Fasted cardio

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sacoriah
sacoriah Posts: 7 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Anyone had success with this? My friend recently told me about this.
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Replies

  • LiveLoveFitFab
    LiveLoveFitFab Posts: 302 Member
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    I find I can't perform any function on an empty stomach. Having low blood sugar makes me tired. I need at least a small banana or a piece of grain bread. I can't see how you'd get better results doing this unless you are able to do the same amount of cardio as you can with something in your stomach.
  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
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    Yeah I do it sometimes - I make sure that I have a carb james by dinner the night before
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,344 Member
    edited September 2017
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    An excellent read on fasted cardio:

    http://weightology.net/fasted-cardio-an-undeserved-good-reputation/
  • jenilla1
    jenilla1 Posts: 11,118 Member
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    I guess it works for some people, but it's probably an individual thing. I crash and burn if I try to workout on nothing. Not sure what the point of it is.
  • TimothyFish
    TimothyFish Posts: 4,925 Member
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    Individual success is impossible to judge because one wouldn't know how well they would be able to convert fat to energy if they weren't training with fasted cardio.
  • JenObRN
    JenObRN Posts: 102 Member
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    I would (and have) pass out if I did this. And I'm not diabetic.
  • TimothyFish
    TimothyFish Posts: 4,925 Member
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    jaltz_99 wrote: »
    I would (and have) pass out if I did this. And I'm not diabetic.

    The idea is that you can train yourself to be able to do it without passing out.
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,182 Member
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    I did, for several months, do my treadmill, 30 minutes, each morning in the fasted state. I'd follow that with a protein shake and a breakfast before work.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    What's your measure of success OP? What did your friend say it was good for?

    If you think it will make you lose weight quicker then prepare to be disappointed!
    If you think it will make you better fat adapted for endurance cardio then it may well work (it did for me).
    If you think being able to train whether fasted or fed helps you schedule your workout into your day easier then that's an advantage.

    It did take me a many weeks to get fully used to (built up intensity slowly) so if you experiment with it be aware how you feel at first may not reflect how it will work for you if you persevere.
  • livingleanlivingclean
    livingleanlivingclean Posts: 11,751 Member
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    If i do fasted cardio, it is for the simple reason that it's easy for me to fit in to my schedule that way. Doing it is better than not doing it. There's pros and cons to both fasted and non-fasted cardio.
  • LKArgh
    LKArgh Posts: 5,179 Member
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    I guess I usually do fasted cardio, especially if it is in the morning, since I feel sick if I have eaten anything for several hours before intense running or swimming. I was not aware it was supposed to have some benefit, other than me not throwing up :)
  • SLLeask
    SLLeask Posts: 489 Member
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    I guess I do fasted cardio, but that's because I can't run if I've eaten anything, I feel sluggish, tired and nauseous. Can't say it's helped / not helped me to lose weight. Each to their own so I would say try it and see which you prefer. But if you are expecting to suddenly lose more weight then that's not going to happen.
  • RichJBenham
    RichJBenham Posts: 30 Member
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    Personally yes but known some who haven't. Key is consistency and to keep at it, took me about 2 weeks to notice the difference and this was doing fasted 4-5 times a week.
  • Djproulx
    Djproulx Posts: 3,084 Member
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    As others have said, what is your measure of success? What did your friend experience?

    I would not bother to try fasted cardio if my goal was weight loss. I would perhaps use it to help train my body to increase the use of fat as fuel during endurance cardio training. And by "endurance cardio" I'm referring to multi hour workouts, such as those performed during marathon or long course triathlon training.
  • curlsintherack
    curlsintherack Posts: 465 Member
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    I tend to do both cardio and strength training fasted as thats how my day lines up.

    I find that if I run or lift later in the day that my performance is generally better after I've eaten but its not enough better that I've stopped doing the fasted work.
  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
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    sijomial wrote: »
    What's your measure of success OP? What did your friend say it was good for?

    If you think it will make you lose weight quicker then prepare to be disappointed!
    If you think it will make you better fat adapted for endurance cardio then it may well work (it did for me).
    If you think being able to train whether fasted or fed helps you schedule your workout into your day easier then that's an advantage.

    It did take me a many weeks to get fully used to (built up intensity slowly) so if you experiment with it be aware how you feel at first may not reflect how it will work for you if you persevere.

    ^^^ This

    I do most of my runs fasted but that's only a matter of reference s I don' like having anything in my stomach when I run.
  • mabearof6
    mabearof6 Posts: 684 Member
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    When I run in the morning it's fasted, but that is because if I eat before I get nauseous. If I run in the afternoon I have to wait a couple of hours. Only benefit I notice is not feeling like I'm going to puke
  • H_Ock12
    H_Ock12 Posts: 1,152 Member
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    Fasted cardio is my most successful cardio. If I run later in the day after I've eaten, I feel sluggish and get horrid side stitches, so my speed and distance suffer.
  • Dr_Fishbowl
    Dr_Fishbowl Posts: 42 Member
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    It's all about the time. I wake up and exercise, I don't have thirty minutes for some food to be doing the rumba in my belly while I run...although, now that i'm thinking about adding weights to my routine, i'm thinking of adding a protein drink....but I really don't want to wake up at 4 in the morning just to guzzle down some ground up baby chickens and then wait 45 minutes till I can actually get movin.
  • sacoriah
    sacoriah Posts: 7 Member
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    Djproulx wrote: »
    As others have said, what is your measure of success? What did your friend experience?

    I would not bother to try fasted cardio if my goal was weight loss. I would perhaps use it to help train my body to increase the use of fat as fuel during endurance cardio training. And by "endurance cardio" I'm referring to multi hour workouts, such as those performed during marathon or long course triathlon training.

    I lost a lot of weight but for some reason I'm weight lost slowed down and I'm stuck at 210. I change up my workout and diet and still nothing. My friend had the same issue and she told me she does fasted cardio and she started losing weight again .

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