Best Cardio to save leg size

[tark17]

Hello all, I have been preping for about 4 weeks now and yet again my legs have begun to shrink! I have been doing the stepmill for 40 min 6 days a week and 2 HIT sessions on off training days. Should I get away from the stepmill and do the bike or something else to help save my leg size? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

[Rick Prince]

What type of diet are you on?
I believe the step mill is too aggressive for most natural bodybuilders, especially if they are on the keto diet.

I would suggest getting rid of any HIT cardio sessions, keep your heart rate below 140 bpm, and alternate between the bike and treadmill with the incline set somewhere around 10-12 deg.

[Chris Pearce]

Low intensity is the way to go. Just hop on a treadmill at a flat plane, set it to 3.0 - 3.4 MPH/Speed, and walk (either first thing in the morning before you eat OR after your workout.... or both)

The amount of time on the treadmill will obviously vary from person to person depending on their diet & metabolism. I do two (2) sessions a day, 50 minutes each, for a total of 100 minutes a day.

[Rsardinia]

Low intensity is the way to go. Just hop on a treadmill at a flat plane, set it to 3.0 - 3.4 MPH/Speed, and walk (either first thing in the morning before you eat OR after your workout.... or both)

The amount of time on the treadmill will obviously vary from person to person depending on their diet & metabolism. I do two (2) sessions a day, 50 minutes each, for a total of 100 minutes a day.

7 days a week? You have a slow metabolism or something? Gotta do what you gotta do but that sounds like a pretty decent amount of LISS.

[AVBG]

Bike or treadmill at low intensity

[Chris Pearce]

7 days a week? You have a slow metabolism or something? Gotta do what you gotta do but that sounds like a pretty decent amount of LISS.

Ya, I'll do 2 sessions 7 days a week... 100 minutes (2-50min sessions) for off- and non-leg days... ~70 minutes (2 sessions) on leg days. But I mean, this is at a snail's pace... I mean, literally...

I have a wicked fast metabolism... but doing cardio at that low of an intensity to burn fat (and to preserve your legs) requires a decent amount of time.

For me, I'd have to spend the time doing cardio at a slow, steady pace and preserve my legs (which is one of my strong body parts in my opinion) otherwise I burn them up

[Jeremy24]

I think for me low intensity is the best...HR around 120 which is about a 4 on the treadmill for me

[Kiyoshi Moody]

Low intensity is the way to go. Just hop on a treadmill at a flat plane, set it to 3.0 - 3.4 MPH/Speed, and walk (either first thing in the morning before you eat OR after your workout.... or both)

The amount of time on the treadmill will obviously vary from person to person depending on their diet & metabolism. I do two (2) sessions a day, 50 minutes each, for a total of 100 minutes a day.




this is exactly what i do!!!!:yep:

[BigM123]

this is exactly what i do!!!!:yep:
how far out till the show do u do cardio?

[Sledge]

I say go with sex for cardio. To be honest I really don't know if it'll save leg size. But I can guarantee while you fuckin you won't be thinking about the size of your legs.

[Chris Pearce]

how far out till the show do u do cardio?

My last cardio is 3 days before the show.
If you're like me where you're RIGHT between two weight classes you need to be careful and be where you need to be weight-wise (and looks obviously) so you can carb load properly.

[Kiyoshi Moody]

how far out till the show do u do cardio?


16 weeks out. nothing drastic. the last thing you want is your legs to shrink !!!

[Aaron Singerman]

16 weeks out. nothing drastic. the last thing you want is your legs to shrink !!!

Do you start out with 50 mins X2/day and just keep that steady for the whole 16 weeks... or start with less and work your way up to that?

[peteacher]

i find the best way to do cardio and not have your legs shrink is just not to do cardio

[kielhinrichs]

I think it has more to do with training. The only training style that has been shown to create the right hormonal reaction and spare muscle if you are natural is focusing on the eccentric more. It will help spare muscle simply because of the type of damage done even with restricted calories. Studies done on people always vary because of individual genes but there is proven documentation on this.

[Kiyoshi Moody]

Do you start out with 50 mins X2/day and just keep that steady for the whole 16 weeks... or start with less and work your way up to that?


Since I will be a heavy this year, the thing i'm most concerned about is keeping as much size as I can. So right now I'm hitting 30min once a day until 7 weeks out then 30min in the am, 30min pm.

[TheSpirit]

combination of not getting too fat in the offseason AND dieting long enough that you don't have to do anything drastic.



Most people get too fat and being natty you can't afford to rush fat loss without negative returns.

[Waylon]

I say go with sex for cardio. To be honest I really don't know if it'll save leg size. But I can guarantee while you fuckin you won't be thinking about the size of your legs.

Amen