Weights before Cardio... Right or Wrong?

I have just been reading this article and it turns out I have always done the way its discussed below, but not becuase I am any sort of fitness guru by any means. Forn me it was the way I was taught while in the military, and its just stuck with me through the years. (light cardio to warm up, then hit the weights and finish off with cardio sessions.)

Curious what others do or think of the below article?

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http://www.thepostgame.com/blog/training-day/201104/warm-cardio-then-go-weights-right-wrong

""Having been an athlete for most of my life, I figured I knew my way around the gym. On a typical day, I'd hit the treadmill or elliptical machine for 30 minutes, then move to the weight machines. And that's what I started to do when I recently joined a gym. Then I got my assessment -- you know, the review of your habits a lot of gyms do. And the review told me I was doing something wrong.

Hit the weights hard, the assessment said. Then go to cardio.

What?

"The body needs to burn through its sugar source first before it taps into the fat," says Iman Nikzad, who runs the fitness program at my LA Fitness near Irvine, Ca. "You burn the sugar while doing the weights then burn the fat while doing the cardio."

I did some more research and, turns out, he's right and I was wrong. The optimal workout is a 10-minute warm-up on a low-impact cardio machine followed by 30 minutes of weights and then 30 minutes of intense cardio.

Yes, really.

"Efficiency is the key when structuring any workout, so long-duration cardio should not be done in the beginning of the session," says certified strength and conditioning specialist Jim Smith. "The most intensive training should be done first in the workout, when you are at your best."

By starting with weights, you alert your muscles to trigger the proteins that churn through calories while you train. So even though you're probably spent after 30 minutes of weights, your body is ready to eat fat faster than it would if you started by "telling" the body to attack sugar.

A lot of people get this wrong, thinking weight training diminishes the effect of the cardio work. It's the opposite. Just remember the phrase: "Muscle eats the fat." If you want to lose the flab -- and who doesn't? -- you want your muscles as active as possible. That means starting with weights.

And if you only have 30 minutes total, go for weights instead of cardio. That sounds counterintuitive, since we feel sweating is "proof" we're losing fat. But you will lose a lot more fat by pushing and pulling weights and then going on a brisk walk in your neighborhood (or even at the mall). The guy or gal who is dripping buckets on the Stairmaster is getting a good workout, but you're likely getting a better one by getting sore and not getting soaked.

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Thoughts??

I recently started doing circuit training...3 minutes of cardio, then 1 minute strength training, back to 3 minutes of cardio...etc. I am just starting out with this weight loss journey but I can already tell you it it WORKING!

Oh gosh....too late right now for this trainer to go into all the reasons I don't necessarily agree with this article. But suffice to say right now, one size does not fit all. There are different reasons to start with cardio or weights. Personally, I never combine the two. I don't have time. But I will say the best way to warm up for weights is to do some of your routine at a much lighter weight. From what I read, this is one trainer at LA Fitness....Puhleaze.............This is a teaser article, and highly incomplete.

When I read it, my initial thoughts were, "this is how I have always done it", BUT at the same time I thought, well different things work differently for other people and its just too generalized of an article, ......Always good to hear your input as a personal trainer. :-) Thanks!!!

@c2sky - Thanks for your post. I read both of the articles referenced in your post and enjoyed both. As you say, it is mostly common sense, but common sense has been found to be in short supply (not a reference to any post here!!!) I am 58 and have seen so many fitness and diet fads come and go that I am no longer impressed with the latest and greatest new revolution in whatever. There are so many "scientific" studies out there that purport to prove this and that I long for good, sound, no baloney health and fitness information. Thanks again for your post.