Cardio for Muscle Building
Perform Muscle Building Cardio!

Cardio for muscle building is going to take advantage of high intensity interval training. High intensity interval training (HIIT) is a form of cardio in which you perform an activity at different intensity levels, from low intensity to high intensity and you cycle the levels throughout the cardio session.


We will be using HIIT on the muscle building WLC Program because it gives your cardiovascular system the needed exercise, improves recovery between workouts, burns fat, and increases your appetite.


High intensity interval training can be done in less amount of time and burn the same or more calories as low intensity cardio. We want to spend less time in the gym doing cardio when we're trying to build muscle and HIIT does the job! More time out of the gym means more muscle building!


HIIT is sometimes criticized for putting more stress on one's body. And you don't need that when you're in a calorie deficit. But guess what? When we're in a calorie surplus like we will be when we're trying to build muscle, that extra stress will not hurt us at all. Especially since I recommend that you only do it for short time periods.

I suggest you start out with 10 minutes of HIIT Cardio twice per week for your muscle building cycle during your WLC Program Rise period. That means for the first 3 weeks of the WLC Program, you will do a 10 minute HIIT session twice per week. Start out slow and work yourself up during those 3 weeks.

So, if you workout on Monday, Wednesday, Friday do your cardio sessions on Tuesday and Thursday and fully rest on Saturday and Sunday. Get some extra sleep on the weekend and take a few naps.


Remember, this is just my recommendation to you. If you want to do 15 minute sessions because you're in good cardio shape, then do 15 minute sessions. I just don't want you working too hard during these first 3 weeks. We're trying to get your body accustomed to working out again after your break.

During these weeks, I want you to raise your cardio duration to 15 minute HIIT sessions twice per week. This will be enough to really get that appetite going during these important muscle building weeks.


You'll be raising your calories during these weeks so make sure to raise them enough to get some weight gain. You'll see how the new cardio duration effects your weight gain during that first week, week 4. Adjust calories accordingly for that week and the upcoming weeks.

These weeks you should adjust your cardio up to 20 minute sessions of HIIT. I want to get that appetite going even more during these weeks. You should really be eating large quantities of food now for this part of the muscle building program. The increased cardio will help you continue to eat big.


Don't forget to use liquid meals if you're having trouble eating enough to gain weight. Gaining weight can get tough at times. The cardio for these weeks will burn calories, but the increased appetite from the cardio will more than make up for the calories burned. Plus, the cardio will help keep you lean during these muscle building cycles.

I want you to lower the cardio down to 10 minute sessions for this tough week of weight lifting. This week will be the toughest weight lifting week for the entire program and will be continued longer than a week if you're still making strength gains. I want you doing less cardio this week because your body will be very stressed during this week from the heavy weights.

For these weeks, I do not want you doing any cardio at all. We're starting to let our bodies recover from the muscle building WLC Program that we've focused on the past few months. This will give you a mental and physical break from exercise that you need.


Don't feel bad about not doing your cardio during this period. Let your body rest and grow during this time period.


Don't slack on your diet during these weeks either. You will still be building muscle especially during Week 11. So, keep those calories high and the food choices good! You might even build the most muscle of the entire cycle during Week 11! No muscle building cardio in weeks 11 and 12.

As you can see, I use cardio for muscle building cycles on the WLC Program. I believe in a complete weight lifting program including weight lifting, diet, stretching, and cardio!


Don't let anyone fool you into believing that cardio will only work against you when trying to build muscle. Cardio will help you achieve a better looking body and a much healthier body. There's no use in building tons of muscle if you get out of breath by simply walking!


Use cardio for muscle building as a part of your WLC Program, and you'll be very happy with the results. We're not talking about tons of cardio here. We're talking about 2 quick sessions on the selected weeks summarized above.


You can customize your cardio program however you'd like, and I would like it if you did. If you want to do an extra session per week, that's fine! But always know what you're doing and why you're doing it! Don't blindly change my recommendations for no reason. The program works very well as recommended.


I don't want you doing tons of cardio because our main focus here is building muscle! Remember this is cardio for muscle building! We're using the cardio for health reasons, increased recovery from weight lifting workouts, burning fat, and increased appetite. We're not going to focus on losing fat on our muscle building cycle!