Does cardio burn your muscles?

Kyndle · April 11th, 2007, 07:47 PM

Is it true that if you get your heartrate up too high that it will burn your gains?

**johnny_on_the_spot** · April 11th, 2007, 08:24 PM

to some extent i think that is true, but you will probably only lose a little... you have to be over like 80% of your heart rate for that to happen, which is approx. 220 - your age...

but if you lift hard and then do something like HIIT you arent going to lose all your gains, you will probably only lose a little, but by doing the hard cardio you will increase your bodies ability to carry oxygen to the blood cells, which will have a greater effect with everything in your life... trust me, it is a better trade off for you

Kyndle · April 11th, 2007, 09:09 PM

Nicely put

**johnny_on_the_spot** · April 11th, 2007, 09:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kyndle

Nicely put

i do what i can

**raijin1** · April 11th, 2007, 10:07 PM

Generally I tell people "the more cardio you do, the better" simply because most people will still never do enough to reach the goals they want to attain. However, it is possible to go overboard and cannibalize muscle tissue with cardio...

Some things to consider... If you are...

1.. Lifting/resistance training regularly
2...Consuming enough calories daily (specifically protein, if gaining/maintaining lean muscle tissue is a goal for you) to maintain your weight...

it is possible, although unlikely, that you are going to hurt yourself with too much cardio.

On the flip side, if you think you are going to lean up and drop weight fast by cutting your calorie intake way down (crash/fad dieting) AND doing massive/intense amounts of cardio, then yes you will send your body into a catabolic state and you will lose lean muscle mass...

**pliny_2001** · April 11th, 2007, 10:38 PM

Someone with a recent health textbook could set me right, but I think that this is how it works: Your body prefers to use glycogen (blood sugar) to run the ATP energy cycle. If glycogen isn't present (or isn't being replenished fast enough), the best two remaining energy sources are fat and muscle. Fat takes some time to break apart into its energy components, so the body will catabolize muscle first.

One of the theories behind HIIT is that the recovery intervals allows the body to produce and transport more glycogen (and oxygen) - so there's less muscle breakdown (and more work done on the cardiovascular system). One of the problems with doing significant cardio while attempting to gain muscle is that both take an incredible amount of energy -- it's difficult for the body to do either well, so it will only do a moderate job of both.

So heart-rate alone won't burn muscle mass - it's only an elevated heart-rate for long enough to burn through your body's blood sugar supply (the body will burn fat when there's a slight, longer-term energy shortage - by doing cardio, you're really burning fat in the time frame after your workout, when you are only eating a normal amount, but the body needs a bit more due to it's elevated post-workout metabolism. To fuel this need, the body will burn fat. Of course, if you just start starving yourself, the body holds onto fat like grim death, and will instead burn your lean body mass - this is why you're supposed to aim for a slow weight loss (2 lbs/week), and not a crash diet).

**tankado** · April 12th, 2007, 12:25 AM

I find that I still have the energy to run or do the stepper, but my hamstrings are killing me at times. Can you guys recommend anything for me to help?

**raijin1** · April 12th, 2007, 07:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tankado

I find that I still have the energy to run or do the stepper, but my hamstrings are killing me at times. Can you guys recommend anything for me to help?

Err... try stretching them before and after your workout...

Kyndle · April 12th, 2007, 10:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tankado

I find that I still have the energy to run or do the stepper, but my hamstrings are killing me at times. Can you guys recommend anything for me to help?

This happens to me too. After I'm done with my workout I'll just sprint it out until I'm tired.

Dave160 · April 12th, 2007, 11:28 AM

iam a 170 pound hardgainer, ive gained about 35 pounds since i started lifting about 10 months ago.... I've never done cardio, just lifted. My waistline is somewhat bloated to where i need to lose 3/4 to an inch of fat around my abs to see them.

Would biking on a level surface at a moderate pace for 40 minutes, two times a week be the right amount of cardio for me?