Should I Do Cardio Before or After Strength Training?
Strength training and cardio go hand-in-hand when structuring your workouts.
Together they help build muscle and burn body fat.
The question I get the most from clients is:
“SHOULD I DO MY CARDIO WORKOUT BEFORE OR AFTER STRENGTH TRAINING?”
My answer is almost always… AFTER.
WHY AFTER?
When we lift weights, it’s best to have the most energy to perform optimally. We want all the energy to keep our head in the game, focus on keeping good form and avoid injury.
If we go into an intense cardio session and pre-exhaust ourselves, we won’t have the strength we could have had. Our tank of gas has gone down a bit.
Cardio for a light warm-up before your workout is totally fine. I would suggest 5-10 minutes of light and low impact cardio before a strength workout.
EXCEPTION:
If your goal is to improve your cardiovascular fitness, then of course start off with your cardio session first.
But most of my clients are coming to me to build strength and lean muscle. So, let’s stick to cardio after our strength workouts.
Or if you can, go back to the gym at a different time of the day. Separate the two as much as possible.
