Strength training first or cardio on empty stomach first?
I’m a light weight body builder who has always done cardio first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. Did a 1/2 marathon last year and was very successful. Now going back to body building but I want to change my workouts. I would like to strength train 1st thing in the morning and do cardio later in the afternoon. Will I see the same success?
Hi Brenda. That’s really a tough question to answer categorically (re “the same success”). It depends. As far as your question goes regarding the ORDER of exercise, strength training first may actually afford you at least the ability to perform better (give better effort) since you will not be pre-fatigued from a cardio workout first. But even that answer is NOT true for everyone. Each person, each athlete is different, so you may wish to experiment a bit to see under which method you think or feel you’re getting your best workouts.
As far as exercising on an empty stomach, in my opinion – not good. I ALWAYS ask my athletes (and regular clients for that matter) to have eaten something a bit before their workout (how soon before is a personal preference) so that they have the energy to perform.
I hope that this helps.
LaRue, CSCS
www.lecfitness.com
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