Lifting and cardio balance

this all depends on your goals. generally lift first , cardio after. i personally lift 2.5 hours and do zero cardio.

I don't do cardio but if I did it would definitely be after lifting. I'm already in decent cardiovascular shape and am more concerned with strength and muscle, so I want to be strong and focused for what is more important to me.

I do my resistance training usually on days I don't run, because I use it as cross training and also I really have to focus on correct form so I like to feel fresh before I start (so I'd do my kettlebells/dumbbells/glute activation/core stuff before cardio if it is a double-up day).

I don't use very heavy weights by most people's measure though so I'm not sure how I do it would be the best way for someone who did.

I would recommend first off to find a structured lifting program and work with that rather than just doing your own thing. This will not only give you structure in the weight room, but it will help structure the rest of your training as well. Personally, I'd recommend a full body program that will have you 3x per week in the weight room...your training bout should take you about an hour. I personally find full body programming to be the most beneficial for people new to lifting...I'm an intermediate lifter and still do full body work vs a split. I know a lot of advanced lifters who stick with full body programming as well...I think splits are great if your aim is volume to put on mass and you're a more advanced lifter.

On lifting days, my primary emphasis is on the lifting. Cardiovascular training isn't my primary focus on these days...that's not to say I don't do cardio, but it's not intensive training...I'm not going to go do hill climbs on my bike or tempo rides on a lifting day for example.

I usually lift on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday morning. On Mondays I usually just do a nice moderately paced three mile walk at lunch and I lift in the evening after work. On Wednesdays I do a nice flats ride at lunch of about 15 miles at an easy cruising speed of 15 MPH or so and then I lift in the evening. On Saturday, I usually ride to the gym in the morning...it's an easy little spin of about 5 miles, so basically a nice way to warm up...then I lift and then it's an easy 5 miles home and a nice cool down.

I do my more intensive cardiovascular training like hill climbs, tempo rides, long rides, etc on non-lifting days.

cqbkaju wrote: »

If you are going to do cardio, do it AFTER you lift.
Doing cardio first uses the muscle ATP / glycogen that would be better spent lifting heavy.
Also stretch well after lifting.

this. ^