Best type of cardio after lifting?

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vickihuk
vickihuk Posts: 29 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
My partner and I have just had a heated debate about what is the best type of cardio to do after a heavy lifting session. I said between 12-14 mins of HIIT, he said 10 mins of slow cardio. Would appreciate your thoughts!
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Replies

  • pondee629
    pondee629 Posts: 2,469 Member
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    What are you trying to do; cool down, amp up, get serious with cardio?
  • aledba
    aledba Posts: 564 Member
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    As a cool down? HIIT on the bike or treadmill for about 10 mins.
  • 999tigger
    999tigger Posts: 5,235 Member
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    what are you trying to do and what do you mean by best? I like the idea of a heated argument, gotten to throwing things yet?
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    "best" how?

    I personally don't do any cardio after I lift other than a 5 minute cool down on the stationary bike.
  • IsaackGMOON
    IsaackGMOON Posts: 3,358 Member
    edited August 2015
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    I find that the best cardio after the gym is to walk home.
  • 999tigger
    999tigger Posts: 5,235 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    "best" how?

    I personally don't do any cardio after I lift other than a 5 minute cool down on the stationary bike.

    Why? As in a genuine question whats your reasoning?
  • Noelv1976
    Noelv1976 Posts: 18,948 Member
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    Yeah, need more specifics. After lifting I go run for about 20 minutes. Sometimes I just do light intensity workouts. Or just go to the car. it all depends on what you are trying to accomplish.
  • bored_geek
    bored_geek Posts: 11 Member
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    Hijacking thread with a relevant definition of "best"

    I had a trainer once who claimed that raising heart rate above 140 (about ~70% max) will cause you to "burn fat instead of muscle", so the best cardio in terms of retaining muscle or promoting muscle growth was uphill walking with a moderate heart rate.

    I think this is pure myth, since your body's still got to repair the microtorn muscle fibers either way.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,704 Member
    edited August 2015
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    There is no "best". If you were given the "best" way and couldn't perform it right or even do it, how can it be the "best" for that person?
    "Best" cardio? The one you can do with consistency.

    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
    9285851.png
  • XavierNusum
    XavierNusum Posts: 720 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    "best" how?

    I personally don't do any cardio after I lift other than a 5 minute cool down on the stationary bike.

    None here either, maybe some yoga and stretching.
  • vickihuk
    vickihuk Posts: 29 Member
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    Maybe that's the point - I have more fat to lose but still want to build a lot of muscle. He just wants to build muscle. When I read advice from female bodybuilders, they normally point to some kind of intense cardio at least once a week.
  • kami3006
    kami3006 Posts: 4,978 Member
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    As a lifting cool down I stretch for 10-20 minutes. I do a 10 minute run and dynamic stretching for warm up.
  • kami3006
    kami3006 Posts: 4,978 Member
    edited August 2015
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    kami3006 wrote: »
    As a lifting cool down I stretch for 10-20 minutes. I do a 10 minute run and dynamic stretching for warm up.

    Eta: i do cardio on separate days than lifting.

    Sry. Double post
  • 999tigger
    999tigger Posts: 5,235 Member
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    ninerbuff wrote: »
    There is no "best". If you were given the "best" way and could perform it right or even do it, how can it be the "best" for that person?
    "Best" cardio? The one you can do with consistency.

    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
    9285851.png
    Niner is there a significant detriment to your lifting if you do cardio on the same day. I heard there was soemthing to do with hormones that made it inadvisable to mix.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    999tigger wrote: »
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    "best" how?

    I personally don't do any cardio after I lift other than a 5 minute cool down on the stationary bike.

    Why? As in a genuine question whats your reasoning?

    why the cool down or why no cardio?

    the cool down probably isn't really necessary, but it's habit and it feels good...

    as to doing actual cardio, I'm pretty beat after a lifting session and I'm not going to get much out of a cardio session after a lift. I do cardio on lifting days, but I will do my rides in the AM and lift in the PM to allow for recovery between sessions. I want to be able to go hard on my ride and go hard on my lifting session. Any cardio session after my lifts would be pretty lame.
  • Cherimoose
    Cherimoose Posts: 5,209 Member
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    vickihuk wrote: »
    I have more fat to lose but still want to build a lot of muscle. He just wants to build muscle. When I read advice from female bodybuilders, they normally point to some kind of intense cardio at least once a week.

    For those goals, doing cardio in a separate session would be ideal. Lower intensity cardio is less likely to affect muscle recovery, but HIIT could work too.
    Fat burning comes from eating the right number of calories for your activity level, not from doing a certain exercise. :+1:

  • vickihuk
    vickihuk Posts: 29 Member
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    Ok so I think we're both right in our own way haha. But I'm definitely gonna do the cardio on a separate session, thanks for the advice.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,704 Member
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    999tigger wrote: »
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    There is no "best". If you were given the "best" way and couldn't perform it right or even do it, how can it be the "best" for that person?
    "Best" cardio? The one you can do with consistency.

    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
    9285851.png
    Niner is there a significant detriment to your lifting if you do cardio on the same day. I heard there was soemthing to do with hormones that made it inadvisable to mix.
    I wouldn't do it before lifting if you're trying to focus more on hypertrophy or strength because glycogen would be reduced. The only thing hormonally may be an uptick in cortisol, but it's not enough to dissuade performance or progression that I know of.

    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
    9285851.png


  • ExRelaySprinter
    ExRelaySprinter Posts: 874 Member
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    vickihuk wrote: »
    My partner and I have just had a heated debate about what is the best type of cardio to do after a heavy lifting session. I said between 12-14 mins of HIIT, he said 10 mins of slow cardio. Would appreciate your thoughts!

    I sometimes do 15 mins of HIIT after lifting.
    Not sure it's the "best" cardio to do, but i normally do it because it gets my heart rate up and it's only 15 mins. ;)
  • KittensMaster
    KittensMaster Posts: 748 Member
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    vickihuk wrote: »
    My partner and I have just had a heated debate about what is the best type of cardio to do after a heavy lifting session. I said between 12-14 mins of HIIT, he said 10 mins of slow cardio. Would appreciate your thoughts!

    If you can 20 minutes do actual HIIT at 95 of your heart rate max then it wasn't a heavy lifting session

    Walking for 15 seems a good cool down.

    I find hard cardio and heavy lifting to be at cross purposes. Don't do it on
    The same day or on recovery day.

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