does it really matter? weights or cardio first?

lisaisso
lisaisso Posts: 337 Member
edited October 3 in Fitness and Exercise
i have about 60+ more lbs to lose, and i love weight training and cooperate that with my cardio workouts 3 of the 5 days per week.
does it make a difference as to what your goals are? would it really matter if i've been doing cardio first? i don't feel like my form is compromised..
thanks in advance MFP :wink:

Replies

  • emilydmac
    emilydmac Posts: 382 Member
    i dont think it matters!
  • Sweet13_Princess
    Sweet13_Princess Posts: 1,207 Member
    My fitness magazines recommend cardio first, weights second. However, I find that when I do that, I get too tired to do a decent job with weights.

    I think you have to do what works best for your body, but I would at least do a five minute warm-up before lifting so you don't hurt yourself.

    Shannon
  • Melis25Fit
    Melis25Fit Posts: 811 Member
    I was always told weights first. Intense Cardio can fatigue the muscles, and so when you lift, you won't be able to do it to your full potential. I always lift then cardio.

    ('Ive worked with 3 different Personal Trainers- also read it in Shape Magazine.--- So I think it's pretty accurate,)
  • lawtechie
    lawtechie Posts: 708 Member
    I'm sure you'll find varying opinions, but I'd recommend weights first -- you want your muscles to be fresh and do the most they can. If you do weights AFTER cardio, you're going to be tired and less apt to get a good weights workout.
  • Bobbejo
    Bobbejo Posts: 12
    you should do cardio first - at least some. Your joints expand when they are warm. If you strength train cold you put your body at more of a risk for injury because things have more room to slip into the wrong places.
  • MadeOfMagic
    MadeOfMagic Posts: 525 Member
    I think you're supposed to do cardio first to warm up your muscles and get your body to start burning calories, so in turn you will burn more during you weights session because your body has already been boosted up. And it also warms up your muscles so you don't get injuries. Some sort of light cardio warm up could be good if you wanted to do cardio after weights.
  • kellyscomeback
    kellyscomeback Posts: 1,369 Member
    It's a personal preference. I do cardio then weights.
  • mrau719
    mrau719 Posts: 288 Member
    If you do them together trainer told me cardio second.
  • Bobbejo
    Bobbejo Posts: 12
    My trainer has me do 3 days of strength training with a decent warm up first (10-15 minutes). Then I do intense cardio 2 x's a week, but I never do heavy lifting and heavy cardio on the same day.
  • leilani♥
    leilani♥ Posts: 579
    I don't know. I've done it both ways and feel fine either way :)
  • Breedy75
    Breedy75 Posts: 54 Member
    Simple answer is which ever benefit you want the most from.

    If you are really looking to improve your cardiovascular endurance and burn a lot of calories then do cardio first. You will be more focused and have more energy.

    If you are looking to tone or make strength gains then lift first. It's hard to get on a stair stepper and get a good cardio work out when your leg are on fire.

    In your specific case, if you just want to lose weight and tone up a little I don't think it will really matter. If you have the option of working out in the morning before breakfast I would consider that. I haven't kept up to date on the accuracy but there were some studies that showed that exercising on a empty stomach (ie before eating breakfast) actually burned more calories. YMMV and this is canon.
  • marianne_s
    marianne_s Posts: 983 Member
    I prefer cardio first, then weights

    When I do it the other way around, my muscles are just too tired for me to put any real effort into the cardio
  • jgic2009
    jgic2009 Posts: 531 Member
    On gym days, I like to do a short cardio warm-up (2-3 minutes), then weights (sometimes with cardio bursts between sets), then a cardio workout (elliptical or upright bike) if I feel like it.

    On non-gym days, I run.
  • aprilfit
    aprilfit Posts: 90 Member
    Depends on your goals.

    You want to have the most energy for what your main focus is.

    Super important that you warm up 1st. No matter what you choose to do 1st.

    Reccomended you warm up for 3-10 mins (length depends on your fitness level.)

    From there you can continue your cardio or do weight training and cardio later.

    The theory is:
    Cardio first if fatburn or incresed cardio capacity is your goal.
    Weights 1st if your goal is strength trainng or increasing muscle mass.

    Really as long as your getting in your workouts. Get a warm up, cool down post cardio and work in a stretch, it's all good.

    Happy Workouts,
    April
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,956 Member
    For the purpose of using glycogen for good ATP/ADP conversion and not catabolize muscle if your glycogen stores run out, you lift first then cardio. If you have more energy, you can lift heavier weights. This increases resting metabolic rate.

    Contrary to what people think, you burn MORE FAT sitting at home resting in a day, then you would in a one or two hour cardio session. Most people burn between 250-700 calories on an hour cardio session. Your body, just to sustain itself will usually need more than 1200 a day for most people.

    So a higher resting metabolic rate results in more fat being burned. Hit the weights hard to do this.
  • lilRicki
    lilRicki Posts: 4,555 Member
    I do 10 minutes of cardio first...weights and then 20 minutes of cardio...I was doing my cardio first, and I was to tired to do weights after. Than I did weights first, and it's hard lifting a cold body lol
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