Cardio is the lever that creates the calorie deficit fat loss requires, and the cardiovascular base everything else rests on. Strength training builds muscle. Cardio burns fuel and trains the heart and lungs to support the weight room. Skip it and fat loss stalls — and your conditioning collapses by week 12.
Why cardio matters
- Fat loss. Cardio increases daily calorie burn and creates the energy deficit fat loss requires. It's not optional in a cut.
- Heart health. Regular cardio strengthens cardiac output, lowers resting heart rate, improves blood pressure, and reduces long-term cardiovascular disease risk.
- Energy and endurance. Consistent cardio improves lung capacity, oxygen efficiency, and daily energy levels — including the energy you bring back to the weight room.
The American College of Sports Medicine minimum for adults is 150 minutes of moderate-intensity cardio per week, or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity. This program runs at or above that ceiling depending on your phase.
LISS vs. HIIT
Both modes serve a purpose. The plan uses both, weighted by phase.
LISS — Low-Intensity Steady-State
- Walking, incline treadmill, easy bike — heart rate around 60-70% of max.
- Burns calories without taxing recovery.
- Sustainable daily without compromising lifts.
- Best for: bulk and recomp phases, post-lift cooldowns, off-day movement, daily steps.
HIIT — High-Intensity Interval Training
- Short bursts (30s-2min) at 85-95% of max heart rate, separated by recovery intervals.
- Higher EPOC (excess post-exercise oxygen consumption) — calorie burn continues for hours after the session ends.
- More demanding on recovery — limit to 1-2 sessions per week unless prescribed otherwise.
- Best for: short timeframes, plateau-breaking, conditioning phases.
LISS doesn't compete with strength training. HIIT does. Schedule HIIT carefully on non-leg days when possible.
Daily steps matter as much as structured cardio
- 10,000 steps minimum. This is the floor.
- 15,000 is the standard for most clients in a fat-loss phase.
- Steps outside the gym are NEAT — non-exercise activity thermogenesis — and they're the most-overlooked lever for body recomposition.
- A 30-minute morning walk before food has additional fat-oxidation benefits (low blood sugar, low insulin, fasted state pulls preferentially from fat stores).
Steps don't replace structured cardio. Both stack.
How cardio fits the program
Your specific cardio prescription is in your Trainerize program. It's calibrated to your training split, your phase, and your bodyweight. The numbers aren't suggestions — under-doing cardio in a fat-loss phase means we adjust food downward sooner than necessary, and you carry more hunger than you needed to.
If something's not working — joint pain, schedule, equipment access — message me before you skip. We adjust the prescription, not the principle.
The cardio you don't want to do is the cardio that's working.