Cardio before or after Weight lifting?

suebae32

I say beforewoeking out to get your body lose and warmed up. When I coached cheerleaders I would have them strech for 45 mins and warm up with up n outs, run laps and jumps. If you go straight for lift or work out you might pull, get stiff or sprain something.

ElliottTN

Cardio always second if you have days where they intersect.

&&

Its absolutely fine to workout on an empty stomach

iplayoutside19

I live in the "Do them on seperate days camp". Mostly because of a time management perspective. That, and it breaks up the routine.

Azdak

You should ALWAY do weights before cardio. ALWAYS.

When you do cardio first all you are doing is burning up all the glycogen in your muscles and then when you go to lift weights all the glycogen is gone and you are out of gas, so to speak.

On the flipside, if you do weights first you can burn up the glycogen and give your weight training all that you've got and then when you do cardio you have a better chance of actually burning fat.

I do weights 5 times/week and cardio only 3 of those days, after I'm done with weights.

If you don't lift weights as frequently as I do, try doing the cardio on it's own day like other people have suggested. Just never do cardio before weights -- totally counterproductive.

1. NO

2. NO

3. NO

4. That's obvious

5. Again, NO

Huffdogg

You shouldn't really be exercising on an empty stomach - especially first thing in the morning - breakfast is key to kickstarting your metabolism and helping you burn calories faster.

false

Huffdogg

You should ALWAY do weights before cardio. ALWAYS.

When you do cardio first all you are doing is burning up all the glycogen in your muscles and then when you go to lift weights all the glycogen is gone and you are out of gas, so to speak.

On the flipside, if you do weights first you can burn up the glycogen and give your weight training all that you've got and then when you do cardio you have a better chance of actually burning fat.

I do weights 5 times/week and cardio only 3 of those days, after I'm done with weights.

If you don't lift weights as frequently as I do, try doing the cardio on it's own day like other people have suggested. Just never do cardio before weights -- totally counterproductive.

1. NO

2. NO

3. NO

4. That's obvious

5. Again, NO

Please explain your position. IMO, the person you responded to is pretty well spot-on.

Laquincy

I believe it's up to the indivdual. You have to find which will allow you to maintain your workout at a high level.

I played college football and we would lift then run, but some days we ran than lifted. I found the days of running first and lifting second A LOT harder than the other way. Which I welcomed becuase it challenged me and made me focus that much more. Also, your body gets use to routine, it's ok to shake things up every once and a while.

As far as working out on a empty stomach, again depends on the indivdual. I need something light maybe a granola bar or something. My roomate and this is no lie, my roommate use to smoke a black and mild before workouts and that's it. No food or anything for him.

As of right now, I don't do them on same days. MWF I weight train, T TH/S-cardio.

So it's all on how you feel. Listen to your body it''ll tell you.

fmvasquez

I choose to do weight lifting first and then cardio afte, that way I maintain a good form on my weight training to get the most out of it. I do mix it up though, if I weight train then I only do 20-30 min cardio. If I just do cardio it's 30-45min. This is all with a regimented diet of macro and micros changing based on what I choose to do that day. If you can, try doing your cardio in the morning, on an empty stomach if you prefer, and then come back in the evening and do your weight lifting. That way you give your body rest throughout the day and are ready to produce good work when when weight training.

smc864

You should ALWAY do weights before cardio. ALWAYS.

When you do cardio first all you are doing is burning up all the glycogen in your muscles and then when you go to lift weights all the glycogen is gone and you are out of gas, so to speak.

On the flipside, if you do weights first you can burn up the glycogen and give your weight training all that you've got and then when you do cardio you have a better chance of actually burning fat.

I do weights 5 times/week and cardio only 3 of those days, after I'm done with weights.

If you don't lift weights as frequently as I do, try doing the cardio on it's own day like other people have suggested. Just never do cardio before weights -- totally counterproductive.

1. NO

2. NO

3. NO

4. That's obvious

5. Again, NO

Ummmm... explanation?

doug_pierce

I do weights before cardio. I don't want to be tired from cardio when stregnth training. However, the purpose of my cardio is just to burn calories. If I were training for some sort of race and I was doing cardio to improve endurance, I would probably do it the other way.

just_Jennie1

I do my cardio before I lift because I know that if I don't I won't do it after. Also, it's not an option for me to do it on non lifting days as some people do because I lift every day.

Also I will be training for a duathlon so my main focus will be my cardio.

It's really up to you and what works for you.

ElliottTN

You should ALWAY do weights before cardio. ALWAYS.

When you do cardio first all you are doing is burning up all the glycogen in your muscles and then when you go to lift weights all the glycogen is gone and you are out of gas, so to speak.

On the flipside, if you do weights first you can burn up the glycogen and give your weight training all that you've got and then when you do cardio you have a better chance of actually burning fat.

I do weights 5 times/week and cardio only 3 of those days, after I'm done with weights.

If you don't lift weights as frequently as I do, try doing the cardio on it's own day like other people have suggested. Just never do cardio before weights -- totally counterproductive.

1. NO

2. NO

3. NO

4. That's obvious

5. Again, NO

Ummmm... explanation?

The only thing I'd argue with here is that depending on the intensity of your run you may or may not be burning glycogen so that is very circumstantial.

I agree though, weights before cardio always. In cardio, you are going to gain the benefit of the workout regardless of how tired your body really is. With weights, not so much, you have to hit certain threshold to trigger your body to adapt and grow. If you are tired from cardio it is harder and sometimes not possible to hit those thresholds. Just because something is relatively heavy to lift bc of your energy levels does not mean it is heavy enough to cause your body to adapt to it.

AND

Above all else. Never trust advice from someone who has a pet as their profile pic.

smc864

Above all else. Never trust advice from someone who has a pet as their profile pic.

:laugh:

ElliottTN

You should ALWAY do weights before cardio. ALWAYS.

When you do cardio first all you are doing is burning up all the glycogen in your muscles and then when you go to lift weights all the glycogen is gone and you are out of gas, so to speak.

On the flipside, if you do weights first you can burn up the glycogen and give your weight training all that you've got and then when you do cardio you have a better chance of actually burning fat.

I do weights 5 times/week and cardio only 3 of those days, after I'm done with weights.

If you don't lift weights as frequently as I do, try doing the cardio on it's own day like other people have suggested. Just never do cardio before weights -- totally counterproductive.

1. NO

2. NO

3. NO

4. That's obvious

5. Again, NO

Ummmm... explanation?

The only thing I'd argue with here is that depending on the intensity of your run you may or may not be burning glycogen so that is very circumstantial.

I agree though, weights before cardio always. In cardio, you are going to gain the benefit of the workout regardless of how tired your body really is. With weights, not so much, you have to hit certain threshold to trigger your body to adapt and grow. If you are tired from cardio it is harder and sometimes not possible to hit those thresholds. Just because something is relatively heavy to lift bc of your energy levels does not mean it is heavy enough to cause your body to adapt to it.

AND

Above all else. Never trust advice from someone who has a pet as their profile pic.

You only need to weight train three times a week for maximal benefit anyway.

Muscles can only grow so fast.

Six reps of working a muscle group, repeated twice more at a session, with two more sessions spaced out during the next six days.

Just stop talking now

ShannonMpls

Cardio after, because my priority is the weight lifting. I want to give it the most energy (well, strength).

In the unlikely event that I combine them, this is my priority. On rare occasions if there is a cardio class I want to attend and it works with my schedule, I might lift after but that's an exception.

Weight training has always been my priority from day 1.

BreeJaxon

After.

tkcasta

Cardio after. You don't want to be tired while lifting as you can really hurt yourself. The more you do it the easier it gets to maintain. Have a little snack between (like an orange).

feltlikesound

how much weight do you need to lose?

I would split them up

for example
mwf - lift then 10-15min hiit
tth - cardio
SS - rest

This is what I do, with 10 minute warmup before lift days. I am no expert, but it's definitely gotten positive results for me.

ShellyBell999

After
3xweek lifting followed by 15min HIIT on bike
3xweek power walking (just had knee surgery. No running yet)
I must eat before for effective workouts

walterm852

The best trainer I know says do cardio after. Use stored energy for effective lifts and good form (fully focused).