A.M. fat burn - By Tom Venuto

[Action]

An excellent article on fat burning, morning cardio and HIIT (high intensity interval training):

A.M. Fat Burn
Author: Tom Venuto
Date: Aug 01, 2001

Even though morning cardio has been embraced by bodybuilders as a "tried and true" fat loss technique, there is definitely not a unanimous agreement about its effectiveness, especially in the scientific community. Most competitive bodybuilders are die-hard advocates of doing cardio first thing in the morning before eating their first meal. They believe it will cause them to mobilize more stored body fat and increase their metabolic rate all day long. There’s quite a bit of scientific literature supporting the a.m. fasted cardio theory, but generally, the exercise physiologists and scientists tend not to buy it. They subscribe to the energy balance hypothesis, which states; as long as you burn more calories than you consume in each 24 hour period, then the time of day you burn them doesn’t matter, nor does whether you burn them from fat or carbohydrate.

If you have even the most rudimentary understanding of human physiology and physics, you have to concede that the timing of your cardio is not the most important factor in fat loss. When you do your cardio won’t make or break you. Simply doing it whenever it’s convenient and following a mildly calorie restricted diet is what’s important. However, there’s a very strong case for doing fasted a.m. cardio and if you want to gain every legal and ethical advantage possible in your quest to get leaner then it’s definitely something you should take a closer look at.

The argument in favor of fasted early morning cardio goes something like this:

1. When you wake up in the morning after an overnight 8-12 hour fast, your body’s stores of glycogen are somewhat depleted. Doing cardio in this state causes your body to mobilize more fat because of the unavailability of glycogen.

2. Eating causes a release of insulin. Insulin interferes with the mobilization of body fat. Less insulin is present in the morning; therefore, more body fat is burned when cardio is done in the morning.

3. There is less carbohydrate (glucose) "floating around" in the bloodstream when you wake up after an overnight fast. With less glucose available, you will burn more fat.

4. If you eat immediately before a workout, you have to burn off what you just ate first before tapping into stored body fat (and insulin is elevated after a meal.)

5. When you do cardio in the morning, your metabolism stays elevated for a period of time after the workout is over. If you do cardio in the evening, you burn calories during the session so you definitely benefit from it, but you fail to take advantage of the "afterburn" effect because your metabolic rate drops dramatically as soon as you go to sleep.

Research supports this theory. A study performed at Kansas State University and published in Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise showed that a kilogram of fat is burned sooner when exercise is done in the fasted state in the morning than when it’s done later in the day. The researchers measured respiratory gas exchange, caloric expenditure and carbohydrate and fatty acid metabolism, and found that the amount of fat burned during aerobic exercise amounted to 67% of the total energy expenditure in the morning after a 12 hour fast. This is substantially higher than the 50% expenditure achieved when the same exercise was done later in the day or after eating. A similar study from The Journal of Applied Physiology looked at the effects of aerobic exercise on lipid oxidation in fed versus fasted states. The researchers concluded, "our results support the hypothesis that endurance training enhances lipid oxidation in men after a 12 hour overnight fast." Yet another scientific paper, Optimizing Exercise for Fat Loss," reports, "The ability of exercise to selectively promote fat oxidation should be optimized if exercise is done during morning fasted metabolism."

Despite the fact that increased fat burning from morning aerobics seems logical and is backed by research, the majority of scientists and exercise physiologists vehemently deny its effectiveness. They are quick to point out that you can find a study to support almost any theory you want to advocate. Interestingly though, even the most dyed in the wool academics agree that you’ll burn more fat in the fuel mix as compared to sugars. The real controversy lies in whether this fact has any impact on overall fat loss in the long run.

Exercise Physiologist Greg Landry, MS, author of "The Metabolism System for Weight Loss and Fitness," explains, "I agree that you burn a fuel mix that is a little higher in fat if you’re exercising on an empty stomach. However, I think the real question is, does that matter? I believe we have a ‘pool’ of calories stored in different forms in the body (fat, glycogen, etc.), so ‘burned’ calories all come from the same pool. Thus, it really doesn’t matter that the fuel mix has a little more fat in it at a given time. If it’s pulling from fat stores at that time, then it’s pulling less from glycogen stores and thus future consumed calories will be a little more likely to be stored as fat because glycogen stores are a little fuller. So it’s all a wash."

Lyle McDonald, an expert on bodybuilding nutrition and author of "The Ketogenic Diet," agrees. He argues that the body will compensate later in the day and is simply "too smart" for strategies like this to ever work: "All that research says is that you burn a greater proportion of fat this way, which I agree with 100%," says Lyle. "The majority of research shows that as far as real world fat loss goes, it doesn’t really matter what you burn. Rather, 24-hour calorie balance is what matters. Because if you burn glucose during exercise, you tend to burn more fat the rest of the day. If you burn fat during exercise, you burn more glucose during the day. The end result is identical. If that weren’t the case, then athletes like sprinters who never ‘burn fat’ during exercise wouldn’t be shredded. Basically, they burn so many calories that they remain in balance and don’t gain any fat. So, while morning cardio probably provides some psychological benefits to bodybuilders who are programmed to do it that way, I can’t say that I think it will result in greater ‘real world’ fat loss, which is what matters."

When it comes to "real world" fat loss, few people have more experience than Chris Aceto. A successful bodybuilder and nutritionist to some of the top pro bodybuilders in the world, Aceto is a firm believer in morning cardio. He unequivocally states, "The fastest way to tap stored body fat is to do cardio first thing in the morning on an empty stomach."

Aceto believes that looking at calories only in terms of energy in vs. energy out is "limited thinking." He asserts that there are more factors involved in "real world" results than just energy balance. This all comes back to the old argument, are all calories created equal? "Absolutely not!" Aceto declares. "A calorie is not just a calorie and exercise physiologists ‘freak out’ when they hear this."

"These guys are working from the assumption that it’s just a matter of calories in vs. calories out, period," Chris continued. "With that line of reasoning, they’d be forced to say that if I consume nothing but candy bars and Coca-Cola, and take in 100 calories less than maintenance, I’d lose weight. We know it’s not that simple. You also have to account for ratios of carbs, protein, and fat. Then there’s meal frequency too: From real world results we know you put down more muscle mass from 5 or 6 meals a day than from 3 meals a day. There are more things involved than just calories."

Whether or not morning cardio in the fasted state increases "real world" fat loss is still the subject of controversy, but there are many other reasons you might want to consider making it a part of your daily routine. Landry, despite his doubts about whether the fuel source matters, admits, "If I had to pick a single factor I thought was most important in a successful weight loss program, it would have to be to exercise first thing in the morning."

Here are some of the additional benefits of doing cardio early in the morning:

1.It makes you feel great all day by releasing mood-enhancing endorphins.

2. It "energizes" you and "wakes you up."

3. It may help regulate your appetite for the rest of the day.

4. Your body’s circadian rhythm adjusts to your morning routine, making it easier to wake up at the same time every day.

5. You’ll be less likely to "blow off" your workout when it’s out of the way early (like when you’re exhausted after work or when friends ask you to join them at the pub for happy hour).

6. You can always "make time" for exercise by setting your alarm earlier in the morning.

7. It increases your metabolic rate for hours after the session is over.

Of all these benefits, the post-exercise increase in your metabolic rate is one of the most talked about. Scientists call this "afterburn" effect the "excess post-exercise oxygen consumption" or EPOC for short.

Looking only at the number of calories and the type of calories burned during the session doesn’t give you the full picture. You also need to look at the increased number of calories you continue to burn after the workout is over. That’s right - work out in the morning and you burn calories all day long. Imagine burning extra fat as you sit at your desk at work! That’s the good news. The bad news is, the degree of EPOC is not as great as most people think. It’s a myth that your metabolism stays elevated for 24 hours after a regular aerobic workout. That only happens after extremely intense and/or prolonged exercise such as running a marathon.

After low intensity exercise, the magnitude of the EPOC is so small that its impact on fat loss is negligible. Somewhere between 9 and 30 extra calories are burned after exercise at an intensity of less than 60-65% of maximal heart rate. In other words, a casual stroll on the treadmill will do next to nothing to increase your metabolism.

However, EPOC does increase with the intensity (and duration) of the exercise. According to Wilmore and Costill in "Physiology of Sport and Exercise," the EPOC after moderate exercise (75-80%) will amount to approximately .25 kcal/min or 15 kcal/hour. This would provide an additional expenditure of 75 kcal that would not normally be calculated in the total energy expended for that activity. An extra 75 calories is definitely nothing Earth shattering. However, it does add up over time. In a year that would mean (in theory) you would burn an extra 5.2 lbs of fat from the additional calories expended after the workout.

One way to get a significant post exercise "afterburn" is high intensity interval training (HIIT). HIIT is done by alternating brief periods of high intensity work (85% or more) with brief periods of lower intensity work. Studies on the effects of HIIT have demonstrated a much higher EPOC, which can add substantially to the day’s calorie expenditure. In one study, scientists from the University of Alabama compared the effects of two exercise protocols on 24-hour energy expenditure. The first group cycled for 60 minutes at a moderate intensity. The second group performed HIIT, cycling for two minutes at high intensity followed by two minutes at a low intensity. The group that performed the HIIT burned 160 more calories in 24 hours than the low intensity group. That means the HIIT group would burn an extra 11.8 pounds of fat in one year if they did HIIT five days a week instead of conventional training.

Ironically, weight training has a much higher magnitude of EPOC than aerobic training. Studies have shown increases in metabolic rate of as much as 4-7% over a 24-hour period from resistance training. Yes - that means bodybuilding does burn fat – albeit through an indirect mechanism. For someone with an expenditure of 2500 calories per day, that could add up to 100 - 175 extra calories burned after your weight training workout is over. The lesson is simple: Anyone interested in losing body fat who is not lifting weights should first take up a regimen of bodybuilding, then – and only then – start thinking about the morning cardio!

A common concern about doing cardio in the fasted state, especially if it’s done with high intensity, is the possibility of losing muscle. After an overnight fast, glycogen, blood glucose and insulin are all low. As we’ve already concluded, this is an optimum environment for burning fat. Unfortunately, it may also be an optimum environment for burning muscle because carbohydrate fuel sources are low and levels of the catabolic stress hormone cortisol are high. It sounds like morning cardio might be a double-edged sword, but there are ways to avert muscle loss.

All aerobic exercise will have some effect on building muscle, but as long as you don’t overdo it, you shouldn’t worry about losing muscle. It's a fact that muscle proteins are broken down and used for energy during aerobic exercise. But you are constantly breaking down and re-building muscle tissue anyway. This process is called "protein turnover" and it’s a daily fact of life. Your goal is to tip the scales slightly in favor of increasing the anabolic side and reducing the catabolic side just enough so you stay anabolic and you gain or at least maintain muscle.

How do you build up more muscle than you break down? First, avoid excessive cardio. Aceto suggests limiting your cardio on an empty stomach to 30 minutes, and then it would be "highly unlikely that amino acids will be burned as fuel." He also mentions that "a strong cup of coffee should facilitate a shifting to burn more fat and less glycogen. If you can spare glycogen, you’ll ultimately spare protein too." You might also want to consider experimenting with the thermogenic ephedrine-caffeine-aspirin stack (or it’s herbal equivalent).

Second, give your body the proper nutritional support. Losing muscle probably has more to do with inadequate nutrition than with excessive aerobics. Provide yourself with the proper nutritional support for the rest of the day, including adequate meal frequency, protein, carbohydrates and total calories, and it’s not as likely that there will be a net loss of muscle tissue over each 24-hour period.

Third, keep training with heavy weights, even during a fat loss phase. Using light weights and higher reps thinking that it will help you get more "cut" is a mistake: What put the muscle on in the first place is likely to help you keep it there.

Still petrified of losing your hard-earned muscle, but you’d like to take advantage of the fat-burning and metabolism-boosting effects of morning cardio? One strategy many bodybuilders use is to drink a protein shake or eat a protein only meal 30-60 minutes prior to the morning session. The protein without the carbs will minimize the insulin response and allow you to mobilize fat while providing amino acids to prevent muscle breakdown.

In conclusion, it seems that morning cardio has enough indisputable benefits to motivate most people to set their alarms early. But let’s talk bottom line results here: Does it really result in more "real world fat loss" than aerobics performed at other times of the day or after eating? I have to believe it does. Experience, common sense and research all tell me so. Nevertheless, this will obviously continue to be an area of much debate, and clearly, more research is needed. In the meantime, while the scientists are busy in their labs measuring respiratory exchange ratios, caloric expenditures and rates of substrate utilization, I’m going to keep waking up at 6:00 AM every morning to get on my Stairmaster.

References

1. Aceto, Chris. Everything you need to know about fat loss. Club Creavalle, Inc. (1997).

2. Bahr, R. Excess post-exercise oxygen consumption – Magnitude, Mechanisms and Practical Implications. Acta Physiol Scand. Suppl. (1992) 605. 1-70.

3. Bergman, BC, Brooks, GA. Respiratory gas-exchange ratios during graded exercise in fed and fasted trained and untrained men. Journal of Applied Physiology. (1999) 86: 2.

4. Brehm, B.A., and Gutin, B. Recovery energy expenditure for steady state exercise in runners and non-exercisers. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. (1986) 18: 205,

5. Brybner, BW. The effects of exercise intensity on body composition, weight loss, and dietary composition in women. Journal of American College of Nutrition, (1997) 16: 68-73

6. Landry, Greg. The Metabolism System for Weight Loss. Greg Landry. (2000).

7. Maehlum, S., etc al. Magnitude and duration of post exercise oxygen consumption in healthy young subjects. Metabolism (1986) 35 (5): 425-429.

8. McCarty, MF. Optimizing Exercise for Fat Loss. Medical Hypothesis. (1995) 44: 325-330

9. McDonald, Lyle. The Ketogenic Diet. Morris Publishing, (1998).

10. Melby, C. et al. Effect of acute resistance exercise on post exercise energy expenditure and resting metabolic rate. J Applied Physiology, (1993). 75: 1847-1853

11. Wilmore, Jack, Costill, David. Physiology of Sport and Exercise. (1999) 2nd ed. Human Kinetics

12. Tremblay, A, et al, Impact of exercise intensity on body fatness and skeletal muscle metabolism. Metabolism (1994) 43: 818-818

13. Treuth, M.S., Hunter, G.R., & Williams, M. Effects of exercise intensity on 24-h energy expenditure and substrate oxidation. Medicine and Science in Sports & Exercise. (1996) 28, 1138-1143

14.Wilcox, Harford & Wedel. Medicine and Science in Sports & Exercise, (1985) 17:2

[peenutt78]

Nice Post Action!!!

[Action]

Thx. I have his book "Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle"...I think Sinjin has a copy as well...This guy really knows his stuff...I'd put him on the same knowledge level as Chris Aceto...

[badstone]

very nice, very nice

[Sinjin]

Originally Posted by Action

Thx. I have his book "Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle"...I think Sinjin has a copy as well...This guy really knows his stuff...I'd put him on the same knowledge level as Chris Aceto...

I have to agree the I believe this guy really knows what he's talking about and it is based on real world experience and sound scientific background and realistic expectation. Discipline, hard work, and persistence is the key--- there ain't know magic suppliment or magic super diet that works. I cannot recommend the advice Venuto gives.

[Rangi]

nice post action - I too am a big believer in doing cardio first thing in morning on empty stomach. I stacked ephedrine and caff this morning before my cardio and what a difference my work out was.

[Sinjin]

I do have to mention one thing about AM cardio. It has been proven to "promote better fat loss" however, I have seen numerous studies that show that the hypoglycemic state you have upon waking is worsened during AM exercising. It forces the body to pull glycogen from the muscle as well as the release of glucagon for gluconeogenesis. Both will take from lean muscle stores. The theme is, to lose weight you have to be catabolic and you don't get something for nothing. The key point is no matter when you exercise, your diet has to be balanced and your net calories burned has to be less than consumed to lose weight. However, a dramatic decrease in your daily caloric required load will lead to lean mass catabolism and little fat loss, while keeping 10-15% and no greater than 20% will minimize lean mass loss. Whatever is done to lose weight, you'll lose some lean muscle, the trick is to minimize the loss.

[Action]

Sinjin, there's been lots of debate about this and the possibility of losing some muscle versus fat while cutting...I believe there is a distinct possibility that this can happen while cutting...And you've brought up a key point mentioning that the key is to lower the chance of muscle loss while cutting and doing cardio...I believe there many ways to do this, such as keeping protein intake high, keeping bpm under 130 and the use of AAS...

[Sinjin]

I guess I should have prefaced my comments to the times you're not on AAS. Without AAS it is impossible to have a negative calorie balance and not lose lean mass. You can certainly do it correctly and minimize it, but not eliminate it. It is possible to maintain or slightly gain lean mass while losing fat with AAS--no question about that can even be amplified with GH/IGF.

I believe early on in Venuto's book has elucidates to AAS fat loss and muscle gain. So my earlier comments are based on those who aren't currently on gear. However, even with gear to maximize gains and minimize or lose fat, your diet (type of calories and total calories) and aerobics have to be spot on to maximize those goals of losing fat and gaining lean muscle

[Action]

Originally Posted by Sinjin

Without AAS it is impossible to have a negative calorie balance and not lose lean mass.

Very key point and one thing I was trying to state...That's the beauty and joy of AAS on a lean mass and cutting cycle, keeping your body in an anabolic state to minimize the muscle breakdown to be used as energy instead of fats...

[mickeymbbc]

nice post brutha

[bigjay357]

very good post lots of info there

[Hoss]

Excellent post Action!...Great info!

[Sinjin]

More info on Cardio for Venuto in his latest newsletter

Last week's newsletter about high intensity intervaltraining versus steady state training produced more emails, blog comments and web hits than any newsletterso far this year. Obviously, there is a lot of interest in cardio training and how to do it right. Sadly, most people are still doing 2 things terribly wrong and it's killing their results. As I thought about reviewing the newest scientific studyfrom Australia this week, or explaining the post workout"afterburn effect" (EPOC), it dawned on me to backtrack and ask... WHY are people still confused about fat burning cardioin the first place when the solution is drop dead simple,common sense and right in front of our noses? I thought to myself, "if I could help remove the SOURCE of the confusion, then regardless of which cardio program youchoose, every decision and action that emerges from yournew understanding would be more productive right?" (right!) As best as I can figure, there are two major reasonswhy people are still mucking up their cardio programsfor fat loss. REASON #1 NOT ENOUGH FOCUS ON TOTAL CALORIES BURNED Most people aren't burning enough darn calories. Why? Well, I guess these folks are too busy worrying aboutthe "proper" type of exericse, the mode (steady or interval),the "optimal" ratio of intervals, or the "best" duration. Some people coast along on the treadmill at 2.3 miles perhour or some similar sloth-like pace and they thinkthat just by hitting a TIME goal, such as 45 or 60 minutes,that with "X" duration completed, they are assured to getthe results they want. On the other extreme, we have folks who have found or createdsome mega-intense, super-duper short training protocol like the "4-minute wonder workout from Japan." Just because the workoutis high in intensity and performed in intervals, they too think they are assured to get the results they want. What's missing in both cases is the realization that totalfat loss is a function of total calories burned (assuming you don't blow your diet, of course). AND... Total calories burned is a product of INTENSITY X DURATION, not intensity OR duration. Too much focus on one variable at the exclusion of the othercan lead to a less than optimal total calorie burn and disappointingresults. And remember, intensity and duration are *variables* not absolutes! ("Variable" means you can change them... evenif your "guru" sez you can't!) when you understand the relationship and interplay betweenINTENSITY X DURATION you will find a "SWEET SPOT" where the product of those variables produces the maximal calorie burn and maximum fat loss, based on your current healthcondition and your need for time efficiency. REASON #2: TOO MUCH FOCUS ON WHAT TYPE OF CALORIES BURNED There is one whopper of a mistake that is still KILLING more people's cardio programs than any other, and that is: Way too much focus on WHAT you are burning during the workout -fats or carbohydrates - also known as "substrate utilization." This idea comes from the notorious "fat burning zone" myth whichactually tells people to exercise SLOWER and LESS intenselyto burn more fat. Hold on a minute. Pop quiz. Which workout burns more calories? (A) A 30 minute leisurely stroll through the park(B) A 30 minute, sweat-pouring, heart-pounding run? Like, DUH! And yet we STILL have trainers, authors and infomercial gurus telling us we have to slow down if we want to burn more fat??? Bizarre. The reason people still buy it is because the "fat burningzone" myth sounds so plausible because of two little science facts: * The higher your intensity, the more carbs you burn during the workout* The lower your intensity, the more fat you burn during the workout And thats the problem. You should be focusing on total caloriesburned during the workout and ALL DAY LONG, not just WHAT typeof fuel you are burning during the workout. It's not that fat oxidation doesn't matter, but what if you havea high percentage of fat oxidation but an extremely low number of calories burned? If you want to be in the "fat burn zone," you could sit on your couch all day long and that will keep you there quite nicely because "couch sitting" is a really low intensity ("fat-burning") activity. (Of course, "couch sitting" only burns 37 calories per half hour...) HERE IS THE FAT-BURNING SOLUTION In both cases, the solution to burning more fat is drop dead simple: Focus your attention on how you can burn more TOTAL calories during your workout and all day long. If you want to burn more fat, burn more calories and you cando that by manipulating ANY of the variables : intensity, duration and also frequency. If you build your training program around this concept, you will be on the right track almost every time. THERE IS MORE TO IT... Naturally, we could argue that it's not quitethis simple and that there are hundreds of other reasonswhy your cardio program might not be working... and I wouldagree, of course. But on the exercise side, the ideas aboveshould be foremost in your mind. On the nutrition side, you have to get your act togetherthere too. For example, many people increase their food intake atthe same time as they start a cardio training programthereby putting back in every calorie they burned duringthe workout! Then some of them have the nerve to say, "SEE, cardio doesnt work!" Incidentally, this is the exact reason that a few studies showed that adding cardio or aerobic training to a diet "did not improve fat loss": It's not because the cardio didn't work, it was because the researchers didnt control for foodintake and the subjects ate more!! It should go without saying that nutrition is the foundation on which every fat loss program is built. Choose the combination of type, intensity, duration and frequency that suits your lifestyle and preferences the best, and WORK THE VARIABLES to get the fat loss resultsyou want But whichever cardio program you choose, remember that a solid fat burning nutrition program, such as Burn The Fat,Feed The Muscle is necessary to help you make the most of it. Train hard and expect success, Tom Venuto

[Sinjin]

How I answered a question sent to me in an email about AM cardio.

First off, we must get out on the table in the beginning that the reason
why there is so much confusion on the topic of working out and losing
fat while at least maintaining muscle (preferably gaining muscle) in a time
efficient manner (4-6 hours per week) is because everyone is so different.

Two reasons why you should "do cardio in a fasted state,
first thing in the morning" is;

1. Your body does not have nearly as much fuel (glycogen and glucose) to supply energy for the session (cause you have not eaten carbs for about 12 hours. Your body easily burns up all of the glycogen and glucose and then goes into the fat cells for the rest.

2. The session is done, which leads to consistency. Too many things come
up when the session is planned for later in the day to interfere with consistency.

There are so many factors that determine when and how to do cardio & when and how much to eat to create 1- 3 lbs. of fat loss per week. Losing fat slower or faster than that just does not work for the long term. And for the long term is what we are looking for. Cause I have seen so many people go "gung ho" and radically change their body in a short amount of time, only to see them a year later, sedentary and heavier than when they started.

If you lose at a slower rate, one will lose interest in the program and maybe not continue long term. If you lose faster than that; either you are losing other things that you need (like muscle, water, anabolic hormones) or you are living a lopsided life spending too much time working out.

So now let me try to clear the confusion a little bit for you. There is no one stop answer to this question. But here it goes. The best program that I have seen at losing fat that stays off forever is doing intense resistance training at least 2 or 3 days per week, and doing interval cardio training 2 or 3 days per week.

The #1 key for fat loss is something we call "carb cycling." In a nut shell "carb cycling" is eating more calories in the form of starchy carbs (brown / wild rice, oatmeal, sweet potatoes, whole wheat pasta) on days of intense resistance training, and eating only fibrous non-starch carbs (veggies, salads, green beans, apples, grape-fruits) on days of interval cardio performed first thing in the morning.

Now my mantra of "doing interval cardio first thing in the morning in a fasted state" applies to only those who are eating small meals often. The key to not losing muscle is too make sure that you eat a small portion of protein right before you go to bed. And if your metabolism is really running fast, consume a small amount of protein upon wakening up.

A few (3-4) egg whites and a tbls. of healthy fat (I use Udo's oil) works well for me. I consume the protein and the fat immediately upon wakening then start the cardio session within the next 30 minutes.

If my metabolism is running even faster, (my hunger levels are very high all the time even though I am eating protein and carbs combined together every 3 hours) then I might even wake up in the middle of the night to consume a small amount of cottage cheese or whey protein.

So, I hope this clears a little confusion about how to perform interval cardio first thing in the morning in a fasted state for fat loss. Not only is interval cardio the best type of cardio to perform to lose the most amount of fat in the least amount of time, but it is proven to be the only form of cardio to actually strengthen the heart and lungs; which is incredibly important for longevity reasons.

(This answer assumes no AAS are on board)

[signal22]

Originally Posted by Sinjin

Now my mantra of "doing interval cardio first thing in the morning in a fasted state" applies to only those who are eating small meals often. The key to not losing muscle is too make sure that you eat a small portion of protein right before you go to bed. And if your metabolism is really running fast, consume a small amount of protein upon wakening up.

A few (3-4) egg whites and a tbls. of healthy fat (I use Udo's oil) works well for me. I consume the protein and the fat immediately upon wakening then start the cardio session within the next 30 minutes.

Sinjin you know exactley what your talking about!!! I was wondering if you were going to mention the above. Spot on bro.

Listen to sinjin people! This information usually comes at a price...

[Sinjin]

Listen to sinjin people! This information usually comes at a price...[/QUOTE]

Yes, meaning you guys pick up the bar tab.....