- Oct 29, 2004
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Here is something I have found to be a common thread among hardgainers, many are horribly out of shape. They simply have no general fitness base to speak of. They then hit the gym in an attempt to turn their frail bodies into a mound of muscle, and fall flat on their faces. Many tolerate high workloads well. I am here to tell you many have a hard time recovering from only 3-6 hard work-sets a workout. Part of this stems from their lack of fitness. In today’s modern world, and especially in America, most people are just plain sedentary. Sitting on your ass all day long and then expecting great things to happen in your body from just a 45-minute anaerobic workout a few times a week is asking a lot. Not that it doesn’t work, but frankly it works better if you have a good general fitness base.
But the hard part, and the part that makes most people decide to neglect it is the fact that when done incorrectly Cardio, and HIT Cardio WILL hamper progress, and the myth (if implemented CORRECTLY) that it will interfere with potential gains. Lets look at first the myth, then the facts, then some ideas about how to negate the potential impact to gains, and how to implement a program that will HELP your gains.
So many believe that doing any type of cardio at all will interfere with there potential gains that they just will not even attempt it. They sit on their lazy asses as much as humanly possible under the assumption that any activity outside the gym will be detrimental to gaining muscle when it fact, having a solid fitness base (GPP=general physical preparedness) will in fact help one with gains.
One reason it is so ingrained is most everyone know at least a couple of people that decided to cut, or get into shape and they went full-blown, all-out on it and squished their recovery and thus their gains. Going from couch potato to marathon runner in three weeks is just a dumb idea, yet this is about how many make the transition to becoming fitter, or dropping body-fat. It is made all the worse when diet isn’t spot-on, and well…lets just be charitable and state its not usually even close.
If done correctly, as in intensity level not too high, duration not too long, and frequency not too often, anyone can get into better shape if they approach it on an incremental scale. This means starting out VERY conservatively. If you are one of those people that gets winded walking across the room, the right way to start is by simply walking for 15-20 minutes at a reasonably pace. That is all you need for now to begin. Once this is accomplished, or if you at least already have a slight fitness base the next step is to add something of a higher intensity. All that know me are certain I am going to recommend the dragging sled, and they would be correct, but even if the sled is not an option, a treadmill on an incline, an elliptical machine, or even swimming will work well. Better substitutes are pushing a wheelbarrow, carrying a sandbag, or a fast hike with a weighted back-pack, or weighted vest. I often sprint up my mountain behind my house. And yes, sprints are OK IF you are not too heavy. These should be times 1-minute sprints, 1 minute walking.
How to start? 5-10 minutes NO MORE!! Do your high intensity cardio (PREFERABLY WITH A SLED PULLING NO MORE THAN 100-135 INCLUDING SLED WEIGHT) for NO MORE THAN 5-10 minutes NO MORE THAN TWICE A WEEK TO START! After one month, if you started at 5, go to 10 minutes, if you started at 10, go to 15. Do that for at least another month before the next progression. Keep going until you are doing two 20-25 minute sessions twice a week. You will be in a LOT better shape at this point. And if diet was up to the task your training will not have been impacted much if at all. Now you can make the decision to add another session or two a week if you want. If you are a hardgainer, I would keep it at two 20 minute sessions. If not, you can experiment with more, and if/when you get to the point where the weights suffer, back off.
What will this do for the hardgainer? You will likely find that you recover better from your workouts and MOST will find after 3-6 months of this, they can add SLIGHTLY more volume (SOME A LOT) to their workouts productively.
Hardgainer or not, EVERYONE should be in shape. Gains will be better as long as you are not doing too much, too frequently. No one ever dies because their arms are not big enough. Thousands die every year because their cardio-vascular systems are so damn weak.
Iron Addict
But the hard part, and the part that makes most people decide to neglect it is the fact that when done incorrectly Cardio, and HIT Cardio WILL hamper progress, and the myth (if implemented CORRECTLY) that it will interfere with potential gains. Lets look at first the myth, then the facts, then some ideas about how to negate the potential impact to gains, and how to implement a program that will HELP your gains.
So many believe that doing any type of cardio at all will interfere with there potential gains that they just will not even attempt it. They sit on their lazy asses as much as humanly possible under the assumption that any activity outside the gym will be detrimental to gaining muscle when it fact, having a solid fitness base (GPP=general physical preparedness) will in fact help one with gains.
One reason it is so ingrained is most everyone know at least a couple of people that decided to cut, or get into shape and they went full-blown, all-out on it and squished their recovery and thus their gains. Going from couch potato to marathon runner in three weeks is just a dumb idea, yet this is about how many make the transition to becoming fitter, or dropping body-fat. It is made all the worse when diet isn’t spot-on, and well…lets just be charitable and state its not usually even close.
If done correctly, as in intensity level not too high, duration not too long, and frequency not too often, anyone can get into better shape if they approach it on an incremental scale. This means starting out VERY conservatively. If you are one of those people that gets winded walking across the room, the right way to start is by simply walking for 15-20 minutes at a reasonably pace. That is all you need for now to begin. Once this is accomplished, or if you at least already have a slight fitness base the next step is to add something of a higher intensity. All that know me are certain I am going to recommend the dragging sled, and they would be correct, but even if the sled is not an option, a treadmill on an incline, an elliptical machine, or even swimming will work well. Better substitutes are pushing a wheelbarrow, carrying a sandbag, or a fast hike with a weighted back-pack, or weighted vest. I often sprint up my mountain behind my house. And yes, sprints are OK IF you are not too heavy. These should be times 1-minute sprints, 1 minute walking.
How to start? 5-10 minutes NO MORE!! Do your high intensity cardio (PREFERABLY WITH A SLED PULLING NO MORE THAN 100-135 INCLUDING SLED WEIGHT) for NO MORE THAN 5-10 minutes NO MORE THAN TWICE A WEEK TO START! After one month, if you started at 5, go to 10 minutes, if you started at 10, go to 15. Do that for at least another month before the next progression. Keep going until you are doing two 20-25 minute sessions twice a week. You will be in a LOT better shape at this point. And if diet was up to the task your training will not have been impacted much if at all. Now you can make the decision to add another session or two a week if you want. If you are a hardgainer, I would keep it at two 20 minute sessions. If not, you can experiment with more, and if/when you get to the point where the weights suffer, back off.
What will this do for the hardgainer? You will likely find that you recover better from your workouts and MOST will find after 3-6 months of this, they can add SLIGHTLY more volume (SOME A LOT) to their workouts productively.
Hardgainer or not, EVERYONE should be in shape. Gains will be better as long as you are not doing too much, too frequently. No one ever dies because their arms are not big enough. Thousands die every year because their cardio-vascular systems are so damn weak.
Iron Addict