Does cardio ruin your gains?
There are varying opinions about whether or not cardio destroys or maintains muscle mass, but the fact is, whether you do cardio or strength training, both will help you build muscle and burn fat. The key is to do the right type of cardio and strength training to maximize muscle growth while keeping your metabolism burning.
Does cardio ruin your gains on your diet?
Not if you do it correctly. cardio is great for burning calories and building lean muscle. But if you do it improperly, you can actually do some damage to your results. One common mistake is doing cardio on an empty stomach. The body burns more calories when it has stored energy. So if you burn calories before eating, you’ll actually burn fewer calories afterward.
Does cardio really ruin your gains?
Speaking from personal experience, it doesn’t. Doing high-intensity interval training (HIIT) or short, fast bursts of cardio will not cause you to lose strength, muscle mass or endurance after just a couple of weeks. This is especially true if you’re strength training and eating enough to gain weight. And if you’re not to gain weight, why bother doing any exercise?
Does cardio ruin your gains at the gym?
If you’ve ever tried to add more weight to your squats after doing a few months of weightlifting, you know how challenging it can be. You can still lift the same amount of weight, but your form suffers, making for a much less efficient workout. In order to gain strength, you need to put the right amount of stress on your muscles during each rep. That means lifting the weight slowly enough that you can complete each rep without allowing your form to break down. If you do
Does cardio hurt your gains?
If you're doing high-intensity cardio, like sprinting or HIIT, then your muscles are being worked less. But you can still increase your strength and endurance to keep up with the demands of a higher-intensity workout. You just won't be able to do as many reps or as much weight, so you'll need to work harder at the same time. And you can use strength or circuit training to increase the strength of your muscles without the impact on muscle gain.