Top five bodybuilder in the world Hunter Labrada shares some cardio tips.
Hunter Labrada recently shared what he considers the best form of cardio he utilizes during his prep. The promising and talented bodybuilder gave a breakdown of this cardio tip in a recent video.
It looks like Hunter Labrada is dropping some more knowledge on us about some great ways to incorporate cardio into your bodybuilding training. The top five Men’s Open bodybuilding competitor is hard at work prepping for the 2022 Olympia. While in camp Labrada has been focusing on putting on solid muscle mass. But while bodybuilding is about building muscle, of course you also can’t neglect the cardiovascular portion of preparation.
Let’s face it, no one likes to do cardio. If it was up to everyone, they would just lift, build muscle and look amazing. But if you want to put the finishing touches on your physique as well as prioritize your health, then cardio is going to be a necessity in your training.
There are many ways to add cardio training to your routine. There’s walking, running, boxing, anything that’s going to elevate your heart rate and get the blood pumping. But within the fitness and bodybuilding community there’s a particular way of doing cardio that is always advocated: fasted cardio.
How Effective is Fasted Cardio Really?
Now while many have made great results with fasted cardio, Hunter Labrada believes things have been a bit exaggerated in terms of its effectiveness. In a recent video Labrada delved into fasted cardio and gave some general tips to help your cardio game.
“I feel like fasted cardio’s almost got like this aura about it to where once you’re in prep you have to be doing fasted cardio. I couldn’t think that’s more asinine if I’m being completely honest with you.
“I believe the only reason that you have to be doing or need to be doing fasted cardio is if you need something to get you out of bed in the morning, to help you build a habit or a schedule, or if it works well for you in the morning.”
So while he may believe in performing cardio is a necessity, Hunter Labrada isn’t buying into the fasted cardio trend.
“The idea that fresh out of bed in the morning, fasted state is going to optimally burn fat compared to doing cardio at a fasted point at some point during the day is very untrue and false. What do I mean by fasted point? So obviously, fasted cardio, you’re fresh out of bed, you slept for six or seven hours. Your blood sugar should be bottom down. There’s no nutrients in your body. You’re going to do cardio at your absolute fasted point. Fasted point cardio is basically the same thing.
“I can back this up with my personal experience. I’ve used a glucometer for weeks on end taking my fasted blood glucose in the morning and right when I hop on stairs post workout and it’s within three or four points of each other.”
So according to Hunter Labrada it appears that fasted cardio isn’t as necessary as advertised.
The Best Form of Cardio
“To say that fasted cardio is optimal for burning fat, false, it’s not true. It is a good point to do cardio… but at the end of the day, optimizing your cardio needs to be at a fasted point.
“The first place you should add your cardio is actually post workout for two reasons. One, you are in a fasted point post workout, you’re not going to get more fasted than you are post workout, especially in a prep setting if your foods anywhere where it should be. And then secondly, the post oxygen consumption from weight training is far more fat burning than cardio. So, by doing it post training we are able to compound the effects.
“Third thing that I really like about post cardio is that your heart rate is already jacked. You don’t spend the first three, four, five minutes of your cardio session trying to get your heart rate up.”
So it appears that though fasted cardio isn’t as necessary, fasted point cardio can be essential to making great gains. Hunter Labrada really opened some eyes with this one. You can find the full video here.
What do you think of Hunter Labrada and his take on the best form of cardio?
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News and Editorial Writer at Generation Iron, Jonathan Salmon is a writer, martial arts instructor, and geek culture enthusiast. Check out his YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Sound Cloud for in-depth MMA analysis.
