blabbate Posted October 14, 2008 Share Posted October 14, 2008 I'm trying to bulk but keep the fat gain to a minimum, so my current schedule is 1-1.5 hrs weight training every other day and 20-30 min HIIT on the off days. My diet is currently 2700 to 3000 cals a day and rising, about 60-70% carbs, 10-15% fat, 20-30% protein, depending on the day. Is the HIIT a good choice for keeping off excess fat without interfering too much with muscle gain? I've seen a variety of opinions here. Looks like some people recommend no cardio, some recommend just staying away from long- or mid-duration aerobic cardio, and some recommend HIIT. I'm willing to try any variety of options. Any advice would be appreciated! Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nails Posted October 14, 2008 Share Posted October 14, 2008 Do you mean HIT (high intensity training)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 14, 2008 Share Posted October 14, 2008 Of course, there are loads of opinions! That's why it's best to try and find what works best for you personally. It's all trial and error. My two cents would be: - decrease carb intake and increase protein/fat (helps to keep gains somewhat leaner)- do regular, low to medium intensity cardio 1-2 times a week or HIIT once a week- drink a lot of water- try to move as much as you can (choose stairs instead of the elevator, park your car further from the shop, etc.) HIIT is great, but if you lift 3-4 times a week and also do HIIT, it's quite likely you'll overtrain pretty fast as HIIT, just like lifting weights, is intensive exercise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blabbate Posted October 14, 2008 Author Share Posted October 14, 2008 Do you mean HIT (high intensity training)?High Intensity Interval Training, yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blabbate Posted October 14, 2008 Author Share Posted October 14, 2008 Of course, there are loads of opinions! That's why it's best to try and find what works best for you personally. It's all trial and error. My two cents would be: - decrease carb intake and increase protein/fat (helps to keep gains somewhat leaner)- do regular, low to medium intensity cardio 1-2 times a week or HIIT once a week- drink a lot of water- try to move as much as you can (choose stairs instead of the elevator, park your car further from the shop, etc.)More fat will help keep gains leaner? Interesting. Does the body try to retain the fat more when levels are very low? As to protein, I'm at about 0.75g/lb, so I can see upping it to 1g/lb or 1.25. By low to medium intensity exercise, I assume that's just a normal jog or bike ride for about 30 minutes. And I drink about 160-180 oz of water a day with no caffeine or diuretics, so I should be ok there. HIIT is great, but if you lift 3-4 times a week and also do HIIT, it's quite likely you'll overtrain pretty fast as HIIT, just like lifting weights, is intensive exercise.I guess that's what I was worrying about, especially after a lower-body weights day. Going all anaerobic might tear up the muscles too much. Thanks for the help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 14, 2008 Share Posted October 14, 2008 More fat will help keep gains leaner? Interesting. Does the body try to retain the fat more when levels are very low?I can't really explain why is that so, but I know a lot of people do this and it also seems to be working for me, so I assume it's not such a bad idea (although high fat should probably be avoided for long periods of time). Let's just wait a bit, somebody should definitely explain this. As to protein, I'm at about 0.75g/lb, so I can see upping it to 1g/lb or 1.25.Yeah, at least 1g/lb would be good. But I would just try to go by percentage of the total caloric intake. By low to medium intensity exercise, I assume that's just a normal jog or bike ride for about 30 minutes.Correct. Thanks for the help!No problem! I wish I could tell you more, but I'm also just a n00b in this area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RawVgn Posted October 15, 2008 Share Posted October 15, 2008 I, and many aquantances, stay very lean eating over 80% of our cals from carbs. Carbs can make you flabby because they contain high NET energy compared to fats and proteins, which require far more energy to digest than simple carbs. The key to thriving on high carb diets is to only eat them raw-so their water and fiber are intact; cooking dehydrates most carbs-like a baked potatoe-and increase their caloric density so it is easy to overeat. Keep your carbs whole-like fresh fruit-and it is very hard to overeat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VeganEssentials Posted October 15, 2008 Share Posted October 15, 2008 I haven't really given HIIT cardio training a good shot, but a LOT of people swear by it for keeping the fat off while bulking, so it's definitely worth a shot! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veggieprincess Posted October 25, 2008 Share Posted October 25, 2008 blabbate, my advice would be to stick with low intensity cardio while trying to bulk. High intensity cardio can burn fat, but sometimes at the expense of the precious lean muscle tissue you are trying so hard to lay down. Therefore, you can't go wrong with low intensity cardio performed after your weights or on alternate days to keep the fat at bay but still preserve the lean muscle. An BCAA recovery drink such as Xtend by Scivation consumed while training is a good idea as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blabbate Posted October 27, 2008 Author Share Posted October 27, 2008 blabbate, my advice would be to stick with low intensity cardio while trying to bulk. High intensity cardio can burn fat, but sometimes at the expense of the precious lean muscle tissue you are trying so hard to lay down. Therefore, you can't go wrong with low intensity cardio performed after your weights or on alternate days to keep the fat at bay but still preserve the lean muscle. An BCAA recovery drink such as Xtend by Scivation consumed while training is a good idea as well. As a matter of fact, I got my first delivery of Xtend this past Saturday. (Ordered Thursday evening!) I've only used it for two workouts, so I can't say anything about effectiveness yet, but it's certainly deliciously grape. Is there anywhere cheaper than bodybuilding.com to buy it? At this point, I've resigned myself to gaining some weight, maybe going up a pants size, then cutting back down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veggieprincess Posted October 27, 2008 Share Posted October 27, 2008 Don't know how much you paid. But I think I get it for around $55 - $60 for the large conainter and about $20 to $25 for the small at my local nutrition stores. I don't know the cheapest place to get it, but just keep doing google searches to compare prices. Sorry, I can't remember if you're a guy or a girl (I think your a guy), so I'd also say double check bodybuilding.com's forum for the amounts most of the men are taking. I think its more scoops than is recommended on the container for men in order to see good results. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blabbate Posted October 27, 2008 Author Share Posted October 27, 2008 Don't know how much you paid. But I think I get it for around $55 - $60 for the large conainter and about $20 to $25 for the small at my local nutrition stores. I don't know the cheapest place to get it, but just keep doing google searches to compare prices. Sorry, I can't remember if you're a guy or a girl (I think your a guy), so I'd also say double check bodybuilding.com's forum for the amounts most of the men are taking. I think its more scoops than is recommended on the container for men in order to see good results.I am a guy, about 175 lbs, so it's probably more than listed on the container. I'll look around there and see. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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