Andos99 said:
Did you study this stuff? You seem to know volumes of information on the topic.
It's a hobby I guess. When I get into something, I like to find out as much as possible about it. It's interesting how much the science of it has changed over the past couple decades though. And how commonly held beliefs are shot down once certain things become apparent. That's why HST probably won't catch on mainstream for a while; it's still in the "What?!? There's no way that could work." stage. Experience shows me otherwise. It might not be 100% correct, but the results echo the test positively every time.
rubysoho said:
Do you think it is better to do it that way only if you work out in the morning and if you work out at night just drink lots of water over the day?
First off, just a technicality. When I say morning, I am referring to when you wake up. I know some people don't get up until after noon, so that is their "morning".
As long as you are drinking water throughout the day, you should be fine and not need to drink a lot pre-workout. Just make sure you have some handy at the gym for mid-workout. To avoid cramps, drink in very small quantities.
The main thing here is the fact that you just slept for 6-8 hours. You're not hydrating your body while you sleep, so it's a good thing to get some water in you when you wake up. Same reasons why "breakfast is the most important meal of the day". You are breaking the fast.
There are two reasons why I recommend working out in the morning. Reason #1 is because I work for a living and am of the viewpoint that my energy should be spent on me first. If I get home from work and am too tired to workout, I'm losing out. If I workout in the morning, it's not going to stop me from going to work. This ensures that I get it done.
Reason #2 is based on the above breakfast principle. You don't eat while you're sleeping either. The glycogen stored in your liver provides energy for your body to keep the heart pumping, lungs breathing, etc. When you wake up in the morning, that energy source is depleted. You eat breakfast to start recharging it. By holding off on breakfast and doing your cardio, you force your body to get energy from a different source. The easiest place to get it is from it's natural storage; fat. So by putting breakfast off for a while, you start to mobilize fat. One important point is to not replace that fat. Put another way, eat less than you burn.
Since I'm already on the subject, I feel I should also state why there is a difference between low and high intensity cardio. Your body gets energy from many sources. Most of which are quickly depleted. Long term sources include fat, and breaking down protein (muscle). Fat is the easiest and most economically source of calories for burning, so it is usually where your body goes to get energy. The problem lies in the fact that your body's mechanisms are based on cause and effect and not on coherent thought. For instance, you can't tell your body to burn fat from your stomach. When you start exercising, your body doesn't know when it's going to end, if it's going to get easier or harder, etc. By adding intensity, your body eventually thinks that it is going to need more energy than what it's getting from fat, so it compensates by adding more protein to the fire.
Here's some math...
Person A does low intensity cardio for 30 minutes
Person B does higher intensity cardio for 30 minutes
Person A is burning calories at protein/fat ratio of 10/90.
Person B is burning calories at protein/fat ratio of 45/55.
Person A burns 200 calories during their session
Person B burns 300 calories during their session (intense cardio burns more calories)
Person A burned (90% of 200) 180 fat calories.
Person B burned (55% of 300) 165 fat calories.
What does all that mean?
Assuming person A & B are the same in all ways...
- Person B will lose weight quicker than Person A. More calories burned == more weight lost.
- Person A burned more calories from fat, and now has less fat than person B.
- Person B lost muscle mass as part of that greater weight loss. This will (most likely) need to be replaced ending up in not as much weight actually lost.
It comes down to your goal. Is it weight loss or fat loss? For effective fat loss, you have to do lower cardio for longer periods of time. I know several weight lifters who will finish their workout with an hour of walking on a treadmill. High intensity cardio has some good effects other than burning calories though. It increases your aerobic capacity, decreases resting heart rate and blood pressure and other things too.
It all comes down to what you want. If you want to just lose weight, go with the higher cardio (don't just jump into if you're not currently working out though, you could hurt yourself). If you want to maximize fat loss, go the lower intensity route.
Since this is a public board, I feel I must also give this disclaimer for those without the ability to think for themselves:
I am not a doctor. I am only sharing ideas that I believe to be true. Any interpretation of the above info (right or wrong) is your problem, not mine. If you have questions regarding your health, then please ask a licensed health professional and not a public forum on the internet where anybody can give their opinion no matter how crazy it is.