Should I Do Cardio or Weights First to Get Lean?

I always thought it was bad to do weights and cardio on the same day?

It’s not a good idea to do both on the same day because after weight training your cardio workout will not be as effective as if you did cardio on a separate day (or if you do cardio seven, eight hours later).

In addition, people like to get their post workout nutrition in right after weight lifting, instead of going straight into cardio.

PS: But that said, _if_ you were to do both on the same day, weights first, then cardio after.

If your goal is to build mass and get big, then I’d suggest alternating your weight training and cardio workout days.

However, if you goal is to get lean, then doing both on the same day is more effective.

I agree, when I did weights and cardio on the same day I couldn’t see much results in mass. I need to try alternating my days and note the results then.

ill keep all this in mind, so i can look like the sparta men in 300. :)

i do cardio and weights the same day. but i usually do one significantly more than the other.

I would say that unless you’re doing specialized training for a sport, it doesn’t matter really if you do cardio and weights on the same day or different.

The only thing I see as important is intensity and diet.

Maxing out on weights is a given for improvement (of course not everytime).

But, it seems like a lot of people take it too easy on cardio (at least where I go). For example, reading magazines, watching tv, or just going really really slow…. if you’re not feeling the burn then I think you gotta push yourself harder.

Likewise, post workout not gorging is hard too. That’s my weakness, intense workouts and a post beer :P.

Eww post workout beer is disgusting =P. Anyway the main point is to maximize efficiency as much as possible and be consistent. If you can repeatedly do a good day’s worth of lifting and still get your heart pumping by running afterwards, go for it. If not, do something you can manage (like splitting weights and cardio) that still gets you an effective workout.

Anyone heard of High Intensity Interval Training? supposedly it burns a lot of fat in little time, and does build muscle while you’re at it. Next year, working out at the gym is a definite for me.

I didn’t mean postworkout beer like right after :P… I meant like 3 hours later after dinner, when I feel exhausted. And I know… alcohol is the worse thing for recovery.

High Intensity Interval Training? Does that mean like sprinting interval …fartleg? Or some form of plyometrics perhaps? I think you just need variety, if you’re going for fitness only and not sports. I find it very hard to make up new routines, whether it be jogging or lifting weights…. it seems my muscles/body become too adapted and everything hits a plateau.

I’ll be the first to comment and go man that guy sure is built.

I’ve been doing cardio first and then hitting the weights afterwards on the same day, spending about an hour in the gym for the past 3 months. I’m not looking for mass, just looking to get lean. I’ve noticed muscle growth, and the abdominal muslces are really starting to show. =D I’m gonna try hitting the weights first and then cardio after and see what the difference in burning is. Also, not to mention, it’s very important that you stick your diet. Thats probably the hardest part. And drink plenty of water!!

another thing to note is that you shouldn’t use creatine or any other protein supplement until in the advanced stages of weight lifting. it has shown almost no effect on beginners. whearas, it has significant effects on the intermediate to advanced lifters.

i think cardio first would provide a good warm up to a weight training routine after.

i usually begin my workout with 30 minutes of cardio (like jogging). then i go into weights. it helps loosen up the body, especially when lifting weights.

paddy – For getting lean, it’s actually more efficient to do weight training first. It gets your heart rate up and body warmed up so that as soon as you start your cardio you’re in fat-burning mode.

If you start cardio first, you’ll need a good 15-20 minutes of warmup before you even begin to start burning fat.

By the way, if you’ve not heard about High Intensity Interval Training before, you shouldn’t even consider doing it. It is not for beginners at all. It will not be efficient for you unless you are advanced enough to know exactly what it does.

i dont know, i just do cardio in the morning and work out at night

If i do workout, i actually start by lighting weights then going cardio after. Thanks again for another quality post Terry

If your goal is to get stacked, you shouldn’t do any cardio whatsoever.

Instead, focus on really sticking to a high protein and complex carb diet, and hit the weights M-W-F.

You need the downtime immediately after your weight routine for your torn muscles to repair themselves (grow). Cardio takes energy away from those muscles, meaning it’ll take much longer for your muscles to grow and you increase the chances of injuring yourself.

if u suffer from high blood pressure like i do, cardio is something that should dominate your routine… my doctor told me that it is my heart that i need to strengthen to keep off the medication but since it runs in my family, i will eventually be placed on it but, keeping up with the cardio should keep that a few years off

still i lift on my light days (2x a week) just to keep burning some calories but not enough to get stacked

btw… i run 4 to 5 nites a week 25 to 30 mins for heavy days and around 20 mins light days

Each individual should make a routine according to their daily life style. If you are standing and walking a lot during the day then you require more breaks to recover. Basically its trial and error to come to the perfect routine for every individual. You can start with the routines which appeal to you and then modify it according you your body needs.

I appreciate and wholeheartedly agree that LOW intensity (>30%) WALKING will primarily burn fat. But when you think about it you are only burning energy 30% more than if you were at home or at work?! Not very productive is it? Why did you go to the gym? Walk OUTSIDE! It’s nicer out there!

If you are serious about burning fat and developing the lean athletic look, go to the gym to TRAIN. Sorry ladies, but this also means staying out of the aerobics studio and away from the bums and tums toning classes. You have real work to do if you truly want to develop a lean and sexy feminine physique, and becoming a cardio queen and doing those aerobic classes and bums and tums classes at your local gym just don’t cut it.

Low intensity exercise has two uses in my opinion. . active recovery (from an intense session) and performing everyday activity. Going to the gym to perform low intensity 1 hour+ long walks is inherently WRONG! Think about it. . . going to the gym to burn 30% more fat than if you were on your couch for that same hour. . NO THANKS.

Long drawn out exercise is COUNTERPRODUCTIVE . . think about it logically, you train your body for endurance with long drawn out ‘cardiovascular’ exercise yea? To what effect? Your body does not know you are trying to lose bodyfat. . all it knows is that you have started walking 3 times per week and it wants to get good at doing it. It gets BETTER at doing that activity. . i.e. next week you area going to use less energy doing the exact same exercise as you done this week.

Scary Huh?

You are essentially training your body to burn LESS FAT.

It’s True!

You see your body stored that fat there for a reason, due to some poor nutritional habits and/or lack of physical activity and TRAINING. Low intensity exercises in the form of everyday activity is OK. It is more erratic and unpredictable than endurance activity. Doing the shopping and cleaning the house mowing the lawn and a physical job/hobby all count as physical activity as they are a mix of differing intensities and movements. Endurance exercises WILL burn fat, YES. . but as a result your body will actually store more so that you have fat for your next endurance activity!

Come on you know it makes sense!

If you knew you had 3 bills to pay: Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 7pm. . You would spare more cash until then to save getting into debt/missing a payment. You body does the same . . ‘ok so she (your name) is going to perform solely fat burning exercise 3x / week. So I will keep storing fat so she can fuel these low intensity exercises. Your body is only doing as it’s told, it thinks you need fat there so it stores it so you can perform the exercise next time. It’s merely an adaptation to what you are doing!

Now here’s the interesting part! When you perform high intensity exercise you primarily deplete GLYCOGEN stores. ‘Glycogen’ is ‘muscle sugar’ or a method which your body stores carbohydrates in your muscle. Interestingly enough you will burn minimal fat during the actual High Intensity exercise bout.

‘WHAT? I thought you said you were going to show me how to burn fat ‘

Now listen up. . there is only one thing more precious to your body than your fat stores. . its your glycogen stores! Your body does not want to let go of them. . its like its ‘piggy bank’ its raw energy that it wants to keep and by performing high intensity exercises all the time and depleting this glycogen you are being a nuisance. In order to counteract this your body will do the unthinkable! It will actually begin to burn fat at higher intensities in order to PRESERVE your glycogen stores. A study done on male and female International level Judo competitors showed that following a training session (high intensity fighting average heart rate 80% + Max Heart Rate) they were primarily oxidising fat and not glycogen. Amazing! Their body adapted to the rigorous high intensity exercise and began to do the unthinkable and burn fat at increased intensities! You have turned your body into a fat burning machine!

Low intensity exercise makes you fat. High intensity exercise burns fat PERIOD.

Wow it makes total sense. I joined the gym yesterday because I’m not getting results do low impact cardo daily. I intend to incorporate strength/weight training. The problem is, I don’t know what to do, I’ve been reading and I’m confused. However, here’s my plan. I will lift and do cardio 4 days a week. Mon and Thu I will do 10 mins cardio warm up, then 20mins upper body weights, then 15mins cardio. On Tue and Fri I will do 10 mins cardio warm up, then 20mins lower body weights, then 15mins cardio. On Wed I will do Yoga. Will this be effective and yield results? Please help, I’m totally confused.

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