I've noticed that many are saying don't do cardio right after weights. I've seen this question come up all over the place in this forum and other places online. I'm just adding my 2 cents and hoping someone could explain it.

I've been working out and then doing cardio right afterwards. It would be moderate, no HIIT or anything like that. I'd keep going until I burned 450 calories. Since I started my weightloss program I've lost an average of 1.1 pounds/week....a good, balanced amount to lose I think.

People say that I'm burning off muscle by combining all this weight training and cardio. However, if I'm burning muscle why is it that I am using heavier weights over time? If I'm burning muscle wouldn't I maintain or decrease in my ability to use the same weights?

I guess I'm trying to make sure that weight training and cardio are not set in stone and that it all depends on individuals. What do you guys think/experienced?

I personally think it depends on the individual. I also think people throw the term "catabolism" around too much. I don't believe a moderate amount of cardio after lifting will significantly hurt your gains. If anything, you'll be a well-conditioned athlete. I believe most muscle catabolism has to do with lack of nutrients as opposed to combining cardio and weights. Almost all aspects of fitness trace back to a good, balanced diet. Exercise is key, but diet is fundamental.

I agree totally with the previous speaker! And if it has given you good gains, why stop? Cardio after weight won't make you loose muscle if your diet is right. So continue doing cardio after weight, and keep loosing those 1.1 pounds a week, which is a good ratio. :gl:

Exactly - what they said. People seem to get their PhD in Google and their doctorate in muscle mags, and don't realize that the majority of that B.S. is simply advertisement thinly disguised as articles.

Like - you MUST eat a ton of protein (the protein manufacturers love this "fact")

Whey is better, soy is the devil (they whey manufacturers get a kick out of this one)

You are catabolic after weight training (this is more likely due to some labels on protein bottles that talk about how the super duper propietary amino acid matrix halts catabolism and guarantees 5 tons of lean mass in 4 weeks)

Really, it is all relative.

Common question: "Is this overtraining ..."

You know, if you were to tell me you wanted to ride your bike for dozens of miles nonstop, I'd say, that's probably overtraining. To Lance Armstrong, that's an athletic event.

"Cardio after weight training is catabolic".

Ummmmm. Wow. CARDIO IS ALWAYS CATABOLIC. People at some point got "catabolic" confused with "lose muscle". The definition of anabolic and catabolic are processes where your body creates/stores versus breaks down/burns. Guess what? Cardio is catabolic - MAINLY TOWARDS FAT. In other words, you WANT cardio to be catabolic, because you WANT to break down the fat, no?

The myth is that somehow this magically destroys muscle. First, it is an oversimplification when people state the cardio burns mostly fat and weight training carbs, etc. In reality, your body is always processing energy from multiple sources, it simply shifts from one source to the other. This is more related to the duration of the activity than the activity itself - in other words, a marathon weight training session that lasts 2 hours is more likely to have a cardiovascular effect and a jogging session lasting only 10 minutes is going to burn less fuel from fat.

In fact, if you want to get technical, cardio after weight training is probably optimal. Your body scavenges glycogen for fuel (carbohydrate). When that is depleted, fat becomes more of a primary source, along with some protein. If you deplete glycogen from weight training, then go into cardio, you have two advantages - one, your heart has already been elevated for a period of time. When you hear people say, "You must make your cardio last x minutes ..." it's because it takes time to shift to primarily burning calories from fat. After a training session with weights, however, your heart rate has already been elevated, so that shift occurs more quickly. And finally, the weight training may have depleted glycogen, again shifting to more fat burning.

Now, is it going to make you lose muscle? It's not the TRAINING SESSION that determines this. Sure, a lot of things happen during training - microtrauma/damage to tissue, hormonal changes (long sessions can increase cortisol, which can slow fat burning and muscle building) etc .... but really, it is how you choose to RECOVER after your training that is the main factor.

If you are an elite Olympic athlete you might train 6 hours per day. You are also getting optimal supplementation and nutrition and adequate rest and everything else required to recover so that your body responds positively. If you are working a 80-hour per week job with stress through the roof eating junk food missing sleep and underconsuming calories, then 20 minutes of weight training WITHOUT the cardio could result in a net muscle loss.

Again, most of the time, people selling something try to oversimplify so that it is easier to sell as a package. The real world is much more complex so statements like "cardio after weight training is catabolic" just don't do justice to what is really going on.

Jeremy

:bow: Once again Jeremy, you step in with your amazing array of knowledge and common sense. I've never read one of your posts that doesn't make sense.

Anyhoo, enough of this brown nosing, I've got a gym to go to :D

While everyone is different, and yes... there are exceptions to every rule...I have to diagree with the above statments. Im curious to know how long you guys have been lifting weights. Many times, when u just start lifting weights...or u take a long time off and then begin a weight lifting program again, you will see great gains for the first 6 months or so. Over time, your body becomes more resistant to gaining muscle and the rate at wich you gain slows down. By no means am I telling you to change what your doing if its working for u, but I would just keep in mind (if you are new to lifting weights)...that the muscle gain will slow down after your body gets used to lifting.

Also...people usually ask ...What is the best time to do cardio for fat loss? I think the definite answer is 1) Seperate from weight lifting and 2) First thing in the morning on an empty stomach.

But...to each his own ;)

Great stuff!!


This makes me feel so much better about my routine! Great to see another opinion about this, and it is so logical too. I was a bit upset from another thread when I found out I shouldn't be doing my routine and I might have to cut cardio out of it three days a week because I didn't want to go to the gym twice in those days. I think this, and Trinity's post in the media forum, where she is doing weights and cardio together, but having fantastic results has reassured my program.

Thanks you guys. :D

Don't Worry about it. I also do my weight-training and Cardio in the same trip to the gym. This is because I do not have time to get to the gym before work. I have to be at work at 7AM and the gym does not open until 5:30. Therefore it would be impossible for me to get my workout out in, shower, get dressed and get to work on time.

Anyway my point is that I have been doing this also and have now lost 40lbs since January 1. So it is workiing for me. I am also using www.mybodycomp.com to track my Lean Body Mass and it has been increasing in the time period also.

My head has been spinning lately about this same thing. I am so glad to hear it won't hurt my weight training to do Cardio after working out. - Thanks Jeremy!! :tucool:

If you're a bodybuilder however who is prepping for a show, or attempting to hold on to as much lean mass as you can, you'll never see yourself doing cardio after working out, EVER.

You keep aerobic activity apart from anaerobic activity, and you fluctuate between those two "climates".

Now, for those looking to just stay lean w/no regard for muscle mass, ideal recovery, ideal fat loss for your time, etc., then I guess it works for them. However, in those I work with, you'll never see this practice, ever.

~SC~

I think you have to evaluate very carefully how you're feeling as well. I did cardio and weights on the same day for three months, and it worked okay for me. Recently, I've decided to cut out cardio on the weights days, because I find that I can do my cardio better without having done the weights first, and I'm more enthusiastic about the weights without dreading the cardio that follows.

Exactly! I generally don't like my workouts to be much longer than 45 minutes, at most 60. After that I start to feel tired and don't put as much energy into the excercises. I like to keep it short and intense, and that means no cardio and lifting at the same time.