Workout smart! :)

Stop wasting your time!
Although any cardio is better than no cardio at all, if you want results you must workout smart. If you are serious about your goals then please read :)

The best time to perform cardio:
*morning: you wake up on an empty stomach, therefore your blood glucose levels are low. If you perform cardio, your body will tap into its fat stores for energy.
*on your “off days” when you are not lifting-try to do it 3 hours after your last meal and an hour before your next.
*after lifting if you cannot do it on an “off day”

As with weight training, timing is everything!

The worst times to perform cardio are:
*before weight lifting
*right after a meal

The carbs we eat before a workout are converted into energy (glucose). Any glucose that is not used is stored in the muscles and then the liver in the form of glycogen. Any excess is stored as fat. The pre workout meal that I so highly recommend before weight training is what fuels your workout. Glucose (blood sugar) is the preferred source of fuel for weight training. As you continue to lift you slowly use up the glucose from your meal. The body begins to tap into its fat stores for energy… you are in the fat burning zone! Now when you hop on the treadmill, you are set up for some serious fat burning!

If you perform cardio first, your body will use your food to fuel your workout. Once you are done, the fuel from the food is gone and it is then that you are in the fat burning zone. Your body will tap into its fat stores for energy to fuel your weight lifting which is not what you want, as fat is not the optimal energy source for lifting.


The amount of cardio you should be doing also depends on what your goal is. Do you want to get lean, build muscle, or be somewhere in between?

If you want to build muscle:
*3 times a week for 30 minutes
* best options are HIIT (high intensity training)
*interval training

If you want to be a lean mean machine :)
*build up to 4-6 days
*30-60 min…switch it up!

If you are in between:
*number of cardio days= aprox. Weight training days

I hope this helps! If you have any questions, please let me know. If you want a more detailed explanation refer to the following websites:

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1608/is_10_19/ai_108838859/
http://www.ultimate-u.com/optimalcardio.pdf