Cardio before or after lifting weights?

eimaj5575
eimaj5575 Posts: 278 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I have always completed my cardio before lifting weights, I have been reading some articles today that states its better to weight lift before cardio. Is this true? Does it matter which you do first?

Replies

  • SpecialKH
    SpecialKH Posts: 70 Member
    My trainer agrees. He says to make the most of the elliptical, I should lift first which burns the 'sugar' in my blood (he used more complicated terms but I'm relaying it as I understand it on my level!) so that, by the time I hit the elliptical, I'm starting ketosis and burning fat.

    I've been doing this a month now. Before I wasn't doing weights so I don't have much to compare to.
  • gmhenry2014
    gmhenry2014 Posts: 42 Member
    Agree. After!
  • Stage14
    Stage14 Posts: 1,046 Member
    I lift first solely because I'm less sore when I do cardio after. Sometimes I split up the cardio by running to the gym, lifting, then running home. But if I lift last, I always have killer DOMS later on.
  • martinel2099
    martinel2099 Posts: 899 Member
    I used to do cardio before but I now do cardio after weights. Reason is I started incorporating dead lifts into my usual workout routine and soon to be incorporating squats (they really take it out of you but in a good way). My workout takes over an hour, so I need all the energy I can get and dead lifts are taking it out of me.

    Nothing wrong with doing the cardio after if you have the energy, yesterday I did dead lifts and my normal routine and then squeezed in 30 min of elliptical after.
  • maab_connor
    maab_connor Posts: 3,927 Member
    think about it like this: do you want to have tired muscles when you have weights over your head? or do you want fresh muscles? cardio second so that you don't drop a weight and hurt yourself.
  • jason_adams
    jason_adams Posts: 187 Member
    I know that I found if I did weights first I'd often end up with a very short, or a very skipped cardio session. It didn't match my goals, but it did match my time management in the gym.

    Short and sweet:
    1. always warm up (this could include a short cardio or HIIT session)
    2. do the highest priority items first in the gym

    Tired muscles do require more effort to get them to move, so while it's likely true that you'll work harder for a given Watt output on the cardio machines AFTER lifting, I'm not sure there's going to me magic in it.

    Example: if X minutes at Y speed on the treadmill burns C calories for you, it's going to measure the same amount before or after you lift. I have a hunch this is in the same category as the "ignite your metabolism" argument which now seems to have been proven correct, but to a degree that does not really affect very much.


    Happy lifting!!!
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
    It really depends on what your goals are.

    If your goal is increasing strength and/or building muscle, then after is better.
  • navygrrl
    navygrrl Posts: 517 Member
    I do cardio after lifting weights because I don't want to be too tired and have my form suffer while lifting. I know if I tried to do bulgarian split squats after cardio, I'd probably fall and tear something, LOL.
  • KylaDenay
    KylaDenay Posts: 1,585 Member
    after
  • TheErd30
    TheErd30 Posts: 1
    Some have already stated this, but it should really be whichever you deem most important. Your specific priorities should dictate whether you do cardio or weights first. Personally, I do weights first and then cardio.
  • JBerg7701
    JBerg7701 Posts: 1
    I've wondered this for quite some time as well! I think that I will try after for a month and see if I make any pr's on my weights!
  • eimaj5575
    eimaj5575 Posts: 278 Member
    Thank you guys for the responses. Tonight for the first time I will lift before my run. I just always liked running before so I knew i would have the energy to do so. But I am also trying to cut my cardio and lift heavier. So I will now try lifting then a shorter run. See how this goes. :)
  • jsingley899
    jsingley899 Posts: 54 Member
    I am sure there is some scientific answer to this, and I may even be doing it wrong, but for me if I can get through my cardio, I feel a bit more pumped to do my strength training. If I try to go straight to lifting, I just feel so unmotivated!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    I like to optimize both my lifting and cardio sessions so I generally do them on completely different days. When I do them on the same day, I ride at lunch and then have several hours to recover before my evening lifting session. I will very occasionally do some light cardio after a lifting session just to burn off a little more steam, but I'm not pushing for time or PRs or anything like that when I do.
  • levitateme
    levitateme Posts: 999 Member
    I always do a 5 minute warm up on the elliptical before I lift, but I never do strenuous cardio on serious lifting days.
  • Leadfoot_Lewis
    Leadfoot_Lewis Posts: 1,623 Member
    think about it like this: do you want to have tired muscles when you have weights over your head? or do you want fresh muscles? cardio second so that you don't drop a weight and hurt yourself.

    Exactly. Plus I'm not wasting energy I need to lift weights on cardio. Personally, I do not do any cardio on lifting days unless it's on the weekends when I have time to do one early in the AM and the other late in the PM. That said, I guess it comes down to where your priorities are (is lifting more important than cardio and vice versa) and at what intensity you're going to be lifting with.
  • bpotts44
    bpotts44 Posts: 1,066 Member
    My trainer agrees. He says to make the most of the elliptical, I should lift first which burns the 'sugar' in my blood (he used more complicated terms but I'm relaying it as I understand it on my level!) so that, by the time I hit the elliptical, I'm starting ketosis and burning fat.

    I've been doing this a month now. Before I wasn't doing weights so I don't have much to compare to.

    Ketosis is an adaption to dietary restriction of carbs and cannot be achieved only through exercise unless we are talking about extreme amounts of exercise. Exercise in a state of ketosis is really only beneficial to endurance athletes doing ultra events like full ironmans, 50 milers, etc. It doesn't matter which you do first. Your body will burn fat or go to glucose depending on what you are doing.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
    Does it matter which you do first?

    Yes it does, as you'll be fatigued for the latter session and there is a risk that form will suffer. As a result the one to do first is the priority for your session. If your priority is the lifting, do that first, if your priority is CV performance then do that first.

    For me, the priority is running performance. I don't want to do that fatigued as my form suffers and that increases my injury risk. Therefore, run first.

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