re: For those who IF and do cardio early am.. i have a question

Here is the deal, if you are doing IF there are a couple schools of thought or roads to take

If you are worried about health predominantly then anything but water breaks the fast.

If are greater than 25% and even down to 20% then you can lift fasted with zero concern of muscle loss so long as protein is adequate which with leangains protocol is around 1.5 x bodyweight. At this body fat levels you don't have to worry about muscle loss.

If you are at lower body fats or are interested in muscle gain then have your bcaas after your workout and don't over think it.

Look it's pretty simple, if you are looking for health benefits mainly then don't have anything but water.

If you are concerned with mainly body comp then you can have coffee, bcaa, sugar free drinks so long as you don't take in more than 20-30 calories during the fast.

For body comp it's pretty simple following the nutrition pyramid

1) calories match goal -60%
2) protein must be adequate to meet goal - 18%
3) macro break down - 10%
4) macro timing- 7%
5) supplements - 5%

Percentages make up the effect it will have on your results. Over course the leangains method of cycling Calories and fats/carbs is going to be pretty damn close to optimal, but if you just hit your damn calorie and protein you are about 80% of the way there. Might take a little longer to reach you goal but at least you won't be miserable and don't have to be anti-social.