1. DO NOT perform cardio first thing in the morning on an empty stomach! This is a great way to encourage muscle wasting. As soon as you wake up I recommend consuming whey protein isolate and a carbohydrate source (my favorite combo is VP2 Whey Isolate by AST Sports Science with breakfast cereal as you can see in my “Lost Logs” e-book.) After you have supplied the critical nutrition upon waking you can then attack Max-OT cardio and achieve great results!
2. Keep cardio short and intense. 16 to 20 minutes of high intensity cardio will have a greater effect on elevating your metabolism and will keep your metabolism elevated longer after exercise than long duration moderate intensity cardio.
3. Work out of your comfort zone the entire session. You should be “huffing and puffing” throughout.
4. Set distance goals and try to beat them every session. Working to beat your distance goals will give you a tangible marker of intensity to strive for rather than simply putting in your time.
5. Frequency. If fat loss is a high priority I recommend cardio 5-7 days a week. Remember every cardio session you do will give your metabolism a jolt and fire up the fat burning process!
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Great tips!
“Set distance goals and try to beat them every session. Working to beat your distance goals will give you a tangible marker of intensity to strive for rather than simply putting in your time”.
I could’t agree more. The same applies with weights, which is why you always emphasize progression. But why 16-20 minutes? Similarly, why 5-6 reps per set? While no doubt those targets produce results. I am just curious as to why those numbers are used as goals. Why not 10 minutes or 4 reps? Perhaps there are studies that suggest these targets which i could be directed to.
Best,
Peter
This link helps explain about the duration : http://www.jeffwillet.com/newsite/2010/05/short-durationhigh-intensity-cardio-is-key/
As for reps the range of 4-6 seems to be optimal for our goals. That is not to say 3 reps or 7 rep on a set won’t work but over all sticking to that rep and set range seems to be optimal for best results.
Hi Jeff
I am curious if i start doing 20 min sessions of cardio 5 days a week along with the 5 sessions of max ot style weight lifting that i already do will the speed of my muscle gain be affected slightly or not? thanks alot Jeff
The impact on muscle building, if any, depends greatly on your nutritional practices.
In other words do you gain muscle at the same rate while also doing cardio. Thanks for all the great tips
ben
Hey there, i have watched the “I want to look like that guy” film and think it is amazing and very inspiring. But i am currently at 18% bodyfat i want to get down to around 10%.
If i do your Max OT training style and stick to it by the letter, and do cardio 16-20 mins of HARD cardio 7 days a week. Alongside of keeping my calorie levels low and protein to 1g per lbs of bodyweight. How long on average would it take me to achieve roughly a 8%body fat reduction.
The past week i have been consuming 1150 calories a day, 100grams of protein, i weight 163lbs but from today i am going to start doing the above. Any advice would be greatly appreciated 🙂
Martyn
It is really hard to predict how long it will take as there are many variables. Using the documentary as a guide it took Stuart 6 months of execution to go from 30% bodyfat to under 6%. What I can tell you is I am confident that the plan will maximize results!
What are some good cardio exercises for the 16-20 minute workouts?
Thank you
Pretty much any mode will work…recumbent Bike, treadmill, elliptical, sprints etc.
jeff when you talk about “high intensity” with regards to doing max ot cardio how intense should I go? 75%? 80%? 85% VOMax?
I honestly never charted heart rate or %VO2, I went by rate of perceived exertion and made sure I was out of my comfort zone. Working to beat my distance traveled did the trick to push the intensity.
What shall I eat after my cardio workouts?
Have a nice weekend!
After intense training it makes sense to consume Whey isolate and high GI carbohydrates.
Jeff, you said that you consume VP2 whey isolate before and after the cardio workout. Supplements are a bit expenisve for me 🙁 could you plz tell me what whole foods do you recommend before and after the cardio workouts that have similar effects?
The idea is whey isolate after training is absorbed faster than any other protein source. So I would save they whey isolate for after training. You can leave the before training serving out to help you budget constraints and save the high quality protein for after training.
ive loved the mat ot training i gained 8lbs in 3weeks when i switched and my strentgh is unreal for my weight 77kg, bench 120kg x 6 x 3 deadlift 175kg x 6 x 3 squat 165kg x 6 x 5 but my question is im cutting currently and have been for 15weeks lost 15lbs so far i have 5weeks to get to the lowest bodfat i can, witht he calipers it says im 12% would or could i reach 8% with in the next 5weeks, just to add i havent started cardio yet but will do pwo 16minutes and 16minutes at least 8-10hrs later
Great! Keep executing!