Cardio & weights on the same day...or different days?

fragileelegance
fragileelegance Posts: 102 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Should I be doing cardio and weights in the same workout session or should I have cardio days and weight days? Does it matter, what do you guys do?

Replies

  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    It depends on what kind of cardio we're talking about and what kind of weight training we're talking about. For example, you would be hard pressed to do intense cardio/endurance work and then lift heavy because you wouldn't be able to maximize your the amount of weight you were lifting therefore you would not be getting the benefits you otherwise would if you lifted fresh. Conversely, if you lift heavy and maximize those lifts you would be hard pressed to follow that up with anything more than some light cardio work (i.e. some elliptical work, ez jogging, stair stepper, etc)...

    By and large, if you want to optimize your workouts, you do your high intensity cardio training and high intensity lifting on separate days. An exception might be if you were training to maximize stamina and muscular endurance...I have one training day per week where I basically sprint on my bike for an hour and follow that up with some intense calisthenics work to build stamina.

    Really, it depends largely on your training and fitness goals and what you're trying to accomplish from a fitness standpoint.
  • fragileelegance
    fragileelegance Posts: 102 Member
    I'm really trying to lose more fat. I'm not trying to bulk up but I would like to slim my lower back, get bigger glutes and build leaner arms. I'm not lifting super heavy but I think they're challenging enough. I really want to up my cardio to lose more fat so I guess I should be doing separate days so I can have a good cardio sesh?
  • froeschli
    froeschli Posts: 1,293 Member
    When I first started lifting, I was so sore the next day or three, that I had to do it on my running days, else I wasn't able to get my runs in. After a few weeks though, the muscle soreness got less and I was able to get a good run in the next day. Still I usually went for a half hour warmup run before lifting....
    It all depends on how you feel. Try some things and decide what works for you ;-)
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    I'm really trying to lose more fat. I'm not trying to bulk up but I would like to slim my lower back, get bigger glutes and build leaner arms. I'm not lifting super heavy but I think they're challenging enough. I really want to up my cardio to lose more fat so I guess I should be doing separate days so I can have a good cardio sesh?

    losing the fat has far more to do with your diet than your exercise...

    Also, lifting heavy does not make you bulk up...."bulking" requires a calorie surplus. I lift heavy and am far from "bulky"...I am what most people would refer to as "toned"
  • Platform_Heels
    Platform_Heels Posts: 388 Member
    Depends on what works for you, how much time you have and what your goals are.

    I was doing 30 minutes of cardio before lifting but since I have started training for a Duathlon there are more days where I go to the gym and lift and then do my training in the afternoon. I'm starting to like doing it this way better and since the weather is nice plan on doing a split where I lift in the morning and then do my cardio -- walk, run, or bike -- in the afternoon/evening.

    I personally like doing cardio -- mostly running but now I'm getting into cycling -- so cutting it out isn't really an option for me.

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