After doing MAX-OT (HIIT, more and more cals burned each time) cardio for a few weeks, I lost fat but now I have lost muscle as well. I dropped from 151 lbs to 145 lbs and a problem with getting up the weight I was getting before. My fat percentage has not really dropped much, as I am around 8-9%. I am trying to finish off around 6%, but so far I have had no luck. Only losing muscle.

I'm 5'9.5", 145 pounds, and about 8-9% BF. I'm eating 2200 calories (upped yesterday from 1900 for the first 6 weeks...aka since January 1), and I am using MAX-OT lifting everynight. I recently put up 90 pound dumbbells on bench 6 times, which is amazing considering my size. However, now it is even hard to put the weight in the air. My strength has plateaued and is dipping. I take CLA, Sesamin, and multis daily.

Anyways, I plan to start doing 30-40 minutes of LISS every morning at between 130-140 bpm (my 65%-75%). My question is, how long after it can I eat? I figure I'll cool down for 5 minutes, takes 5 minutes to get home, then a 10 minute shower and I'd like to eat. But I was reading I should give it 45 minutes?

What should I do? I gotta finish this last bit of fat off....

I've heard to give yourself 1 hour after your done doing the fasted cardio. From my understanding that is how long your body is supposed to continue to burn fat reserves after your done doing cardio.

Some people like to wait an hour to eat, thinking that not eating will help burn a bit more fat due to increased metabolism. Personally, I don't think it matters that much. I highly doubt an LISS session will raise metabolism significantly enough to burn significant amount of fat anyways.

I have heard it the other way, that you should eat within an hour of fasted LISS and that is what I do.

My understanding is that fasted LISS is not designed to elevate your metabolism post cardio. It is designed to burn fat (as opposed to muscle) during the cardio. Eating within the hour after fasted LISS is to stop any catabolic consequences.

This is in contrast HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training), which is designed to raise your metabolism post-cardio/ If I recollect correctly, you are to eat something b/f HIIT but I don't recall what the rule is about eating afterwards. You can do a search on these forums. HIIT vs LISS is one of the most debated topics in this forum and in physical fitness over all.

Just to mention, I read an article by someone who took all the research on HIIT and its advantages and LISS and its advantages and put them together to see what differences one could find between the 2 approaches.

Interestingly enough, he found that if you look at a 24 hour day, that though LISS and HIIT burned fat (and calories -- I believe) to different degrees at different times of the day (e.g., during cardio or post cardio) when you went considered the whole 24 hour period, the accumulated result of each approach was EXACTLY the same... so in fact one was not superior to the other.

This actually makes sense. Because the extent this subject is debated and so on-going, given each person's experience with their preferred approach... it would make sense that the debate as to which was better would never be resolved if the effects of each were identical.

And it also proves that in the end, you should do the one that appeals to you the most... as that is the one you are most likely to do.

I prefer HIIT because (1) it's 20 minutes, (2) I like the intensity of it. maybe I'd have the same results with LISS, but if I'm capable of doing HIIT, why not?

I prefer HIIT because (1) it's 20 minutes, (2) I like the intensity of it. maybe I'd have the same results with LISS, but if I'm capable of doing HIIT, why not?

Sounds good.
I do LISS because I can pop in a movie and enjoy it while I do cardio.
Instead of watching the movie the night before, I just watch it the next morning. Two birds with one stone. :nod:

You can eat a P + F meals as soon as you'd like. I'd also recommend half a scoop of protein powder BEFORE doing the cardio. The 50 calories of protein will not impede fat-burning. But it will prevent a rise in cortisol and help prevent catabolism.