Beasty
Well-Known Member
The body uses sugars/carbs/glucose (they all the same to me) for energy first, once that's depleted then it uses fats for energy and then, only under extreme conditions the body breaks down protein aka muscle for energy if your fats are depleted.
Co-sign. Good to see somebody getting this right. Cardio mostly burns glucose for the first 20 min then it starts to burn more fat than glucose. That's why if you don't lift weights you should do cardio for more than 20 min.
In that case cardio is better done first thing in the morning before breakfast when the body is low on glycogen. (Stored glucose)
Like you said cardio only burns muscle under extreme conditions, get some fast burning carbs after an intense cardio workout and you will be good to go.
Edit: the only part I would disagree with is the last part. The body only breaks down muscle if you don't get carbs after a workout. It doesn't have anything to do with fats being depleted.