ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: MAY 2023
You may have heard of the term, fasted cardio, but never understood the meaning. Fasted cardio is when you do not eat before a cardio session. That would require an empty stomach other than water while exerting energy on a rowing machine, stair climber, running/walking on a treadmill, elliptical, or bike. Your body is in a fasted condition meaning that food digestion has stopped.
Fasted cardio generally occurs first thing in the morning. While there are fitness professionals who adhere to their own theories, it is still a debated topic in the fitness industry. Every gym goer has this question on their mind – is fasted cardio to lose weight faster or not? The main reason that fasted cardio has been so popular is because it helps with losing weight better and quicker than fed cardio. Scientifically, fasted cardio has been proven to metabolize or burn a greater percentage of calories from fat compared to fed cardio. Fasted cardio is also a great choice if you have a sensitive stomach or just feel more energized rather than having food in your stomach. Also, you do not have to wait for your food to metabolize.
For years, fasted cardio has been done in the sport of Bodybuilding as a fat-loss technique, and regular gym goers have recently been adopting it as well. A good amount of weight will be lost if you’re new to a low-carb diet or fasted cardio because you start to deplete your stored glycogen. The numbers on the scale will start to drop a bit, but most likely it is water weight and not fat at first. As you remain consistent with fasted cardio and a caloric deficit eating routine, the fat will begin to melt away. The liver, muscles, and fat cells store glycogen in a form of hydration. The body sheds water weight when it breaks down the glycogen. The problem is that when you eat carbs again, your muscles and liver will want to hold onto the glucose and glycogen again, and water weight returns once you eat a meal containing high carbohydrates. Remember, it will always benefit you the most when you are following an eating regime that puts your body into a caloric deficient.
You may have been doing fasted cardio already without realizing it. Technically, any time you head straight to an early-morning workout without eating first, you’re doing a fasted workout, but I only suggest fasted cardio, not an entire fasted workout. It is important to fuel your body before an actual workout in order to preserve lean muscle, and to reduce any chance of becoming light- headed. Fasted cardio will offer benefits, especially if lowering your body fat percentage is your primary goal and your go-to workout is low- to moderate- intensity cardio. Research does support that you’ll burn more fat when you run in the fasted state than when your body does not have circulating nutrients to use for energy.
You may feel sluggish at first, but within time, your body will adapt to be more efficient on fasted cardio in order to burn fat for fuel. It may be more beneficial to workout longer than 30 minutes four or more times per week to feel the full effects of fasted cardio. Once you have completed your fasted cardio, continue to stay hydrated by sipping water until you eat your meal. Remember before experimenting with fasted cardio, or any exercise routine talk with your healthcare provider.