Cardio Is For Steroid Users Only?

[Bouncer]

Natural guys should never do cardio?

Was talking to someone about this and wanted to get your guys opinion. This is purely about muscle building/preservation. Nothing to do with health.

The theory goes like this. If you are natural you should never do cardio if you are trying to build or preserve muscle mass. The idea being that cardio for a natty always leads to significant muscle loss/muscle waisting with fat loss.

If however the natty achieves fat loss by means of restricted cals only, he can maintain a greater percentage of muscle mass while burning the same amount of fat compared to cardio.

Steroid users are obviously a little different because they are in a hormonal state that makes muscle wasting less likely as long as you keep things within reason.

Agree or disagree? Should a natural guy do cardio while trying to gain or maintain muscle mass?

[rado]

I'll be glad to post when I get back.....from the gym and my cardio:)

[Bouncer]

Thanks Rado, for once again telling us about a post you'll make in the future. Very useful.

[epix00]

I'm gonna take the Rado route and post my opinion later when I'm at my PC. My answer is too long for a phone answer.

[rado]

Thanks Rado, for once again telling us about a post you'll make in the future. Very useful.

gym nigg
..priorities

I'm gonna take the Rado route and post my opinion later when I'm at my PC. My answer is too long for a phone answer.

Lol

[epix00]

gym nigg
..priorities



Lol

You are a trend setter

[rado]

You are a trend setter

And i don't even try

[epix00]

And i don't even try

I think I'm gonna stop training legs too.

[rado]

I think I'm gonna stop training legs too.

I don't even try eh

[Bouncer]

so any actual thoughts on this? i tend to agree. cardio can eat muscle away like none other even in steroid users on restricted diets. think if i were natty id stay away for sure. As a natty your body can so easily turn to a catabolic state.

I'm obviously not talking about some fat guy who needs to drop a ton of weight. Obviously in that case diet and cardio for sure.

[epix00]

I agree with what you are saying in theroy. Anything that can cause you to go catabolic is an enemy of a natty athlete trying to retain as much muscle mass as possible. Cardio is definitely going to cause you to go catabolic. As long as the goal is purely on building the largest most muscular physique possible and you dont need any of the health or athletic benefits of cardio then it should be cut our or kept absolutely minimal.

Natty competitors do use cardio though for show prep. The reason why is to get to the bf% that they need to be, doing it through just restricted diet can be catabolic as well. Since you can speed up the process by burning a greater number of calories by doing cardio the key is finding your personal balance of which combination keeps you from losing the most muscle in a given time period which can vary hugely from individual to individual .

edit: I told you I would answer

[Bouncer]

I don't even try eh

thanks bro. brilliant as always.

I agree with what you are saying in theroy. Anything that can cause you to go catabolic is an enemy of a natty athlete trying to retain as much muscle mass as possible. Cardio is definitely going to cause you to go catabolic. As long as the goal is purely on building the largest most muscular physique possible and you dont need any of the health or athletic benefits of cardio then it should be cut our or kept absolutely minimal.

Natty competitors do use cardio though for show prep. The reason why is to get to the bf% that they need to be, doing it through just restricted diet can be catabolic as well. Since you can speed up the process by burning a greater number of calories by doing cardio the key is finding your personal balance of which combination keeps you from losing the most muscle in a given time period which can vary hugely from individual to individual .

edit: I told you I would answer

yea good points. I also feel like I've read that a little bit of cardio can somehow be anabolic in nature. no idea of the science behind it but it boils down to getting your body into a state or "teaching" the body to burn fat and preserve muscle with a combo of high protein, weight training, and limited cardio.

[BEAST]

Imo doing a little cardio while trying to build some muscle makes your body process the nutrients more efficiently even if you are natty.
20 mins of low intensity cardio will do more good than harm.

[Bouncer]

Imo doing a little cardio while trying to build some muscle makes your body process the nutrients more efficiently even if you are natty.
20 mins of low intensity cardio will do more good than harm.

ha, we posted at same time. yea that what I was talking about. little bit actually going the opposite way of catabolic and turning anabolic.

[epix00]

I feel like HIIT is more well suited for maintaining muscle mass.