SCI-MX HARDCORE EDITION MAGBOOK May 2014 | Page 18
HARDCORE MUSCLE MASS
Gatt exclusive.
SCI-MX: Do you perform cardio when training and eating for maximum muscle mass?
Gatt: Yes – but it’s essential to use it wisely because excessive cardio is catabolic and can lead to
a loss in muscle and strength. It can even cause fat gain due to a rise in the stress hormone cortisol!
However, if you play it smart by using short and sweet high intensity cardio – it becomes an anabolic
exercise that will actually promote lean muscle growth. In-line with this, my favourite kind of cardio
is ‘modified strongman training’ – consisting of sprints, boxing/wrestling, sled pushes, farmers walks
and tire flips for 15-20 minutes (lung busting!). Another excellent option is turning traditional weight
training into cardio; I’ll increase my reps to 15-20 and rest for 15-20 seconds before hitting the next set.
If you insist on traditional cardio, then opt for 15-20 minutes post-weights.
SCI-MX: Do you use any nutrient timing strategies to try and promote lean mass gains?
Gatt: Absolutely! There is no perfect way to do things, I actually like to change it up each time I
approach a new training phase. There hasn’t been a competition, movie, photo shoot, or commercial
when I have done things the exact same way as before. My own personal theory behind this is the same
idea as muscle confusion. If you continually train the exact same way day after day and month after
month you will hit a plateau. If you continually diet the same way as you always do, eventually your
body will not respond the way it did before. Typically, I prefer some form of carb cycling to get shredded
and photo shoot ready. On rest days I like to increase fat and cut carbs, because I don’t need them to
perform. Healthy fats keep me full and I feel a boost in my testosterone which helps me recover better.
Bottom line - everybody is different and will react to different foods and diet techniques. Find out a
couple of different ways that work for you and cycle those during your training phases. However, I really
do feel that fats on rest days are KEY for recovery and keeping [