Conditioning for Lifters - #448

<div> <p>What does conditioning for lifters look like? Do you need to do "cardio"? We examine conditioning & cardio for strength athletes. This is a re-release of episode 396.</p> <h3>Conditioning vs Cardio</h3> <p>"Cardio" is a nebulous and negative term, like diet.</p> <p>I need to go do some "cardio." What's the best "cardio" for fat loss?</p> <p>The term "cardio" comes from the word cardiovascular as in the cardiovascular system of the heart, lunges, and blood vessels that pumps oxygen and nutrients to your organs.</p> <p>Conditioning for lifters comes with the implication of a goal. You need to complete conditioning for health, or for your sport, or for general physical preparedness.</p> <h3>Conditioning for Lifters - Fat Loss</h3> <p>Why would a strength athlete include conditioning in his program?</p> <p>There's generally 3 reasons why someone would consider doing <a href="https://youtu.be/ifvBSfmJUrs">"cardio" or conditioning</a>:</p> <ul> <li>Weight loss / fat loss</li> <li>Being "in shape" or general physical preparedness (GPP)</li> <li>Cardiovascular health / energy systems efficiency</li> </ul> <p>Lots of people think they need to do cardio for the first reason, and it's really the worst reason to "do cardio."</p> <p>Why? Because cleaning up nutrition habits far surpasses the impact of conditioning. Often times, people increase their food intake after cardio, as their appetite increases as well.</p> <p>This doesn't mean that conditioning cannot help in the calorie burning side of the calorie equation. But it's not the first MED step to take.</p> <h3>Conditioning for Lifters - GPP</h3> <p>People have an intuitive sense of being in or out of shape, and they're not wrong.</p> <p>This often comes from a suddenly more rigorous physical event, such as a hike or sporting event.</p> <p>You find yourself out of breath and hating life, and feel out of shape.</p> <p>This is really recognizing the inefficiency of your energy systems, and that you're cardiovascular systems is delivering oxygen poorly.</p> <p>Life