Exercise promotes the growth of new brain cells in the hippocampus. (© NDABCREATIVITY - stock.adobe.com)
Fitness enthusiasts have debated the question for decades: is it better to do cardio before or after lifting weights? Until recently, the answer has largely been down to preference – with some enjoying a jog to warm up before hitting the weights, while others believe lifting first is better for burning fat.
But a new study may have finally answered this long-disputed question.
According to the study, the order of your workout does significantly affect how much fat you lose. Participants who performed weight training before cardio lost significantly more fat and became more physically active throughout the day compared to those who did cardio first.
The researchers recruited 45 young men aged 18-30 years who were classified as obese. The researchers split participants into three groups for 12 weeks. One group was a control group. This meant they stuck to their usual lifestyle habits and didn’t make any changes to their exercise regime.
The other two groups exercised for 60 minutes three times weekly. Participants were also given sports watches to objectively track daily movement. This helped the researchers avoid reliance on self-reporting, which can often be inaccurate.
Both exercise groups followed identical training programs, differing only in exercise sequence. Strength training involved actual weights, with participants performing exercises such as the bench press, deadlift, bicep curl and squat. The cardio sessions involved 30 minutes of stationary cycling.
Participants in both groups experienced improvements in their cardiovascular fitness, muscle strength and body composition – specifically, they lost fat mass while gaining lean muscle mass. Interestingly, cardiovascular fitness improvements were similar regardless of sequence – echoing recent findings that exercise order has limited impact on cardiovascular adaptations.
But the real differences emerged when it came to fat loss and muscle performance. Participants who lifted weights first experienced significantly greater reductions in overall body fat and visceral fat – the type of fat most strongly linked to cardiovascular disease risk.
They also increased their daily step count by approximately 3,500 steps compared to just 1,600 steps for the cardio-first group. Additionally, the weights-first approach enhanced muscular endurance and explosive strength.
Why Exercise Sequence Matters
The reason behind these findings is tied to how your body uses energy.
Resistance training depletes muscle glycogen stores – the sugar that’s stored in the muscles which acts as your body’s quick-access fuel. Imagine glycogen as petrol in your car’s fuel tank. When you lift weights first, you effectively drain this fuel tank, forcing your body to switch energy sources.
With glycogen stores already low, when you transition to cardio, your body must rely more heavily on fat reserves for energy. It’s akin to a hybrid car switching to battery power once the petrol runs low. This metabolic shift helps explain the greater fat loss seen in the weights-first group.
This recent study’s findings align with broader research. A comprehensive systematic review published in 2022 found resistance training alone can significantly reduce body fat and visceral fat, the type linked to chronic diseases. Muscles are metabolically active tissues, continuously burning calories even at rest, which amplifies these effects.
Conversely, performing cardio first might compromise your strength training effectiveness. Cardio uses up glycogen stores, leaving muscles partially depleted before you even lift a weight. It also induces fatigue and may reduce your muscles’ ability to produce explosive power and strength.
A recent systematic review on concurrent training (the practice of combining both resistance and aerobic exercise within the same program) supports this – highlighting that explosive strength gains might diminish if aerobic and strength training occur in the same session, especially if cardio is performed first.
These findings align with other research on concurrent training. A systematic review and meta-analysis examining exercise sequence effects found that resistance-first protocols produced significantly superior strength improvements compared to endurance-first training.
The American Heart Association’s 2023 statement on resistance training confirmed resistance exercise significantly improves lean body mass and reduces fat, especially when combined with other exercise types. However, resistance training alone was found less effective in improving cardiovascular health. This underscores the importance of including cardio in your exercise routine.
However, it is worth noting the study’s limitations. As it only involved obese young men, this means we don’t know how the results will apply to women, older adults or those with different body compositions. A 2024 review suggests adaptations may differ by sex, indicating the need for further research involving diverse populations.
The 12-week duration also may not capture long-term changes. Results also specifically only apply to concurrent training – performing both exercises in the same session.
Moreover, the study did not account for nutritional intake, sleep patterns or stress levels, all of which can significantly influence body composition outcomes. Future research should incorporate these factors to offer even more comprehensive guidance.
Workout Sequence
Whether you prefer to do cardio before or after lifting weights, the message is clear: both will improve overall health. The only difference is that weight training before cardio provides advantages for fat loss, abdominal fat reduction and increased daily physical activity.
Interestingly, resistance training boosts confidence and energy levels, naturally encouraging more movement throughout the day, further aiding fat loss.
If cardiovascular fitness is your primary goal, the sequence matters less, as both ways equally boost aerobic fitness. However, if fat loss and optimizing daily activity are your main objectives, evidence strongly supports placing resistance training first.
Jack McNamara, Senior Lecturer in Clinical Exercise Physiology, University of East London. He does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
In my opinion that workout schedule is very light, 60 min. total three times per week? First thing is to cut out the 12 pack of soda and beer. I got that question (which comes first) a lot, my answer was, What is your priority? Weight loss, then do aerobic exercise first, gain strength, then do resistance training first. It’s simple (after a good warm up then stretch) do what you want to get the most out of your time spent at the gym. You will have more energy a likely work harder yielding better results. The two most important numbers are training heart rate and % of fat vs. lean body mass. For a typical person I’d recommend weight training machines over free weights. Much quicker you’ll get more done in less time. Five days per week would be much more productive. Biggest training tip for the modern workout… Leave your phone in the car. Rest between sets is max of 60 sec. Quit jerkin off and do your set!
“It’s akin to a hybrid car switching to battery power once the petrol runs low.” ????
You need your peak energy for the weights. To me, cardio has always been a good finish up thing to do. When I have done cardio before my workout, it burns up the energy I need for the iron. BTW. Muscle burns fat, so the more you have, the leaner you stay. BTW BTW. You can’t ‘cardio’ your way to thinness. Ony getting your diet under control can do that. There is not enough time in a day to burn all the calories you would need to burn to get thin. Diet is the only key to weight loss. How many fat people have you seen over the years, trying to ride their way to thinness, only to watch them never lose weight, and give up. Their excuse is always that “it isn’t working, so why bother”. Simple rule. ‘STEP AWAY FROM THE PLATE AND PUT THE DAMN FORK DOWN’.
Now the next study should combine the two, namely cardio before AND after resistance. This had been my routine for some time. My bike ride to the gym is about 30 minutes, each way with significant hills. Resistance is generally 30-45 minutes.
The best is stairs first but it must be real and aggressive. Stairs works the biggest muscle groups and releases the most glycogen fast.
Not disputing the results of the study, but if your main objective is weight loss, emphasize the cardio over the resistance training–more calories burned per unit time. Also: when you’re able, add some intensity. Finally, choose activities you enjoy (swimming, cycling, running, hiking, x/c skiing, etc.) and you’ll be more apt to do them long enough to see results.
They’re studying fat loss. The reason weight lifters do cardio after lift is so they reserve majority of their energy for the lift for more gains in that regards. Literally no other reason. I never heard of this debate w/ regards to fat loss.
They’re studying fat loss. The reason weight lifters do cardio after lift is so they reserve majority of their energy for the lift for more gains in that regards. Literally no other reason. I never heard of this debate w/ regards to fat loss.
Please do cardio after weights if you are at a public gym. No one wants to walk up to a sweaty piece of equipment.
How about before or after lasagna?