Is it bad to lift weights on an empty stomach?

On Ep. 116, Nikkiey explains that if you train in the morning while intermittent fasting, or simply don't eat beforehand, you're lifting in a catabolic state. Your body breaks down muscle for the energy to get through the workout, which is the opposite of what you're working toward. She wants you in an anabolic state, where you build and keep muscle. You get there by fueling with food before and after your workout and throughout the day. In her catabolic vs anabolic video she adds that the effect compounds when you do it for days, weeks and months.

In her fasted cardio vs fasted lifting video, Nikkiey also says lifting fasted can affect women's hormones. Her reasoning: cortisol is already naturally higher in the morning, training adds more stress, and she describes cortisol as a fat-storing hormone. She also points out that most intermittent fasting research was done on men. That is her view, not medical advice. If you have hormone or health concerns, work it through with your doctor.

The question she leaves you with is a simple one. Do you want your workout fueled by food, or by your muscle? If you've been lifting fasted and not seeing changes, the problem may be the plan, not you.