Hi All
Having been busy over the past few days I have neglected this blog,
But This blog post is mainly aimed at People that are New or unsure about what to do, Or more importantly when To to Abs and Cardio.
I have seen plenty Of “Pt’s” on how they show or structure a routine or workout and To be frank It is almost unbelievable how People are falling for these routines that are not thought out well…
And Thus I am hearing on an increasingly frequent amount of times of People getting hurt…

 

And This from a ‘PT’ that was In the Marines of all things…

 

Just walking around chucking in any old exercise trying to make it a ‘bootcamp’  is NOT the best way to get fit and loss weight.

 

 

Anyways.

I am amazed that i get this question constantly. When is the best time for Abs/Cardio? Ought it be done at the beginning, or should I be leaving it until later when my main workout is finished?
In the long run, everybody has a different response, and there Is not actually one universally exact way of replying this question.

 

Alternatively, I’m going to give you a a couple of different choices, along with their positives and negatives, and that way you will be able to see what works for you, and for your six pack goals.

 

 

Doing Intense Cardio Before a Workout….
Tons of people do this – they will go and do sprints on a stationary bike, or do HIITon a treadmill, and then try and hit the gym directly after.
Because of the increased levels of oxygen consumption, their bodies are in a great place to be burning up fat. And as spending energy could occasionally make you feel like you have more of it, the strength routine may be the best workout you have ever done.
The trouble? The problem is that HIIT, to be effective, has to be most intense. And if it’s intense, you’re not going to have any energy left to do a beneficial strength workout.
Not only that, but HIIT is all about fat loss. If you’re doing it on the same day as a energetic muscle building workout, you’re trying to mix two things into one. It’s too much activity and not sufficient focus.
Whenever your goal is fat loss, do your HIIT on separate days, and then go in for some weight training, when you’ll be able to really push heavy, on your non cardio days.

 

 

Doing an Intense Abs Before a workout….
A study performed in January 2007 found that a group who performed a 6 rep max squat set did significantly less weight if they trained abs before doing the squats.
It was apparent that if you train your abs first, you will not have the core strength essential to do certain leg exercises that require a fair amount of core strength.
If your abs and core are fatigued from preceding exercises, it could cause weakness on subsequent exercises and increase the risk of lower back injury.
I see too many times Certain Pt’s that work abs/core before strength training and hence why many injures have occurred

But here is an Example: Why would you fatigue your triceps before doing chest work? You wouldn’t.
So Why would you fatigue your abs before doing any muscles that require your core as a primary stabilise?

You shouldn’t.

 

 

 

 

Doing Warmup Cardio Before a Workout…
Doing warmup cardio Is not a bad idea, as a matter of fact it can help you burn some more calories on your workouts as your body is ready to go, directly after your warm-up. The cardio itself will not help you burn a lot of fat in itself, but that is not why you do warm-up cardio.
You still may want to think about interval training on your non-gym days, though.
Also Please don’t use your core workout as a warmup. There is no intensity in way to warmup and core muscles need intensity to become stronger and more developed – just like every muscle group.

 

 

Doing Intense Cardio After a Workout….
Once again, mixing in the approaches. If you have so much energy left after your strength workout that you maybe be able to do some intense cardio, but there’s a problem.

If you’re really serious about building that muscle and getting that ripped, six pack body? You need to give it 110% on your weight training workouts. You need to bring every last bit of energy to the workout your on. This does not mean over training, it just means a level of intensity that equals the results you want.

 

Doing Light Cardio After a Workout……

 

Doing light cardio after an intense workout is perfectly okay – and add in some stretching too. Remember, though – it’s more for adding to what you have just done by trying to burn a few extra calories.

This should not be HIIT and is not another workout. So keep it slow and make it part of your cool down.

 

 

Doing Intense Cardio on separated Days…….
This is what you should actually be looking at. First, if you’re serious about fat loss, the best is way is High Intensity Interval Training (something I try to integrate into almost all my workouts).
And cardio, although it does gets a bad knock at times, it is important. If you’re genuinely serious about fat loss, you can’t just endlessly lift/rest lift/rest in the gym all week and expect your fat % to just go away.

Cardio also brings a lot of health benefits by making your heart stronger and fitter.
Check what you want to centre on (are you building muscle correctly, or losing fat, or are you going to try the artful concept of both at once?), and adjust your cardio efforts accordingly!

 

 

The bottom line is: Ab training and any core work comes AFTER larger muscle groups. Cardio workouts such as intense HITT to be done on alternate days from Resistance workouts for the best in fat loss..

 

That’s it for now..

 

 

 

KMF  ” Keep moving Forward’

Enjoy

 

 

 

Jason