Strength then cardio or vice versa?

justjumpit278
justjumpit278 Posts: 96 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
When I am at the gym, I do both strength training and cardio. I have fat to lose, but I also want to be strong, not just skinny! Just wondering if people have noticed better results if you do your lifting/strength workouts first then cardio or the other way around? Someone mentioned something to me a while ago that if you do it this way, "I'll see better results."
Is there any validity to this or is he imagining things...?:laugh:

Replies

  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 49,024 Member
    Depends on what you deem more important..........strength or cardio. Glycogen is used for both, so the exercise you do second will usually get less benefit from some glycogen depeletion.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • leggup
    leggup Posts: 2,942 Member
    Google says strength first, then cardio.

    When you start your workout with weights, by the time you get to the treadmill or bike your anaerobic energy systems will already be tapped out, meaning your body will have to resort to burning fat to keep your aerobic system going strong, Montenegro says. That means more calories burned, not just in the gym, but after your cool-down, too.

    Also (and this should be common sense), but if you log your miles and then try to do squats, those squats are likely to be weak and sloppy, she says, neither of which makes for eye-popping results.

    Warning- loads of freaking popups:
    http://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/should-i-do-cardio-or-weights-first
  • MityMax96
    MityMax96 Posts: 5,778 Member
    Do on separate days??

    That is what I do.

    And my cardio is very light.
  • phillyb2013
    phillyb2013 Posts: 271 Member
    I do a 45 min workout 5 days a week; a 10 minute warm up of cardio, then do weights, and then I do another 15 minutes of cardio. I alternate upper and lower body and I shake this up every four weeks.

    Hope that helps.

    Phyllis in NC
  • supnicole
    supnicole Posts: 23 Member
    I used to do cardio and then lift. About a year ago, I switched the order and now I lift first. I see much better progress and I'm much stronger now since I have more energy to lift. Cardio stamina is still the same.
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
    alternate days. m-w-f lift. tu-th-sa cardio.

    your cardio days should be as varied as your lifting days, don't just hope on the treadmill and do a 5k. go outside and do sprints. push a prowler/weight sled. go for a two mile as fast as you can run.
  • jason_adams
    jason_adams Posts: 187 Member
    I do my short to medium cardio sessions first. Longer cardio / runs I do on separate days. I
    I put my cardio first because:
    1) Being more warmed up is better than being less warmed up. I live in Canada so winters are COLD, and sometimes in the morning I really need the 20-40 mins to actually feel like my blood is no longer the consistency of a slushie (or slurpee).
    2) If I did weights first, I found I'd fill my gym time with lifting and skip my cardio (not in line with my goals).
    3) I find it helps me transition from life to gym. I'm currently focused on making it a warmup now though, and not trying to crank through more miles in the same time... So 20 min total on the treadmill. 10 mins walking, 6 mins running, 4 mins walking. After that I'm ready to hit the weights!
  • cherbert1
    cherbert1 Posts: 19
    I usually do them on separate days, but occasionally I'll have time for both. On those days I do strength first. I feel like my form is better and if I get tired I can just quit the cardio instead of quitting weights.
  • SkimFlatWhite68
    SkimFlatWhite68 Posts: 1,254 Member
    I do a 3 minute warm-up, usually one song on my iPod. Then I do my strength training so I have all my energy for lifting weights. Follow that up with 10-15 mins cardio for fitness.

    If I am planning a longer cardio session then I'll do that by itself, not on a weights day.

    If I only have time for one - I'll choose strength training every time.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    Depends on what you deem more important..........strength or cardio. Glycogen is used for both, so the exercise you do second will usually get less benefit from some glycogen depeletion.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

    For maybe the 2 out of 200 people in the gym who will ever work enough to actually deplete their glycogen.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    Google says strength first, then cardio.

    When you start your workout with weights, by the time you get to the treadmill or bike your anaerobic energy systems will already be tapped out, meaning your body will have to resort to burning fat to keep your aerobic system going strong, Montenegro says. That means more calories burned, not just in the gym, but after your cool-down, too.

    Also (and this should be common sense), but if you log your miles and then try to do squats, those squats are likely to be weak and sloppy, she says, neither of which makes for eye-popping results.

    Warning- loads of freaking popups:
    http://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/should-i-do-cardio-or-weights-first

    People who write this stuff are full of what we used to call in the old country:

    The Crap.
  • Grnhouse
    Grnhouse Posts: 254 Member
    So is your recommendation to do cardio after weight lifting?
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
    I think it's a matter of personal preference. I usually do strength first, for some reason it makes my cardio go better.
  • kdeaux1959
    kdeaux1959 Posts: 2,675 Member
    IMHO, whichever you deem most important should come first... You will have more energy for it. For me, I do strength then cardio. Occasionally, I'll mix it up just for the fun of it but I usually do strength first.
  • CipherZero
    CipherZero Posts: 1,418 Member
    To build muscle mass, lift first, cardio second. Lifting requires far more recovery time than cardio sessions do, and the cardio post-lifting will actually speed recovery and lower the DOMS effects.
  • pietomb00
    pietomb00 Posts: 69 Member
    I tend do do cardio first, but only as a 5-10min warm up, then do resistance bits. I do my proper cardio on completely different days (or in a second session later in the day)
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
    Just wondering if people have noticed better results if you do your lifting/strength workouts first then cardio or the other way around?

    In essence it depends on your objectives, but the session you do second will have less effect, and slightly higher injury risk due to fatigue. So that then leads on to what you do as cardio. If it's pootling along on the elliptical, then it's not really an issue, if you run then it'll affect your speed and form if you do it second.
  • elliej
    elliej Posts: 466 Member
    Weights first.

    That said, I usually walk at high speed from the tube station to the gym so technically do a tiny cardio warm up.
  • JeffInJax
    JeffInJax Posts: 232 Member
    My goal is to lose as much fat as possible while minimizing muscle loss so for the time being I do not do any cardio except on off days once in a while. Stretch for a while, lift and then leave. Like they said if doing the same day depends on goals. Strength = Lift then Cardio, Loss = Cardio then lift, which will keep your heart rate elevated.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
    Strength = Lift then Cardio, Loss = Cardio then lift, which will keep your heart rate elevated.

    And course Sports performance = session as appropriate to the plan ;)
  • JeffInJax
    JeffInJax Posts: 232 Member
    ^^^ Very true, wasnt trying to leave one out ;)
  • _HeartsOnFire_
    _HeartsOnFire_ Posts: 5,304 Member
    Do both. Though when you start lifting, just do lifting until you can work the cardio in.
  • Megmo127
    Megmo127 Posts: 76 Member
    I usually do my cardio/strength on separate days so when I lift, I know I'm really giving it my all. I will typically warm up for 5-10 mins, though.

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