At this point in life, everyone knows that if you want to see results when exercising, you have to take into account many things, not just the size of the weights. What you eat, the hours you sleep, the number of days you exercise, and the way you exercise affect the bottom line and can help you reach your goal faster, or much slower.

n the process, you can run into overtraining , fatigue and stagnation (which is when your body gets used to the exercise you do and the results stop improving), so you don't just have to do crazy reps and move on. For all gym equipment, you must have a plan, and there you must include the order in which each exercise is performed.

The cardio , for example, is essential to lose fat, while and weights help with muscle (both have more benefits, but those are the main objectives), and you add the two in your routine to have one more training complete where you not only look better and with more volume, but also have strength, endurance and balance.

Experts have already said that you have to do a minimum amount of each of these exercises to see results, but which one should you start with if you want to gain muscle?

Cardio vs weights: where to start

The first thing to know is that cardio improves the efficiency and performance of the heart, increases lung capacity and helps burn calories to lose weight, and it is important to do so because it helps your body use oxygen better when performing activities physical, and that is also important to have a better recovery.

On the other hand, weights or strength training help to have strong muscles, which will allow you to move better, in addition to being important for losing weight because the muscles burn more energy to function properly, and also there is resistance training, which is what will prevent the muscles from being damaged over the years.

As for the exercise you should do first, there is no exact answer, as it depends on what you want to achieve with your training.

If what you want, for example, is to be a better runner, then you should do the cardio first, since that is where you should invest more energy, but, if you want to increase strength and muscles, then you should do weights first. Since, if you start with cardio, it may be that you are too tired and that you do not have a maximum performance when training.

The important thing is that the activity you do first is the one that will really help you reach your goal, because that is where you will have more energy and you will be able to do the full training without exhausting yourself and without starting to slow down and neglect your shape.

If you are a beginner, it is advisable to do the cardio first, as that will help you develop the physical condition you need to endure a full strength training, and then you can make the change and pass the weights at the beginning to focus on strength and the development of muscle mass.

The American Council on Exercise (ACE) says the following:

If you want to increase your endurance , start with cardio. In an ACE study, he found that doing cardio first can help your workout run at the right intensity and not feel harder.

Another study in Applied Physiology Nutrition and Metabolism says that when runners did strength training before running sessions, it ended up affecting their running performance.

If you want to lose weight or gain strength , start with the weights. Lifting weights helps build muscle mass and overall strength, but muscle also burns more calories than fat.

If you want to improve your physical condition , then the order does not matter, but it is recommended that you do what you like least at the beginning so that you have less chance of leaving it unfinished.

[Via GQ Mexico]

Cardio vs weights: where to start

The American Council on Exercise (ACE) says the following:

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