Fasted Cardio for Fat Loss

Monday, June 28, 2010

The main reason most of us perform cardiovascular exercise is with the intention of burning body fat in mind. There are exceptions – some of us might be training for a sport or athletic event, marathon, triathlon, etc. But generally speaking, we are vain creatures, let’s not lie, and want to achieve a more defined look, which is perfectly normal and okay!

Now wanting to look better and becoming a completely narcissistic person are different matters – but wanting to lean up for Summer or whatever is a positive thing. I want to let you guys in on a little secret to help you achieve that goal faster. Today, we’re going to talk about performing cardio while your body is primed for fat burning. If you see “that guy” or “that girl” at the gym who in grinding away calories but not changing shape or losing fat, well – they’re doing something wrong. You want to get the most “bang for your buck” at the gym so to speak, so learn how to master this technique before your next gym sesh and prepare for some killer results.

So what’s the secret to go into your cardio workout in optimal condition? Well, you are going to want to be in a “fasted state” prior to your cardio session. That’s right, don’t eat any kind of calories, including sports drinks (actually especially sugary drinks) before your workout. Basically when you eat before you exercise, much of what your workout will be burning is just the energy from the meal you ate, and not as much body fat which is the goal, right? So by skipping that meal, you will need to draw energy from somewhere else – and yes, your body fat is what will be attacked to be used as that fuel.

Basically you want your glycogen stores to be low or as empty as possible before doing cardio to burn the most body fat. As you may have heard, early morning cardio is a good idea. True. After a full night’s sleep, your body has burned off much of your glycogen just by existing, and will be more primed for fat burning that if you’d eaten earlier. Doing cardio on your Eat Stop Eat days is also an excellent way to burn through fat.

More energy while fasting?

That’s right. And for the longest time, I couldn’t understand why I had more energy while working out fasted, but I knew it to be the case. I have my most productive hardcore workouts after fasting for 5-18 hours. When I eat before my workouts, I just don’t have the same intensity. I feel more sluggish and lazy and can’t get as much done. Even my strength workouts are better performed while fasting. Ori Hofmekler explained where this “reserve tank of energy” came from… the Sympathetic Nervous System (SNS).

Why Does The SNS Kick In While Fasting?

Ori explains it like this…

“When fasting, a primal survival mechanism known as the fight-or-flight reaction to stress is triggered, maximizing your body’s capacity for generating energy, being alert, resisting fatigue and resisting stress. The survival mode is primarily controlled by a part of the autonomic nervous system known as the sympathetic nervous system, or SNS. When it’s in gear, the body is in its most energy-producing phase, and that’s when the most energy comes from fat burning.”

This makes sense, because as hunters and gatherers, our ancestors needed to be at peak performance in order to catch the next meal. Eating before your workout will deter this surge of energy.

Once adapted, you can have a better and more effective workout while fasting.

Caffeine for Fat Burning and Energy

Taking 200 mg of caffeine an hour before your workout is another trick to burn more body fat. It’s been proven to do so and also gives you that “umph” you might need to get through those intervals! So if you tolerate caffeine well, I suggest you drink a cup or two of coffee or pick up some caffeine pills and take them prior to your workout. It’ll give you energy, burn more fat, and they’re cheap – around $5 for a big bottle. By taking caffeine and going into your workout fasted, you’ll be primed to bust through fat relentlessly!

I usually avoid steady state cardio just because it doesn’t fit my lifestyle well, but these techniques work well for HIIT cardio as well as steady state, and any other form of aerobic exercise for that matter. I have been doing the Spartacus Workout as a primary cardio tool for the past couple months, always in a fasted state, and have seen awesome results from doing so.

Cardio is a great way to burn calories and raise your RMR, keep your heart pounding, and stay in great shape. By doing so in a fasted state, you’ll simply increase the effectiveness of your workout and shorten your path to becoming leaner and fitter.

Check out some more great cardio articles:

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Posted in Cardio and Aerobics, Fat Loss

About the Author

Hey guys, this is Craig Avera and Cesar Flores. We run Hollywood Body Fitness - which is geared toward achieving a lean athletic A-List Physique!

  • http://www.zenmyfitness.com Raymond

    There are so many theories on fasted cardio I don’t who to believe ..so I tried both I feel better on fasted cardio but never measured any fat loss difference , by thats on me so I guess everyoen should try it out both ways and see what works.
    I always have a coffee before working out and do seem to get a better result.
    I hate steady state cardio but sometimes I need to do it as I have run out of energy for intense exercising.

  • http://www.notyouraveragefitnesstips.com Dave

    Craig,
    I like to get in cardio on an empty stomach as well. I know there are some mixed theories out there, but it seems to make sense that fat burning happens faster when glycogen is depleted. Regardless, I definitely disagree with the people who worry that morning workouts will lead to muscle loss.
    Dave

  • Zorik

    So is the 5 hours the minimum that you have to fast in order to take full advantage of the fasted cardio?

  • http://hollywoodbodyfitness.com Craig Avera

    Raymond,
    Some people notice stronger results from others from fasted cardio, but I’m a firm believer in it. Me personally, I notice big improvements in getting leaner when doing it fasted – but like you say, these things aren’t a one-size-fits all type deal sometimes.

    Dave,
    Exactly man. And right on, morning workouts will not promote muscle loss. Only when I’m trying to gain muscle will I eat before a workout – or trying to greatly increase strength. When aiming for fat loss, I like to perform most of my exercises in a fasted state. That’s always how I did it when I dropped to 4% body fat last summer.

    Zorik,
    Yeah – 5 hours I feel is the minimum. Protein, which digests the slowest, should even be digested by then. Your body is in a state of “readiness” so to speak, and you will be more inclined to burn through your fat stores when fasted at least 5 hours. The longer, though, the better I feel – as it will allow your body to burn through glycogen more as well.

  • Matt

    Craig! Hows it going?

    Def with you on this bro.

    Been doing it ever since reading Rusty’s VBBP article.

    Down to 6% BF! Feel amazing whilst training in a fasted state.

    I even sometimes do my strength training, 20 mins of HIIT AND go for a 30 min slow steady jog (to take advantage of the extra fat burning! ;-) – Thats, like, one and a half hours of non stop exercise and I dont feel slow or unenergetic at all!

    Keep up the good work brother and hope the acting is going well.

    Matt

  • http://blog.marcsurchat.ch Marc

    Hi Craig,

    I found your article very interesting! However, I have two questions :

    1) Do u know studies that confirm your theory ?
    2) How can I measure bodyfat percentage ?

    Thank you for writting

  • http://RelativeStrengthAdvantage.com Yavor

    @Craig, one of your best post so far dude! This is becoming a killer site! Love the pic..

    @Raymond – I workout fasted quite often without any problems. In fact I even tested my pullup max for a competition in a fasted state. No problem…

    @Dave – me too. Too much theory vs. real world results = victory for the real world!

    @Matt – dude 6%! Nice man!

    Yavor

  • http://www.fitnessbreakout.com Alykhan

    Craig,

    This is great stuff! I follow a routine similar to Matt. About 30-40 min of weight training + 20 min of HIIT + sometimes 15-20 min of low intensity steady state (such as walking) all on an empty stomach.

    It’s amazing to see the results really start to come through once you train regularly in a manner that forces your body to burn fat!

    Alykhan

  • http://www.davidgowing.com/index.html David Gowing

    Awesome article Craig!

    I started working out in a fasted state a few years ago and I got my body fat down to 5%. I have been trying to strategic add a little muscle lately and started to eat about 90 minutes before working out, and I have to say I feel way less energetic and don’t have the same level of definition as I did when working out on an empty stomach.

    I read Ori’s book “The Warrior Diet” but found eating one big meal late at night just didn’t work for me, but I do agree that working out in a fasted state really does strip off fat.

  • http://hollywoodbodyfitness.com Craig Avera

    Matt,
    Good hearing from you man! The acting is going well thanks :) And I’m glad you’ve discovered the benefits of working out while fasted. Sounds like you’ve got a really solid routine going, and 6% body fat is awesome dude!

    Marc,
    1) From personal trails, I’ve found that even while eating the same amount of calories, when I put my workout in while in a fasted state, I would drop body fat much quicker than if I had worked out with food prior to the workout.

    2) They have fat calipers you can buy, as well as electronic body fat devices. However, the most accurate means of measurement are by skin fold tests and “Hydrostatic testing” which is THE gold standard for measuring BF %.

    Alykhan,
    I love visually seeing results from week to week… great way to stay motivated. I used to just out super hard but not as smart as I do now – and get better results nowadays by training smart.

    David,
    We’re in the same boat. When I got down to 4% – always worked out fasted. Then I decided to add some muscle so I too started eating prior to working out. I found I couldn’t do HIIT or Crossfit workouts as well because I wouldn’t have the stamina as I did when fasted.

    I don’t follow The Warrior Diet either, but it is an awesome concept.

  • http://www.aaroneo.com Aaron

    Have you ever thought about taking a protein shake right before you go to the gym when you’re about to do weight training plus cardio? It seems to me that by the time your body actually starts to absorb the protein you’ll be done with the workout (I’m lifting about 30-45 minutes + running 2 miles at high intensity), which may be beneficial in terms of rebuilding as soon as possible. I’m just kind of testing the waters, because I used to always take a shake after my workouts.

  • http://hollywoodbodyfitness.com Craig Avera

    Aaron,
    Excellent point here. And it’s definitely one of those mixed theory topics when weight lifting is thrown into the equation.

    I have found that I don’t LOSE muscle if I don’t take a shake, so if my goals are strictly fat loss, I’ll nix the pre workout shake. But if you’re looking to build some mass or are a hardgainer and you need a shake to maintain, then by all means, a protein shake can be helpful.

  • Zorik

    Craig,

    Do you think working out in a fasted state (5 hours of fasting) at the end of the day (before bed) will hinder any results? Or it should be fine?

  • http://hollywoodbodyfitness.com Craig Avera

    Zorik,
    That should work just as well as doing morning cardio. As long as you’ve fasted at least 5 hours, it just becomes a matter of lifestyle and preference. I eat most of my food later in the day, so that wouldn’t work for me. But if it works for you, all the more power to ya!

  • http://www.moreprimetime.com/ Darren

    Craig,

    Great post – I agree with you completely.

    To really torch fat I like to do 10 mile runs in a fasted state. To avoid running out of energy I drink apple juice about 20 minutes into the run. Your body won’t give you an insulin spike while you are exercising so you get the little boost of energy you need and stay in the fat burning state. I take a sip of juice every 2 miles and blast through 1000 calories over the run.

    Darren@moreprimetime.com
    Darren´s last [type] ..Somatopause Solution

  • http://hollywoodbodyfitness.com Craig Avera

    Darrin,
    Nice tip! Definitely true and a great piece of advice.

  • http://www.melatoninfaq.com Connor Campbell

    Cardio Workout is really great when you want to burnout those calories*”`

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    Hey anyone who can help me with making links like Baby cadeaus

  • Shenna

    Craig,

    I really like the idea of fasted cardio, but for me, that’s only possible in the wee hours of the morning before work. Hmmm… might have to get to bed earlier then haha

    On the otherhand, if I do the Spartacus, Planks, Brief Ab Circuit, and then some low intensity cardio, would that be enough to burn fat?

    I want to lose around 5 lbs, but of course keep all of my muscle, and also be more lean and defined.

    To burn the most fat, should I keep my BPM at 130 or do longer, more intense, endurance style cardio?

    Also, would you suggest doing longer, more intense cardio at the end of weightlifting days?

    Thanks!!

  • http://hollywoodbodyfitness.com Craig Avera

    Sheena,
    If you’re still good to go after the Spartacus workout and are able to hit some abs, more power to ya! The workout itself is a more than adequate workout on its own, and yes, definitely enough to burn some of that unwanted fat!

    I feel the most effective workouts are CrossFit or Cross training style workouts… supersetting weights to raise your VO2 while challenging your endurance as well.

    Spartacus Workout is a great example of this. You really don’t need to be a slave to the treadmill – you may in fact be better off without it.

  • Shenna

    Hi Craig!

    Thanks for the advice! I’ve been doing the Spartacus Workout 3x a week for the past 3 weeks and I already feel and see a change! I LOVE IT! The first time I did it I practically died. It’s been great to see how improved I get with my form and reps each time I do it. The split jumps still kill me tho haha

    Thank you so much. Your website and blog are super interesting and helpful.

    Can’t wait for your next blogs :)

  • http://www.hollywoodbodyfitness.com/fasted-cardio-for-fat-loss?& Casey

    This excellent website is awesome. I continually come across new things & different right here. Thanks for that info.

  • Neil

    I don’t agree with this. Studies have routinely shown that fasted training and fed training have no difference in during exercise fat burning when the person is already trained. Also, performance for long distance cardio is diminished without glucose in the bloodstream – so you can’t go as far or train as long. Far better to put the cardio in the fed state if you absolutely have to do it. Weight training whilst fasted is more sensible. See here: http://leanmassgains.com/?p=676