Cardio

[Basileus]

is it better to do cardio before or after weights?

[teenbodybuilder0102]

most people will say run in the morning on an empty stomach b/c thats the best time to burn fat. but other people like lee labrada did 20 mins every day on a stationary bike preworkout so i guess its up to debate.

[RoaringMad Mac]

It all depends on what you want out of it.

Most cardio sessions need to last at least 30 minutes.

It is okay to do it after working out because by the time you start cardio after lifting you are burning primarily fat calories. Down side to this in my opinion is that the muscles you have worked are already taxed hard and need rest. Doing an additional 30 minutes cardio could just set you up for overtraining, That is if you train hard everyday. This is why I am a proponant for doing cardio first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. ( Empty stomach being you do not have anything that is digesting yet. Or right after a long fast of sleeping). You can ingest some small amount of protein and it will not hender fat loss. Cardio in the morning also boosts your metabolism throughout the day as well. It leaves you feeling energized. Also you have all day to rest or at least another 5 to 6 hours of rest before you train heavy. Which for the most part is where the muscle is built. Right after you train in the afternoon your body have elevated it's metabolism yet once again and it craves nutrition it will then use protein sources to its best ability to repair and build new muscle structure.

For some really advances trainees, an additional cardio can be done right after this training session as well but you usually don't see this only in precontest.The body needs rest and right after training heavy it needs that rest.

This is also all based on how hard you actually train. Believe me if you train hard enough with weights you will not want to do a cardio. You should be fairly wore out.

I have seen guys who have exceptional bodies and do the lifting weights cardio afterward routine. But, then they have trained with me and found out they really were not training that hard. there was not way they could do a cardio afterward. That is key in my book. After training you should feel reasonably fatiqued.

[Basileus]

thanks guys.

[kickboy]

is it better to do cardio before or after weights?

I would say after weights, but I run in the morning and lift in the afternoon. Like teenbodybuilder said there are many opinions here, but the truth is a healthy lifestyle that insures a clean diet with consistency in cardio, is far better than some “ideal” plan that will not fit into your day. Consistency in all things healthy.

Quote:
For some really advances trainees, an additional cardio can be done right after this training session as well but you usually don't see this only in precontest.The body needs rest and right after training heavy it needs that rest.

This is also all based on how hard you actually train. Believe me if you train hard enough with weights you will not want to do a cardio. You should be fairly wore out.

Amen brother, I never feel like running after lifting.