Did you make a new year’s resolution this year to lose weight or build some muscle? If so, a common question always asked about cardio workouts is, “when should I be doing cardio?” or “should I even be doing cardio at all?” Denver fitness trainer, Tess Yancey, says she gets asked this question all the time by her clients.
So, she breaks down how to decide when to incorporate cardio workouts into your fitness schedule.
When deciding to do your cardio, either before or after weights, the American Council on Exercise has basic guidelines for when and how you should do cardio:
- If your goal is better endurance, do cardio before weights.
- If your goal is burning fat and losing weight, do cardio after weights.
- If you want to get stronger, do cardio after weights.
- On upper-body strength training days, you can do either first.
- On lower-body strength training days, do cardio after weights.
- If your goal is just general cardiovascular conditioning, do either first, but maybe start with the one you like less.
Now that you’ve got some basic tips, read on for all the deets about combining cardio and weight training and when experts say you should do them for max benefits.
For max benefits from your cardio and weight lifting it’s crucial to have a schedule to make sure you aren’t overtraining.
On average you can do a combination of weight training 3-5 times a week with the following cardio schedule:
* Low-intensity cardio: 5–7 times per week
* Moderate-intensity cardio: 3–4 times per week
* High-intensity cardio: 1–3 times per week
What’s the best type of cardio to combine with weight training?
Weight training is anaerobic exercise—basically, short bursts of high-intensity efforts that are fueled by glucose, not by oxygen. Bowling says low-intensity cardio (which is fueled by oxygen consumption) is the best type of cardio to pair with weight training.
Weight lifting is, for the most part, an anaerobic exercise, aka short bursts of energy fueled by glucose, not oxygen. Low-intensity cardio helps cover all the bases of your anaerobic and aerobic workout because it is fueled by oxygen consumption.
Low-intensity aerobic exercises include activities like walking, the elliptical machine, slow cycling, or jogging.
The general scientific consensus is that a combination of cardio and weight training together is the best way to get into shape and avoid overtraining your body!
If you’re interested in personal training or nutrition coaching DM me @crushwihtess on Instagram or crushwithtess.com
Videography by @christianunlimited on Instagram and christianunlimited.me