Cardio timing/6-day HST routine

M

Massuz

New Member
I'm going to switch from a traditional bodybuilding split to my first cycle of HST next week, lifting 6 days a week by alternating upper and lower body every other day. When would be the most advantageous time for me to do my cardio? Immediately before my weight training? Immediately after weight training? Or either earlier or later in the day, thus timed several hours apart from my weight training?
BACKGROUND (if it matters): I'm a 51 year old female bodybuilder-wanna-be with about 5 years of heavy lifting experience. My muscles grow quickly so I'm interested in taking my muscle-building propensity to the next level, hence HST. I like to do 20 to 30 minutes of moderately intense cardio with sprint intervals thrown in. This level of cardio seems to keep me feeling at my best, but am wondering how to fit this around my 6-day HST cycle. THANKS!!!!!!!!
 
I'm currently doing a similar program (6 days, alternating upper and lower body) with moderate cardio every day. I do a 12-13 minute warmup on the elliptical trainer at reasonable intensity, 'cause I like to be loose before I lift (yes, I too haved reached middle age). Then I do the rest of my cardio (20-25 minutes) on the treadmill or the stationary bike at the end of my workout.

If you're planning higher intensity cardio with sprint intervals, I don't think you want to do that before you lift, especially on legs days. I don't mind some cardio even after heavy squats, but if that's not to your taste, leave the cardio till later in the day.

Best of luck with your program and HST.

Don
 
I think it would be very hard for the both of you to add any muscle doing cardio in addition to 6x/week training. I actually don't think cardio would be necessary if this was a cutting cycle either, given the overall volume and training frequency.

This is an example of what I often see in those who post on the forum saying: "Well, I gained a lot of strength but no muscle on HST. How do I tweak the program to add more muscle, can I do 6 sets per bodypart and 2x/day workouts?"

When the goal is to add muscle, one should do anything to increase the caloric surplus instead of reducing it.
 
Blade, thanks for the advice. This is my first experiment with a 6x/week routine, but I thought I'd give it a try for a cutting cycle. I'm just starting the 5th week of a 6 week cycle, and thus far I'm up 3 pounds with a 1.5% decrease in body fat. So no complaints yet. But I don't expect to gain a lot of muscle in this cycle.

Don
 
Thanks Blade. As you suggest, I'll delete the cardio for this cycle and see what happens. Guess I'm just guilty of wanting it ALL...lots of muscle AND a heart that works super efficiently. Hopefully the volume and training frequency of an HST cycle will have some of the same cardiovascular benefits as running. Especially given my age, cardio conditioning isn't something I want to lose.

Again, thanks for the advice and the reality check.
 
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