Supercharge Your Workouts

December 3, 2023

Engaging in a thoughtful and well structured exercise routine can make a huge difference in your overall fitness journey. One approach that’s gaining popularity is including a brief cardio session before weight lifting. This seemingly simple adjustment can transform your workout experience, offering a range of benefits that contribute to enhanced performance and long-term fitness goals.

The first 10 minutes of cardio act as a powerful warm-up, setting the stage for he more demanding aspects of weight lifting. This initial burst increases your heart rate and promotes increased blood floor to your muscles. Your body is more alert, properly fueled and balanced to respond when you finally start tearing through your sets and reps.

When it comes to weight lifting,  one good idea is to push your body until it’s operating somewhere between 80% and 90% of your maximum effort. This carefully calibrated level of exertion ensures that you’re challenging your muscles sufficiently, fostering muscle growth and strength development, while leaving enough to help your body cool down and recover. Striking this delicate balance is pivotal in your workout’s effectiveness.

Equally crucial to the workout is, again for emphasis, the concept of maintaining a reserve. By deliberately avoiding pushing your body to its absolute limit, you ensure there’s enough left in the tank to help your body wind down. This smooth transition means your body starts recovering faster and easier than if you pushed way past your limits, injured yourself, then had to miss the next workout because of the toll of crashing from exertion—psychological or otherwise.

As your body cools down, the intricate process of healing and rebuilding begins. This recovery phase is where microscopic tears in your muscle fibers heal and increase in density, strength, elasticity and so on. If the rest is inefficient, or interrupted, this process is diminished and you leave a lot of your hard-earned gains on the table.

In conclusion, adding cardio before strength training and resting well is a game-changer in crafting a well-rounded and effective workout routine. Finding the right balance between your intensity and your reserve ensures your body delivers maximum effort while leaving enough to gracefully recover. Next time you step into the gym, consider this balanced and sustainable approach to contribute to your overall well-being.