StrongLifts & Cardio?

TravelsWithHuckleberry

Hi All,

I did my first SL5x5 workout last night and totally loved it.

Since significant weight loss is one of my goals, I would really like to keep up the cardio I'm doing -- it's a walk/job 5K training program that (ideally) is done three times per week.

Would love to hear your thoughts on how you balance the two? Is cardio really going to cut into recovery at the beginning stages of the 5x5 program?

Thanks in advance!
Courtney

gracielynn1011

Hi Courtney,

I don't think recovery will be negatively impacted, if you want to/like to do cardio, keep it up. Just make sure you are not cutting calories too much. You want to keep enough fuel in the tank for your activity level.

Also keep in mind that the scale may go up a little over the next few weeks, since you are adding a new program. I just finished my second strong lifts workout last night, and am looking forward to the next!

willrun4bagels

I think cardio definitely can impede recovery as the weights get heavier. I don't do any "dedicated" cardio right now and am still losing. I know that a lot of people do HIIT cardio for much shorter bursts of time. To be honest, without all the cardio (I used to do 5-6 days a week, 60 mins a day of insane cardio, was miserable), I am much happier. I walk my dogs casually in the evenings for 30-45 minutes and don't log it as exercise because we walk pretty slow, and with all of the stopping (MOM LOOK AT THIS SQUIRREL! MUST GO SMELL IT!) going on, the calorie burn is minimal.

katro111

A lot of cardio early on might not be too bad for you, but when the weights get heavier, it will probably mess with your recovery and burn you out pretty quickly. I do 30 minutes of HIIT once a week and then walk my dog multiple times per day (this is for the dog - he's at home inside all day while I'm at work so the least I can do is get him out and exploring the neighborhood), but it's not at a particularly fast pace. Other than the HIIT, I don't do any intense cardio and I only do HIIT on my rest day from lifting.

spirit095

Ditto what everyone says. I've had to lower my running down to one day per week from two, because I was feeling way too tired during my lifting exercises. I still walk on my off days, and I think I'm getting a good cardiovascular workout.

SkepticalOwl

I still do lots of cardio because I enjoy it, not to lose more weight since I'm pretty much in maintenance. I tend to do it on off-days or after I lift to minimize the impact on my lifting.

gracielynn1011

They do have a good point, I'm not really going heavy enough yet to judge that. I've always heard and read though that you don't have to stop a cardio program, as long as you allow some rest days periodically and eat enough to refuel. Maybe take it as a wait and see approach?

bruerin

I still do cardio. I have a good amount of weight to lose and I feel better mentally doing it. My eating lately has not been where it should be; cardio helps me to create a bigger deficit. I don't do anything too intense-incline walking on treadmill, ride my bike outside, random cardio DVD. I recently began doing intervals of running/walking on the treadmill, and am actually working toward one "long" run per week (I jogged 1 whole mile last week without stopping-LOL!)

I am a huge believer in flexibility training. I have always loved deep stretching, yoga, pilates. Those kinds of workouts make me feel so good physically, and slow down my racing mind. I've been doing 1-2 PiYo DVDs per week. I also foam roll everyday after my workouts. Foam roll gets the deep in the muscles soreness that no stretching can get to. I only learned of foam rolling after I could barely move when I first started SLs. The people in this group recommended it. I realize that a lot of people don't have much extra time for a lot of stretching, but for me, it helps with recovery and slowing down helps with my well-being.

All of that aside, I just finished my 4th week of SLs last night. Workouts are getting harder. If I need to for recovery purposes, I will eliminate all of the cardio except for the walking.