The Adler Blog

One of the common assumptions in gyms all over the planet is that ” high reps make you big or build muscle, high reps get you lean.”  So without fail, you see tons of guys and girls squeezing out endless reps with tiny weights in order to “get cut”. Since everybody is doing it, it must work.

Really? Lets look at that particular statement. To begin with, building muscle or losing fat has more to do with what you do in the kitchen as opposed to what happens on the gym floor.

Lower reps ( lets assume 6-10 reps) and higher weights do indeed stimulate muscular hypertrophy in the muscle, when combined with excess calories, especially protein, muscle growth occurs. While dieting, this process simply can not happen since there is no caloric excess (if you use your SUC correctly). But wouldn’t lifting a weight more often not burn more calories? True, but the difference is negligible. While dieting, the purpose of training with weights is not to build muscle but to keep whatever muscle tissue you are carrying.

Why is that important? Well, first of all muscle gives your body shape, it keeps you alive and most importantly, burns calories while resting. It is crucial to hold on to your muscle while trying to lose body fat in order to keep you metabolism from plummeting.

Muscle adheres to the use-it or lose -it principle, if it is not being used it will be broken down since it costs energy to sustain muscle. Case in point, the upper bodies of cyclists and runners. In order to keep your muscle, you will need to work it almost maximum capacity which is about 6-10 reps in good form. If you feel weak, due to your reduced food intake, reduce the sets you are performing but always try to hit your goal weights.

So there is no place for high rep sets when dieting? The one time, where I would see the use is if someone is following a cyclical keto diet and is carbing up once a week. In order to achieve complete glycogen depletion, some high rep sets would be in order.

However, the vast majority of dieters will do fine with 4-8 heavy sets per body part.

Till next time

 Scott and Maik

When it comes to cardio and fat loss, it really is a case of the blind leading the blind. Most trainees have been made believe that cardio burns only fat and weight lifting only builds muscle, hence you must combine the two to create a perfect physique.
Aside from the fact, that weight lifting is very similar in its results for fat loss than cardio when viewed over a 24 hours period, it also offers the potential of reshaping the body which cardio doesn’t.
Still ,cardio can be used as an additional energy expenditure to lose more weight as long as a proper weight lifting protocol is being followed.
For a long time, it was very common to get on the stepper/treadmill first thing in the morning to “burn only fat”. The reasoning is that your body doesnt have any nutrients to burn so it will use fat for fuel. Sounds logical but doesnt work that way.
When looking at fat loss, one has to look at a 24 hour time span not just the actuall exercise time. Studies have shown that a pre cardio-workout carb feeding did not decrease fat oxidation in any significant manner, so the amount of fat lost was the same.
But it did two very important things: it allowed the athlete to train with greater overall intensity, meaning more overall energy was used and it acted as a protection for the muscle and prevent catabolism (loss of muscle). The less muscle you lose while dieting, the higher your BMR will remain. Always remember, dieting is about losing weight not weight.
If you are on a very low-carb diet and simply do not have any room for carbs, simply consume some whey protein before the workout for a similar effect.
Till next time
Maik
Sources
Melanson EL, et al. Resistance and aerobic exercise have similar effects on 24-h nutrient oxidation.. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2002 Nov;34(11):1793-800.
Ahlborg, G., and P. Felig. Influence of glucose ingestion on fuel-hormone response during prolonged exercise. J. Appl. Physiol. 1976;41:683-688.
Coyle, et al.. Carbohydrates during prolonged strenuous exercise can delay fatigue. J. Appl. Physiol. 59: 429-433, 1983.
Horowitz JF, et al. Substrate metabolism when subjects are fed carbohydrate during exercise. Am J Physiol. 1999 May;276(5 Pt 1):E828-35.