5 Recurring cardio mistakes

• 1: BAD TIMING

Cardio has often been thought of as a warm-up activity. This is why many bodybuilders do their cardio before working out. This reduces energy levels for bodybuilding and limits fat burning. Some even prefer to do them separately. This is not ideal either. A 2007 study showed that people doing their cardio session after resistance training burned about twice as much fat as if they did cardio separately. Research has also shown that individuals doing their cardio before strength training had very low growth hormone levels during the workout, unlike those who tackled strength training directly. Too low a level of growth hormone during bodybuilding = limited muscle development.

• 2: INTENSITY

There are generally two schools on the subject: moderate-intensity cardio and high-intensity cardio. Both approaches will lose fat but neither is ideal. Research has shown that the best approach combines the 2, high and low intensity cardio. This will not only have a big impact on fat loss, but will also reduce overall workout time.

• 3: DO JUST CARPET

Hamstering for hours is the number one reason people avoid cardio. Standing still is actually unattractive. Most modern gyms have more to offer than bikes, treadmills and rowing machines. Try to vary as much as possible so as not to get bored and as soon as the opportunity arises, get out! Go jogging, swimming, cycling, jumping rope, basketball or football for example. Exercising outdoors is often much more enjoyable and allows you to burn calories while having fun.

• 4: INSUFFICIENT RECOVERY

The fear of losing muscle gains due to cardio is certainly exaggerated, but not unfounded. Overdoing it will in particular slow down the recovery of certain muscle groups such as the thighs and thus limit their development. In fact, some studies show that endurance athletes have very low testosterone levels because of the excessive distances covered, which stresses the body. This is another reason to limit cardio sessions to 45 minutes.

• 5: DO CARDIO ON AN EMPTY STOMACH Many

People think that cardio should be attacked as soon as you wake up, as long as the body is in a state of catabolism, in order to better stimulate fat burning. This is true to some degree, but it also promotes the loss of muscle tissue. For those who do their cardio in the morning, here are some rules to follow: no carbohydrates, including fruits and fast sugars take 20 to 30g of whey protein before your cardio so as not to destroy muscle tissue. It won’t prevent fat loss. Some studies even show that having amino acids in the blood during cardio can accelerate fat loss.