Cardio v Strength, whats your take?

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  • Kslice39
    Kslice39 Posts: 146
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    Anyone over 60 in here? Just wondering how to start strength when you are 60 and have a bad hip? All suggestions accepted. My doctor said bike and elliptical for the hip,
    im not over 60, but i have knee issues(had an athletic accident and tore 3 of the 4 ligaments in my right knee) and my doc and PT said to take it easy by starting out by doing little exercises. Like in the summer i focus on swimming. and when the weather changes i do the bike and elliptical(when i had one!) and now that ive built up the muscles more i can so a little bit on the treadmill. But the doc said the best thing is swimming(i dont know if you have access to a heated pool or anything) and to also make sure you stretch before and after and to ice the area afterwords :) i hope this helps.
  • SassyCalyGirl
    SassyCalyGirl Posts: 1,932 Member
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    BOTH!
  • DianaPowerUp
    DianaPowerUp Posts: 518 Member
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    I think it depends on your goals. If you're grossly overweight, and need to shed a lot, cardio will get to you drop more weight more quickly.

    Strength training will improve your muscle strength and size, and over the course of the day, will help you burn more calories while at rest than if you don't have that muscle mass.

    Doing both is very beneficial for different reasons. Right now I do almost exclusively weight training and very little cardio. I get quite a cardio effect from the lifting I do.
  • Kslice39
    Kslice39 Posts: 146
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    I think it depends on your goals. If you're grossly overweight, and need to shed a lot, cardio will get to you drop more weight more quickly.

    Strength training will improve your muscle strength and size, and over the course of the day, will help you burn more calories while at rest than if you don't have that muscle mass.

    Doing both is very beneficial for different reasons. Right now I do almost exclusively weight training and very little cardio. I get quite a cardio effect from the lifting I do.

    I need to lose 40-50 lbs(im 5'3'' and 179 lbs) so i would consider me grossly overweight lol technically om "obese" ugh i hate that word! but i can run a mile in 10-11 mins(im pretty proud of that!) so i think i might mainly focus on cardio and do a little weight training on the side like only 2-3 days a week. i want muscle, i want to me toned, i dont want to be(like someone on here mentioned earlier lol) the "skinny fat girl" i want to look sexy and toned :)
  • TrimThinTonedTight
    TrimThinTonedTight Posts: 69 Member
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    Do both - maybe try changing to whole body routines though. 2 days a week of whole body routines, 3 days a week of cardio, add a 6th day of whatever you like (walking as a rest break or yoga, or a third day of strength) when you are ready.

    I do 2-3 days of strength, 3 days of C25k right now (eventually it will just be 3 days of 30 minutes of running) and i add in some dance central whenever I feel like it.

    I've been looking for tips, and this one sounds great!
    :smile: Thank you!
  • 1girlcook
    1girlcook Posts: 8 Member
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    BOTH!!
  • Barneystinson
    Barneystinson Posts: 1,357 Member
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    2 days weekly heavy lifting
    3 days running (half marathon training)
    1 day cross training / conditioning (or a rest day if it's a race week)
    1 day of utter laziness

    I believe in balance :)
  • knapowell
    knapowell Posts: 230 Member
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    Take it from someone who was extremely overweight - start out doing both. I concentrated on strength training only here and there along way. I would be very consistent for a couple of weeks, then no strength training for a couple of weeks (or longer). Back and forth, back and forth, and each time it was like starting over. I am down 120 pounds, and I can tell you I would be in much better shape had I taken a more balanced approach. Now it is so hard to change up my routine.
  • LeanMeanFitnessMachine
    LeanMeanFitnessMachine Posts: 659
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    start now......do strength training first then your cardio. you dont need to change your workout everyday. actually it might be counter productive if you do it everyday.. you need repetition and consistency so it becomes a routine and your train your muscles for a particular type of activity and avoid injury. id say change things up every 3 - 5 weeks.

    goodluck! and dont forget exercise is only 20% of the journey..your diet has to be on point!

    :)

    Thats backwards.. I'm in exercise science major in college and we're always taught that you are supposed to do cardio first to warm up your muscles, then strength train. When your muscles are warmed up, they're looser and the elasticity is at a higher percentage. Even if its just jogging for a mile on the treadmill, be sure to warm up your muscles first to avoid injury while lifting.

    If you have any other questions, feel free to send me a message! :-)
  • Kslice39
    Kslice39 Posts: 146
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    start now......do strength training first then your cardio. you dont need to change your workout everyday. actually it might be counter productive if you do it everyday.. you need repetition and consistency so it becomes a routine and your train your muscles for a particular type of activity and avoid injury. id say change things up every 3 - 5 weeks.

    goodluck! and dont forget exercise is only 20% of the journey..your diet has to be on point!

    :)

    Thats backwards.. I'm in exercise science major in college and we're always taught that you are supposed to do cardio first to warm up your muscles, then strength train. When your muscles are warmed up, they're looser and the elasticity is at a higher percentage. Even if its just jogging for a mile on the treadmill, be sure to warm up your muscles first to avoid injury while lifting.

    If you have any other questions, feel free to send me a message! :-)

    I thought that sounded a little funny but I don't know much about exercising, ive studied more about nutrition and how out bodies utilize energy lol. Thank you! I'm definitely going to be doin both :)
  • JamesBurkes
    JamesBurkes Posts: 382 Member
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    start now......do strength training first then your cardio.

    ok, will it be bad if i do cardio first then strength training? i usually go running/biking for 30-45 mins then i do strength training. is that bad?

    Not really. However, the only downside of doing it that way is that you'll probably be too tired after your run or bike to do your weight routine justice. You may as well not bother if you're just going to swing a few light dumbbells around because you're tired from your cardio. Most people recommend the other way round as you can really push yourself with the weights (and get the benefits!) and then it's usually easier to just slide on a bike afterwards, than it is to do it the other way round. Also, you may be more likely to injure yourself, if for example, you bike for 45 minutes then try and do squats - your weak legs may force you into bad form so you pull your back or something.

    It really depends on your goals and what you prefer doing/find most fun.

    If you want to get better at biking/cycling then do that first then weights. If you want to get stronger, then do the weights first.

    Consistency is key and you're more likely to do something you enjoy regularly than something you don't.

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