Warm up before weights?

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bryjess95
bryjess95 Posts: 3 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I've read that it's important to warm up, to the point of sweating, before a weightlifting workout. So I've been doing my cardio before my weights. Then I read that the best way to shed pounds fast is to start with weights and then do cardio. I need to loose 20lbs to be in a healthy range and I want to get strong along the way.
How do you warm up before weights and do you start with cardio?
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Replies

  • lishie_rebooted
    lishie_rebooted Posts: 2,973 Member
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    When I lifted in a commercial gym, I'd start with 10 min of cardiovascular as a warm up. Mostly to wake up my brain and such. Then go lift with warm up sets built in.
  • Cherimoose
    Cherimoose Posts: 5,210 Member
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    Different people have different opinions. A simple and effective warmup is doing a few light sets of the exercises you're about to perform. This lets you review your form, plus it loosens up the joints you're about to use (as opposed to using the treadmill before an upper body workout, for example).

    Since lifting takes a lot of energy to do safely and with the right effort level, it's probably not wise to do a lot of cardio prior. Some do cardio on non-lifting days.
  • maasha81
    maasha81 Posts: 733 Member
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    I do light cardio and active stretching before lifting probably for about 10 - 15 mins to warm up those muscles a bit. However, sometimes I do HIIT or cardio intervals after my strength workout. Usually about 20 mins if I have the energy

    I also do cardio on non lifting days and have one rest day.
  • Willbenchforcupcakes
    Willbenchforcupcakes Posts: 4,955 Member
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    I do 5 minutes of light cardio, some dynamic range of motion work, for squat or dead days some banded glute work, and then my warm up sets.
  • hanymamdouh
    hanymamdouh Posts: 123 Member
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    Cherimoose wrote: »
    Different people have different opinions. A simple and effective warmup is doing a few light sets of the exercises you're about to perform. This lets you review your form, plus it loosens up the joints you're about to use (as opposed to using the treadmill before an upper body workout, for example).

    Since lifting takes a lot of energy to do safely and with the right effort level, it's probably not wise to do a lot of cardio prior. Some do cardio on non-lifting days.

    That is!!
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,575 Member
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    5 minutes of light cardio. Some dynamic stretching for whatever I'm working that day. 3 weighted sets at 40,50, and 60% of my max. Then go.

    Doing cardio or strength first has nothing to do with weight loss. That comes from your diet anyway. But I would not want to do my cardio first and be tired while I have a lot (for me) of weight on my back. Doesn't make sense.
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
    edited April 2015
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    I found that I got less sore if I did at least 5 mins of moderate cardio (along with stretching) before and after lifting.
    I recently started c25k and I'm in the process of experimenting on the order. However, I'll still do a few mins of cardio on whichever end of the workout I don't do c25k.

    ETA: Losing weight has to do with creating a calorie deficit. Order of workout shouldn't have any effect on how quickly you lose.
  • bluetuesday5
    bluetuesday5 Posts: 99 Member
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    I like to spend 10-15 mins of alternating calisthenics (jumping jacks, etc), stretches and short bursts on the heavy bag, escalating in intensity until I feel I can go full out on the punch bag for 30-60s. Take five minutes to calm down, grab a drink and do some more stretches. Then I do warm up sets for each lift.
  • ScorpioJack_91
    ScorpioJack_91 Posts: 5,241 Member
    edited April 2015
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    It really depends on the type of exercise I'm doing but personally if I'm doing upper body day...I'll warm up by stretching and/or benching 135 lbs for 15-16 reps for one set and then go on from there. For lower body day...I'll do some leg stretching and then a 5 minute jog on the treadmill before going on from there. I'm gonna start to incorporate a 205 lbs squat into my warm up for 10-12 reps for one set.
  • terizius
    terizius Posts: 425 Member
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    As you've read above, most people (that know what they are doing), will do between 5-15 mins of light activity just to clear the cobwebs and loosen the muscles. More important is to warm up the specific muscles that you will be working. This means warm-up sets. I usually do 2-4 warmup sets depending on how heavy I will be lifting.

    Its not necessary to warm up before "every single exercise". Just warm up the muscle group. For example, I always start with bench press. I do 3 or so warmup sets, increasing weight each time while decreasing reps, then do my working weight. I don't do another warmup set for my other chest exercises, since my chest/shoulders/triceps are already warmed up (and friggin tired) from the bench press.
  • LiftCore
    LiftCore Posts: 23 Member
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    I don't believe cardio as warm up is necessary, especially for weightlifting. I tend to under perform if I do so, but if it gives you peace of mind, do about 5 minutes at a very light intensity. You should do dynamic stretches for the intended muscle group of the session, following by mobility work for the primary/secondary movers of that workout, followed by 2-3 warm up sets (depending on how intense/heavy you're going) for large movements or the first exercises of the session, while doing 1 warm up set for smaller movements or movements later on in the workout.
  • maxit
    maxit Posts: 880 Member
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    terizius wrote: »
    As you've read above, most people (that know what they are doing), will do between 5-15 mins of light activity just to clear the cobwebs and loosen the muscles. More important is to warm up the specific muscles that you will be working. This means warm-up sets. I usually do 2-4 warmup sets depending on how heavy I will be lifting.

    Its not necessary to warm up before "every single exercise". Just warm up the muscle group. For example, I always start with bench press. I do 3 or so warmup sets, increasing weight each time while decreasing reps, then do my working weight. I don't do another warmup set for my other chest exercises, since my chest/shoulders/triceps are already warmed up (and friggin tired) from the bench press.

    This is my routine too (except I start with squats or deadlifts) -
  • noclady1995
    noclady1995 Posts: 452 Member
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    LiftCore wrote: »
    I don't believe cardio as warm up is necessary, especially for weightlifting. I tend to under perform if I do so, but if it gives you peace of mind, do about 5 minutes at a very light intensity. You should do dynamic stretches for the intended muscle group of the session, following by mobility work for the primary/secondary movers of that workout, followed by 2-3 warm up sets (depending on how intense/heavy you're going) for large movements or the first exercises of the session, while doing 1 warm up set for smaller movements or movements later on in the workout.

    I just started lifting last month and this is what I do. I did a lot of reading before I started because who has time to waste time?? LOL. Works great.

  • HardcoreP0rk
    HardcoreP0rk Posts: 936 Member
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    I run after my lifts, so I just warm up each exercise with light weight and high reps. But when I lift, I start light and gradually up the weight and then taper down once I start going into muscle failure. So, this just fits right into my plan, keeps me warm, and makes it really easy to tell when Im ready to start adding heavy weight.
  • Sam_I_Am77
    Sam_I_Am77 Posts: 2,093 Member
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    There are different opinions and I think some very current data suggests it's not important to get to the point of sweating in a warm-up. Find what works best for you.
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
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    I walk for 5 minutes on the treadmill and then just go pick up some 20lb dumbbells and flail around with them until I feel loose...lol. Works for me.
  • AllanMisner
    AllanMisner Posts: 4,140 Member
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    Generally, yes, you need to have the muscle warm before you lift. That can be as simple as just walking and moving your arms to get blood flowing. You don’t have to be sweating. Additionally, you can do very light weight for the same movement you’re going to do before you do your real sets.

    I would move my cardio to a different day than lifting so you can apply full intensity to the lifting and not have to keep anything in the tank for later.

    And finally, fat loss comes from what and how much you eat. Exercise should be focused on other health and fitness modalities (e.g., strength, cardiovascular, endurance, etc.).
  • ovidnine
    ovidnine Posts: 314 Member
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    I typically do 10-15 minutes of moderate cardio before I lift. I lift early in the morning and not only does it warm my muscles up a bit it gives me a few more minutes to fully wake up before I start trying to lift weights.

    Everyone's goals are different but I know for myself if I tried doing cardio after a lifting session its probably not going to go well for me as I'm usually pretty tired.

    But go with what works for you!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
    edited April 2015
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    bryjess95 wrote: »
    I've read that it's important to warm up, to the point of sweating, before a weightlifting workout. So I've been doing my cardio before my weights. Then I read that the best way to shed pounds fast is to start with weights and then do cardio. I need to loose 20lbs to be in a healthy range and I want to get strong along the way.
    How do you warm up before weights and do you start with cardio?

    My first couple of exercises are an upper body and a lower body...so for example, I might start with a few light squats to warm up before my working sets...and then move onto bench and do a few light reps before my working sets. After that, I just do working sets as I feel my body is pretty well warmed up all over.

    In terms of losing weight, it's all pretty irrelevant...your weight loss will largely be attributable to your diet. Exercise is great in that it increases your body's calorie requirements...but it really should be done for the sake of fitness...you can exercise all you want, but if you over-eat you're not going to shed a pound.

    Diet for weight control, exercise for fitness. I'm a bit of a fitness buff and I can tell you that I've lost weight, maintained weight, and gained weight all while working out regularly...the difference between those three things was not my workout...it was my energy (calorie) consumption.

    ETA: as to what you would do first, that would depend on your goals. Generally speaking I like to lift before cardio because I want to be able to put everything into my lifts to get the most benefit from those lifts. I like to do the same with cardio so I generally do cardio on non-lifting days. On lifting days I pretty much just walk my dog.
  • yusaku02
    yusaku02 Posts: 3,476 Member
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    I typically do a one mile warm-up run (about 6.5 minutes) then lift weights.

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