In what order please?

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Charlea1981
Charlea1981 Posts: 72 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hey everyone, I was wondering should you do strength training first or cardio? or cardio then strength?

Please let me know your reasons too!!!

Thank you xxx

Replies

  • aaronjarvis
    aaronjarvis Posts: 47 Member
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    Everyone is different. I like strength training first then finishing with some cardio, Just stretch before & after.
  • mynameiscarrie
    mynameiscarrie Posts: 963 Member
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    whatever works for you. for women, it's usually better to do cardio then lift. I know i've seen results that way, but everyone is different. I would say try it out one way and if you see results stick with it. if you don't see results then do it the other way.
  • ejmcam
    ejmcam Posts: 533 Member
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    I always do my cardio first! just seems to work for me. It doesnt really matter I dont think, do what you feel most comfortable with. Some people are to tired after cardio to do weights. I'm opposite!
  • aset132
    aset132 Posts: 91
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    I like strength first then cardio. I find I'm a little too tired to get an good strength workout in if I do it after.
  • theresabell67
    theresabell67 Posts: 97 Member
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    i will mix it up, most of the time i prefer to do cardio first then strength training. but when i choose to do the strength training first, i really struggle with my cardio afterwords.
  • crystal_sapphire
    crystal_sapphire Posts: 1,205 Member
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    it's recommended to do strength training first after a 5 min cardio warm up

    you put way more effort in than if you do cardio first
  • Fayve
    Fayve Posts: 411 Member
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    I don't remember exactly where I read it, maybe in SELF magazine or something. It's apparently been shown that doing weight training before cardio burns more calories overall.

    But what everyone else said, do what works. For me, I do my strength training before cardio, cause I'm ready to die once cardio is done.
  • MissbusyLizzie
    MissbusyLizzie Posts: 326 Member
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    I just signed up with a personal trainer at the gym, and he said always do weights first. You don't enter your fat burning zone until the first 30 minutes of working out, so you should use that 30 minutes to do weight training so your cardio is most effective! :)
  • shreddingit
    shreddingit Posts: 1,133 Member
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    cardio then strength has worked for me very well!!
  • luppic8
    luppic8 Posts: 580 Member
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    I always do cardio first.
  • MyNameIsNotBob
    MyNameIsNotBob Posts: 565 Member
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    I always do my cardio first, but I may switch it up and see if I like it the other way 'round.
  • deathtaco
    deathtaco Posts: 237
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    Cardio burns glycogen. Weight lifting prefers glyogen (as it's more accessible, ATP, etc) for energy, so if you do cardio before hand you're probably not getting the most out of your weight session.

    If you do low intensity (say, walking or LIGHT jog on a treadmill, 4-5 setting @ 5-10% incline), your body will be more likely to burn fat off since your weight lifting already ate up the available glycogen*.

    *Varies on glycogen levels, which is largely dependent on carbs/protein consumed prior to lifting (not just immediately, but overall)
  • mandamama
    mandamama Posts: 250
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    I do a 10 min warm up on the mill or elip just to get my heart rate in the zone and get motivated to work it. Then I do my weights then I do more cardio :)
  • rharris86dc
    rharris86dc Posts: 635 Member
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    I think it depends on what your goals are. I'm looking to burn fat, first and foremost, so I expend most of my energy doing cardio first, then I switch over to strength training.

    Once I get closer to my goal, and start looking to tone, I'll start out with strength and then finish up with cardio.

    Also, you could do the middle of the road approach and mix them - my trainer likes to give me things that have cardio and strength attributes.

    Good luck!

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