Recently I was asked, "What should I do first; cardio or strength?" That’s a good question and when I googled it, concrete answers came up from the Military sites, Men’s Health etc. But I thought Jonathon Ross from Ace Fitness said it best when he said, “it depends.”
Here is a general outline from his research:
Is better endurance performance (i.e., shorter times or better performance when running, competing in triathlons, etc.) your main goal? | CARDIO first |
Is your main goal to get leaner or lose weight? | STRENGTH first |
Are you mostly concerned with improving strength? | STRENGTH first |
Are you doing only upper-body strength training today? | EITHER one first |
Are you doing lower-body strength training today? | STRENGTH first (Choose strength alone for serious strength goals.) |
Do you have general fitness goals with no emphasis on strength or endurance? | YOUR CHOICE (Do the one you least enjoy first. You’ll ensure it gets done and you’ll do it when you are less fatigued.) |
To get more details you can access his article: Cardio or Weight First? Cardio before vs. after Lifting