipe for disaster. Your body adapts to cardio and if you increase that much I hope you really enjoy cardio because to keep dropping fat you will be doing 3-4 hours daily in no time! You do not need to use BCAA's to prevent muscle loss...you can use them if you like but they are added calories just keep that in mind.

P

[TT Eric]

Ted, for someone on keto is there a possibility to eventually loose muscle if doing slow cardio in a fasted state in the morning ? I mean 20-30 min should not be a problem, but when you're up to 60min can it be detrimental ?

I thought not, but CT in a recent article says that natural bbers should avoid doing cardio in a fasted state, slow cardio is less worse, but doesn't seems ideal either.

Eric

[Praetorian]

I've worked with many natural BB's and have had them up to 60-70min in the morning in a fasted state and they did not lose an ounce of muscle. You have to remember if you are doing low intensity cardio ie using ketone bodies and free fatty acids for fuel and not going into oxygen debt thus glucose is not required then you are in a muscle preservation state. The body will require glucose if you are doing cardio which requires a faster fuel source ie HIT or steady state...and thus it will either use glycogen it has stored if any or if in ketosis it will convert amino acids (muscle) into glucose via gluconeogenesis. I have even had natural BB doing HIT in a fasted state because they were behind in their prep or they had gone on a binge etc and even then losing muscle is not easy. Guys seem to think that muscle simply falls off the body when we do something other then lift weights and they need to down all kinds of bcaa's and minimize cardio etc or they will lose all the muscle they have. This is nonsense and it is also the main reason why very few people ever reach a competitive bodyfat level...its pure fear and ignorance. Oh and by the way these are the same guys that tell you they gained ten pounds while dieting...LOL!

P

[TT Eric]

Ok thanks, this is what I always thought, but when I've read CT saying that naturals should avoid it, I was not so sure anymore.

Does it make an appreciable difference on fat loss if done fasted vs right after eating ? I mean, the morning is the time of the day I'm the hungriest, if I could drink my eggs just before walking, I would not mind walking double the time as a trade off. lol

Eric

[Praetorian]

I have always done fasted cardio as well as my clients. You could try it to see what happens for a week. Also don't eat and walk more that's defeating the purpose...why do more than you have to...again do the minimum amount of cardio necessary to illicit a 2lb fat loss per week...no more.

P