Reducing Cardio to improve muscle gains ? Replacing it with heavy bag ?

masculinist

I could probably do with losing 2 or 3 Kg but I'm eating very well on purpose because I enjoy working out and lifting heavy. Getting closer to shredded I feel too small anyway. My goal is more power lifting than body building for aesthetics. Maybe in 2 years I'll get bored and try to get shredded again.

I have been doing a 3 day split for the last 2 years.

Typically there would be a warm up followed by 5 weightlifting exercise then some cardio then ab exercises and leg lifts.

Each day would concentrate on a different group of muscles for the middle part of 5 exercises.

Often I would run 5km on a treadmill in the for the cardio part.

When I was in a hurry and the gym was really busy and there was no time to endure queuing at machines I would just run 5 km on the treadmill, shower and leave.

I had slight shoulder pain for the last year and it was quite painful 2 or 3 years ago so I wasnt pushing the size of the weights and was concentrating on reps instead of weights for those muscle groups. A physio told me to take it easy too and had advised me that ligaments can take years to heal and requires a lot of immobilisation and massage as theres low blood flow to that area. No idea how I got the injury. It was possibly a rugby injury which I had ignored at the time during the high of victory. My only activity these days is the gym.

2 Months ago the shoulder pain finally healed 100% and I'm very happy about this. I was worried it would be a long term issue.

To cut to the chase, if I cut out the 5 k cardio what could happen ? I've been hitting a heavy bag as a warm up and as a slight bit of cardio just before I do the ab exercises at the end of my programme.

I'm very happy with the power I can deliver to the bag. I'd like to improve upon it and I'd like to increase my muscle mass if possible.

Can anyone recommend how to fit hitting a heavy bag into my routine ? Was the 5k run affecting my gains ? I tell myself I am cutting it out to concentrate on gains but honestly it takes another 30 mins to do also so I'm cutting runs back to maybe once a week.
How much cardio would be too much ? I have read that cardio destroys gains.

Alf Veedersane

Cardio doesn't destroy gains necessarily. If you eat to account for cardio then there is no reason why you can't build muscle.

Timing comes into it as well. If it's not the first priority, don't let it effect your weight training, e.g. running too soon before leg-focused weight training may have a negative impact on the weight training. Or when you're coming towards the business end of a strength programme you don't want to be doing cardio.

There are a few articles on Greg Nuckols site, Strengtheory, that delve a little more into the science but ultimately