Avoiding Muscle Loss: The Impact of Excessive Aerobic Exercise

October 25, 2023

No matter what exercise you do, it is not advisable to overdo it. Take aerobic exercise for example. Doing aerobic exercise appropriately can effectively burn body fat and increase muscle. However, if you are too impatient and exercise excessively, doing aerobic exercise may not only fail to increase muscle, but may also cause muscle loss, which means the exercise won't have the desired effect. So, how long does it take for aerobic exercise to start burning muscle?

How long does it take for aerobic exercise to start burning muscle?

Doing 2 hours of aerobic exercise can deplete 90% of the body's alanine, which plays a very important role in muscle growth. Therefore, excessive aerobic exercise not only fails to increase muscle, but also depletes muscle, leading to a decrease in metabolic rate. In addition, excessive exercise can also cause muscle strains.

How long should aerobic exercise be?

During aerobic exercise, the body's stored fat is used as fuel, and glycogen in the blood, muscles, and liver is also consumed. Moderate aerobic exercise mainly consumes glycogen, and muscle consumption begins to accelerate. The ideal duration for aerobic exercise is between 40 and 45 minutes.

Reduce exercise intensity to avoid muscle loss

Excessive aerobic exercise and high intensity can deplete glycogen in muscles while burning fat, causing muscles to break down. Therefore, during exercise, a portion of the muscle is consumed. If the exercise intensity continues to increase, the body's fat, glycogen, and protein will be massively consumed as energy. To avoid muscle loss, it is important to reduce exercise intensity appropriately.

Reduce aerobic exercise time to avoid muscle loss

Although aerobic exercise is an effective way to burn fat, prolonged exercise not only burns fat, but also consumes muscle. When aerobic exercise exceeds one hour per day, strength gradually decreases and muscles atrophy. To avoid muscle loss, it is important to reduce aerobic exercise time appropriately.

Do strength training before aerobic exercise to increase muscle

Doing some strength training before aerobic exercise can help increase muscle. If aerobic exercise is done first, it can actually reduce the body's muscle glycogen storage capacity, which may not result in weight loss, but instead lead to weight gain. On the other hand, doing strength training before aerobic exercise and replenishing with protein-rich food during rest periods can better increase muscle.

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