How effective is cardio 2 or 3 times per day?

[Leander]

Alright here's the scenario, I currently weigh about 285 and I plan on getting down to 200 before the summer is out. I'm thinking of doing 2 or 3 short but intense cardio sessions (basically HIIT) per day at least 4 days out of the week. This will also be in addition to weight training 3 times per week. Also my goal is to try and effectively use a CKD diet to really burn off the fat.

So would multiple sessions of cardio during the day help me reach my goals or would I be doing the extra exercising in vain?

 

[gymtime]

I don' t think it's necessary, assuming you stick to your diet and weight training. That much cardio, even HIIT, will be too catabolic.

 

[Leander]

What about for a person who's a hard loser, would all of the excess cardio still be catabolic?

 

[gymtime]

LOL..."hard loser"

Never heard it put that way before.

I still think that much cardio would cause excessive muscle loss. If you want to do cardio, I'd go 20 minutes or so post workout, three days a week. That's it.

 

[WarriorPL]

You will eventually start burning muscle for energy. Not a good idea.

 

[Leander]

LOL..."hard loser"

Never heard it put that way before.

I still think that much cardio would cause excessive muscle loss. If you want to do cardio, I'd go 20 minutes or so post workout, three days a week. That's it.

Wow only 3 days a week of cardio, I don't know it seems like if I'm not doing it 3 times a time then at least once a day should be cool. I really need to do something to shed some weight, if I have to kick my ass by exercising all the time thats what I'll do. I'm starting the ckd today, hopefully that will help out some.

 

[gymtime]

Wow only 3 days a week of cardio, I don't know it seems like if I'm not doing it 3 times a time then at least once a day should be cool. I really need to do something to shed some weight, if I have to kick my ass by exercising all the time thats what I'll do. I'm starting the ckd today, hopefully that will help out some.

Consider this. From personal experience I can tell you that it SUCKS when you put in all that effort into dieting and cardio only to find that you've lost as much muscle as fat.

Couple years ago I got myself down to 206 which is the smallest I've ever been as an adult. Average weight for me is 220-225. The only problem was, I didn't end up with that lean look that most guys get when they lose weight, I just became a smaller version of my pudgy self.

These days I'm smarter about it and lean on diet moreso than going nuts with the cardio and the benefits are a hundred times better.

Something to think about.

 

[grlpwrd]

I agree with everyone else, basically. I think you're going to overtrain if you do too much cardio and you might lose the muscle that you're working so hard to maintain. My hubby was 280# and trimmed down to 260# (his current weight) and he did that by concentrating on a stricter diet, intense strength workouts, plus cardio 3 to 4 times a week (once a day only). I can understand if you're going to only do your planned program of multiple daily cardio for a short time - say for 2 weeks or so - just to shock the body, but I've never read or heard about people doing this on a regular basis, especially for months at a time, and being successful at it and/or getting the results they wanted.

Good luck!

 

[Leander]

Thanks for the advice guys, maybe I'll just keep focusing on low-carb diets and reduce my cardio to just a few times a week.