1Fastgtx no cardio? HUH?

[admiringjohn8]

I always see this guy mentioning that he does no cardio. Being he's the member of the year and judging from the quality of his posts, I assume this guy knows his stuff. How the hell is it possible to look the guy in his avator and do no cardio? I'm certainly no expert, but I've been reading my butt off this past month or so and everything seems to indicate this is wrong??

I did a search of all his threads AND most of his posts and couldn't find him discussing this. Can anybody point me in the right direction-either with his posts or just this philosophy in general?

Dear god do I hate cardio!

Thanks.

[The Abdominal Snowman]

From a bodybuilding perspective, cardio is just a way to create a caloric deficit. If you're able to eat below your caloric needs without sacrificing essential intake of vitamins, minerals, protein, carbohydrates and fat, there's no reason for a bodybuilder to do cardiovascular exercise. Of course, if your goal is to be fit and healthy, some cardio is recommended. If you really hate cycling, swimming or other more intense cardio workouts, you can take brisk walks instead.

[Gordo]

if your goal is to be fit and healthy, some cardio is recommended.

....that's a bold statement. I'm sure a guy like Mastover would debate whether or the lack of cardio has impeded his fitness or his health.

Do cardio because you like it....nothing says you HAVE to do it to be healthy. Many people can't eat the way they should (more of a mental game than anything) so they add cardio to create a caloric deficit.

Cardio is just a buzz word more or less.

For instance....would a free-climber be any less "fit and healthy" than a marathoner? Different fitness goals exihibt different body type characteristics as the end result of the activity.

[admiringjohn8]

Originally Posted by The Abdominal Snowman

From a bodybuilding perspective, cardio is just a way to create a caloric deficit. If you're able to eat below your caloric needs without sacrificing essential intake of vitamins, minerals, protein, carbohydrates and fat, there's no reason for a bodybuilder to do cardiovascular exercise. Of course, if your goal is to be fit and healthy, some cardio is recommended. If you really hate cycling, swimming or other more intense cardio workouts, you can take brisk walks instead.

But what really distinguishes a "bodybuilder" from a ripped guy with huge muscle and little fat? In other words, (assuming the avator pic is 1fastgtx) he doesn't look like a chubby, muscular guy on a dirty bulk. He looks ideal. So regardless of what name you give his training status, how do you get that lean w/o cardio?

[admiringjohn8]

Originally Posted by Gordo

....that's a bold statement. I'm sure a guy like Mastover would debate whether or the lack of cardio has impeded his fitness or his health.

Do cardio because you like it....nothing says you HAVE to do it to be healthy. Many people can't eat the way they should (more of a mental game than anything) so they add cardio to create a caloric deficit.

Cardio is just a buzz word more or less.

For instance....would a free-climber be any less "fit and healthy" than a marathoner? Different fitness goals exihibt different body type characteristics as the end result of the activity.

OK, I think I understand your points. So you view cardio as more of an insurance policy for unhealthy eating?

So in other words, its the opinion of 1fast and yourself that 3-4 hours of lifting at a decent HR creates enough of a "burn" to lose fat and look great provided you eat properly? Per week that is...

[BBN]

Just like others have said he just consumes the right amount of calories. Your diet is the biggest factor how you look.

[Bluestreak]

Originally Posted by admiringjohn8

So regardless of what name you give his training status, how do you get that lean w/o cardio?

You're missing what's being said. Fat loss comes down to caloric deficit.

How you create the deficit doesn't matter - 1FastGTX carries more lean mass than many people tend to (he outweighs me by some 60 lbs. and stands only a couple inches taller, yet has comparable, if not lower, body fat). Therefore, with his lean mass, he'll expend a great deal more energy weight lifting than I will. This lessens and can even eliminate the need for cardio to create that caloric deficit necessary to force the body to look to your fat stores for energy. This still requires a precise and clean diet.

Originally Posted by admiringjohn8

OK, I think I understand your points. So you view cardio as more of an insurance policy for unhealthy eating?

No. No. No, no, no! With regards to calorie management, cardio is nothing more than a way to get your body to expend calories.

-R

[karatetricker]

Originally Posted by admiringjohn8

OK, I think I understand your points. So you view cardio as more of an insurance policy for unhealthy eating?

So in other words, its the opinion of 1fast and yourself that 3-4 hours of lifting at a decent HR creates enough of a "burn" to lose fat and look great provided you eat properly? Per week that is...

Cardio allows you to do two things:

1) Eat more calories so your body doesn't use lean mass for energy.
2) Create a larger caloric defecit.

If you can lift intensely enough and make sure your nutrition timing is optimal, you can definitely be in a calorie defecit and maintain muscle. Add in your lifting activity, and you can certainly burn fat without cardio.

IMO, cardio is by no means necessary for fat loss (for most people), it merely speeds up the process.

[rtestes]

Originally Posted by admiringjohn8

I'm certainly no expert, but I've been reading my butt off this past month or so and everything seems to indicate this is wrong??

I did a search of all his threads AND most of his posts and couldn't find him discussing this. Can anybody point me in the right direction-either with his posts or just this philosophy in general?Dear god do I hate cardio!

Cardio burns calories, it builds few if any muscles. Weight training burns calories, it builds muscle. There is nothing magic about the calories burned by either, it doesn't seek out certain fat or areas to attack. You can't spot reduce, you can spot build. Think about it, we build in extra calories to intake based on our activity. So we add in 200-400 calories a day for cardio and then we burn them off by doing cardio. Why not just not eat them?

Cardio is suppose to increase your heart and circulation system's health and maybe it does, but no one has shown that cardio increases lifespan. I think activity should be a part of our lives in a recreational manner. Swim, play sports, hike, walk the dog, get that heart rate up. It recreational.

Cardio is the exercising of leg and lower body muscles over a constant period of time, it raises your heart rate. Weight training done with reduced rest between sets increases your Heart rate. A well planned weight routine places all your muscles under increased workload. Squatting with 200+lbs for 8-12reps on shoulder places more work on lower body muscles then a moderate walk for 30 minutes.

Cardio has its place in the plans of many, it is not a requirement.

[gborn]

Cardio certainly isn't required to lose fat. Calorie deficit is. However, I think cardio is important for heart health. I have seen many a ripped bodybuilder huff and puff up a flight of stairs. My dad always reminds me, "You'll die of a weak heart, not weak arms." Mean while, I am still going for the shredded, bodybuilder look!

[michael2938]

Cardio can provide other benefits such as improved heart, lung capacity, endurance, etc. I think with strength training (and it depends on how you do it), you won't get those benefits to the same degree cardio provides them.

-Mike

[Gordo]

Cardio is just a word....

weight training using circuits....shorter rests or higher reps WILL accomplish pretty much the same goal.
Do 20 reps squats for sets will accomplish the same lactate build up and threshhold training as say jogging.

You could rep out for 50 or 100 with an appropriate weight and you'd be training you cardiovascular system with weights or you could go for a nice long extended run.
The training target, in how your CNS handles the stress, would be different because the motion, method and stress is different, but, you could theoretically expend the same cals.

You are just using a different way.

100 cals from waterskiiing = 100 cals from running = 100 cals from weight-training.
No more, no less. How long it takes for each activity to expend those cals....will be different depending on your state of conditioning for each exercise and the exercise itself.

Someone who has never trained running before will burn cals faster than someone has is extremely good at running. It takes the fitter person longer to expend those cals because they are simply more efficient at performing the task.

Cross-training was introduced because the varied activities makes you burn even more cals than if you simply trained one way all the time. That's why you mix it up....the activity, the stress, the length, reps, sets etc... All in an effort to prevent adaptation (which we are very good at doing).

[bkaraff]

Originally Posted by gborn

However, I think cardio is important for heart health. I have seen many a ripped bodybuilder huff and puff up a flight of stairs.

I was going to make this exact point. I believe telling someone new to this to not do cardio is REALLY bad advice.

If you're going to make drastic changes in your diet & work your ass off with weights, why cant you find time to ride your bike around the block a few times?
I suppose if your goals dont include "be healthy" somewhere near "look good naked" then this really isnt about fitness, its about aesthetics.
Maybe John should change the name of the site to johnstonemalemodels.com

I can only speak from my own experience, but I know that the cardio I do every day is why I dont feel like hell all day like I used to.
When I started only 2 months ago, I nearly passed out after 5 minutes on the stationary bike. Now I do 45min before work every day and feel great because of it.

[TheLemonSong]

Originally Posted by bkaraff

Maybe John should change the name of the site to johnstonemalemodels.com

Speaking of which...Hey John, when are you going to drop Blue Steel on us buddy?


Cardio = Fun; Lifting = Serious; Both = Fitness

[inurb]

I'm doing 8x8's and I can feel my heart beat just as hard as if I were jogging on a treadmill. So like everyone else is saying there is more than one way to skin a cat.

[M@]

The American Heart Association has a great deal of information regarding the benefits of activity on your overall health, most relating to the reduction of heart disease risk. However, they classify an appropriate "Activity" target as "30-60 minutes most days of the week." Examples provided that that would qualify as "Activities" include housework, pleasure walking, gardening, dancing, and home exercise.

The only mention of the kind of activity I would classify as "cardio" I could find on their site was:

"More vigorous aerobic activities, such as brisk walking, running, swimming, bicycling, roller skating and jumping rope are best for improving the fitness of the heart and lungs."

So while gardening a half hour a day will do good things for you, running and swimming are even better. Okay, that makes sense. As long as you're lifting 3 days a week for an hour each time you'd be satisfying the AHA's qualifications for an active lifestyle. If you don't care about the improved heart efficiency, increased lung capacity, and extended caloric deficit cardio provides and think you've got the discipline and good eating habits to meet your goals without its help, ditch it.

M@

[1FastGTX]

Nope, I don't do cardio. Will I when I hit a lower bodyfat? Maybe, I'm not sure yet. I've said this before!

Rarely do I suggest to any new trainee that he/she eliminate cardio, at least not without really looking at his or her goals, diet, training, preferences, etc. In fact, I've helped many friends structure their training split and included cardio of different types to the plan.

I believe that RTE made a good statement: "Cardio has its place in the plans of many, it is not a requirement." I agree. I don't think cardio is bad, I just don't feel I need to do it. That's all.

The statements about heart health are interesting. I don't agree that in order for my "heart to be healthy" that the treadmill (or bike or swimming or etc.) are necessary. I don't huff and puff going up the stairs either. I get a fairly decent cardiovascular workout during my training, though I'm not specifically trying to structure weightlifting for this purpose. Believe me, after a workout of box squats, rack pulls, parking lot lunges, board presses, sled pulls, etc. I am breathing pretty heavy.

[Reeze]

Originally Posted by 1FastGTX

The statements about heart health are interesting. I don't agree that in order for my "heart to be healthy" that the treadmill (or bike or swimming or etc.) are necessary. I don't huff and puff going up the stairs either. I get a fairly decent cardiovascular workout during my training, though I'm not specifically trying to structure weightlifting for this purpose. Believe me, after a workout of box squats, rack pulls, parking lot lunges, board presses, sled pulls, etc. I am breathing pretty heavy.

Is it possible this is holding you back? On some exercises I feel that my muscles could take more, but I can't push them anymore because I'm too out of breath. I'm looking forward to picking up cardio again properly to see if that means I can make faster progress with the weight training.

Also, why do some people find cardio makes them feel better (mentally and physically), but just weight lifting doesn't? Is it a difference in the individual, or perhaps a difference in the weight training workouts between those who find a benefit and those who don't?

[guava]

Originally Posted by Reeze

Also, why do some people find cardio makes them feel better (mentally and physically), but just weight lifting doesn't? Is it a difference in the individual, or perhaps a difference in the weight training workouts between those who find a benefit and those who don't?

I feel better immediately after a workout on the elliptical, and about 15 minutes to an hour after a lifting workout. If lifting doesn't make a person feel better, it might be a good idea to choose a different style of lifting. For instance, I enjoy lifting 6 reps of heavy weight, or 12 to 15 reps of lighter weights, but lifting moderate weights for 8 to 12 reps does not improve my mood. (Physically, I still feel better after that last option, but only feel mentally better on the other extremes.)

[Weight-Tress]

Originally Posted by 1FastGTX

Believe me, after a workout of box squats, rack pulls, parking lot lunges, board presses, sled pulls, etc. I am breathing pretty heavy.

May I ask, what is a 'parking lot lunge'?