Top 5 pros and cons of fasted weight training for men

Published: October 24, 2020

Usually, when people think about working out, there are two things they do. They either go on a diet or start working out – and most of the time, both. However, many people think that, in order to maximize your gains, you will need to do it without any food on your stomach. When your body is not burning the food, then it starts burning your fat for energy. Thus, a lot of people fast while also working on weight training. And although there are many benefits of weight training for females and males, there are also many pros and cons of fasted weight training. In this article, we take a look at the five biggest ones.

You will burn fat faster with fasted weight training

Exercising burns fat – this is a proven fact. Cardio exercises are some of the best fat burning workouts for men in existence. You get your blood pumping, it gets the oxygen in and out of the muscles faster, and they develop with ease. When you are fasting, your fat oxidation is higher than it is when you ate well.

The reasoning behind this is simple. Human bodies use carbohydrates as fuel. If there are none, then the body requires additional energy – which it gets from fat. This is why a lot of people consume carbs before exercise – so they would burn the. But when fasting, your carb intake is lowered, and thus your fat is in focus.

Of course, you should be careful about how you go about this. If you burn too much fat, then the body will start burning muscle. You should absolutely not allow this to happen. So, ensure you are talking to professional male fitness trainers about your diet when weight training.

Watch out for “bonking”

There is a thing called “bonking” or “hitting a wall” that can happen during a workout. This is the sensation you get when you do not have enough blood glucose and glycogen levels in the body. For example, during sleep, your muscles do not replenish these completely – and thus “bonking” can occur. You can think about this as your muscles running low on fuel. Because of this, you cannot hit “top speed” as fast as you usually would.

Many people get to experience this because their stomach does not agree with working out after a meal. There is a solution for this, too. For example, before you go to one of your boxing classes Dubai for gentlemen, you can have a small, low-fiber snack 30-45 minutes before you start your sessions. This can be a glass of orange juice or a banana, and they should keep you going for a while. What matters is that you will quickly digest the meal. They will be in and out of your body before you know it, leaving your stomach empty and your body full of carbs.

You will be able to wake up faster

People will usually do fasted weight training early in the morning. Whether you are fasting or just exercising on the empty stomach, you will be able to accomplish something first thing in the morning. This means that you will have a lot more time for other activities as the day goes by. You will also be more energized and have a lot of focus throughout the day.

Dubai Personal Trainers have also noticed that people who work out in the morning are often in a much better move than those who do not. Exercises make your brain release brain-boosting chemicals, which makes you more productive than usual. Otherwise, you would need to get yourself a couple of cups of coffee – which is not the most healthy option.

You will not be able to do intense fasted weight training

When considering the pros and cons of fasted weight training, there is a glaring problem that we cannot ignore. If you want to do some high-intensity forms of exercise (like heavy resistance training or sprinting, for example), you will need a lot of fuel. And not just any fuel – it is glucose that your muscles will crave. No matter what the dieting communities tell you, this is the compound you will need to ingest. It’s simple – your body oxidizes glucose much, much faster than fat – as we already mentioned.

And this is where that warning from before comes in. During high-intensity workouts, you will be burning a lot of fuel. If you do not have any carbs, your body can quickly move from fat to muscle. This is quite dangerous and can lead to some serious injuries. Not only that, but the workout will not be as efficient as it should when you are burning fat. This is a huge disadvantage of fasted weight training, so consider it well.

Consider your cortisol levels

The final thing you will want to think about is the cortisol levels. This is the stress hormone that your body will release when your energy stores start running low. When you start exercising, your body starts making good chemicals – but it also produces cortisol. Fasting produces cortisol, too. So, by combining these two, you are producing extra cortisol than usual.

If you keep doing this for a longer time than you can cause some serious issues. You can develop chronically elevated cortisol levels. And what does cortisol do? It promotes fat storage and reduces fat burning. So by exercising to burn your fat, you will actually be pushing your body to store more fat. This is a complete opposite of your goals, and this is one of the biggest disadvantages that you need to consider when thinking about the pros and cons of fasted weight training.