For years, the fitness community has debated the ideal sequence for combining cardiovascular exercise and weight training. The choice to perform cardio before or after strength training was often based on individual preference or popular beliefs, such as running to warm up or prioritizing weights to burn more calories. However, a recent study has brought new evidence that may clarify this old doubt, pointing to a more advantageous order for certain objectives.
Research results indicate that exercise organization can have a notable impact on the amount of fat eliminated. Individuals who started their sessions with weight training, before dedicating themselves to cardio, showed a more significant fat loss and proved to be more active throughout the day, compared to those who reversed the sequence.
To conduct the analysis, researchers invited 45 young men, ages 18 to 30, who were classified as obese. These participants were segmented into three distinct groups and monitored for a period of 12 weeks. One of the groups was designated as a control, maintaining their usual daily activities without changes to their exercise routine.
The remaining two groups engaged in 60-minute training sessions three times a week, following a rigorous schedule. Additionally, all participants were provided with sports watches to objectively record their daily movement levels. This method helped researchers obtain accurate data, avoiding reliance on self-reports that can often be inaccurate.
Both exercise groups followed identical programs, differing only by the order in which the workouts were performed. The strength training portion included lifting real weights, with core exercises like bench presses, deadlifts, biceps curls, and squats. Cardio sessions, in turn, consisted of 30 minutes on a stationary bike.
At the end of the study, all participants in the exercise groups exhibited improvements in cardiovascular capacity, muscle strength and body composition. Specifically, there was a reduction in fat mass and an increase in lean muscle mass. Interestingly, gains in cardiovascular fitness were similar regardless of the order in which the exercises were performed, reinforcing other recent findings that suggest that sequence has a limited effect on cardiovascular adaptations.
The most significant differences, however, emerged in the analysis of fat loss and muscle performance. Individuals who began weight training experienced considerably greater reductions in total body fat and, crucially, visceral fat, a type of fat strongly linked to an elevated risk of cardiovascular disease.
In addition to fat loss, the group that prioritized weight training also recorded an average increase of approximately 3,500 daily steps, in contrast to the additional 1,600 steps seen in the group that started with cardio. Additionally, the group that started with weights demonstrated a greater improvement in muscular endurance and explosive strength.
Understand the mechanisms that explain the importance of the order of exercises
The explanation for these findings lies in the way the organism manages and uses its energy sources during physical effort.
Resistance training uses up muscle glycogen reserves, which is the carbohydrate stored in the muscles and serves as the body’s quick-access fuel. It is possible to compare glycogen to gasoline in a vehicle’s tank. When you start weight training, you basically empty this reservoir, forcing the body to look for other sources of energy.
With glycogen levels already reduced, when proceeding to cardiovascular exercise, the body is compelled to rely more on fat reserves for the energy it needs. This metabolic transition is similar to a hybrid car that switches to battery power when it runs out of gasoline, helping to elucidate the greater fat burning noted in the group that started with weight training.
As conclusões deste estudo recente estão em sintonia com um corpo maior de investigações científicas sobre o tema. A comprehensive systematic review, released in 2022, already indicated that resistance training alone can promote a significant reduction in body fat and visceral fat, the latter associated with chronic health conditions. This is due to the fact that muscles are metabolically active tissues, capable of continuing to burn calories even at rest, enhancing these effects.
Por outro lado, começar a sessão de exercícios com cardio pode comprometer a eficácia do treino de força. Isso ocorre porque o exercício aeróbico consome as reservas de glicogênio, deixando os músculos parcialmente esgotados antes mesmo de começar a levantar pesos. Additionally, fatigue induced by previous cardio can decrease the muscles’ ability to generate strength and explosive power.
A recent systematic review on concurrent training – the practice of combining aerobic and resistance exercises in the same session – reinforces this perspective. She showed that explosive strength gains can be reduced if cardio is performed before weight training.
Tais constatações se alinham com outras pesquisas no campo do treinamento concorrente. A systematic review and meta-analysis that examined the influence of exercise order concluded that protocols that prioritized weight training generated significantly greater improvements in strength compared to those that started with aerobic resistance exercises.
The American Heart Association’s 2023 statement on resistance training confirmed that this type of exercise considerably improves lean body mass and reduces body fat, especially when combined with other types of physical activity. However, weight training alone was considered less efficient in improving cardiovascular health, which highlights the importance of including cardiovascular exercises in the routine.
É fundamental, contudo, destacar as limitações da pesquisa em questão. As the study exclusively involved young, obese men, it is not possible to generalize the results to women, the elderly or individuals with different body compositions. A review published in 2024 suggests that physiological adaptations may vary according to sex, indicating the need for future investigations with more diverse populations.
A duração de 12 semanas do estudo também pode não ser suficiente para capturar transformações a longo prazo. Furthermore, the results apply specifically to concurrent training, that is, when both types of exercise are performed in the same session.
Additionally, the study did not consider crucial factors such as nutritional intake, sleep patterns or stress levels, which are known to have a major influence on body composition results. Pesquisas futuras deverão incluir esses elementos para oferecer orientações ainda mais abrangentes e personalizadas.
Final recommendations on the ideal training sequence
Independentemente da sua preferência em relação à ordem do cardio e da musculação, a mensagem central é clara: ambos os tipos de exercício são benéficos para a saúde geral. The key difference is that starting with strength training provides additional benefits in reducing fat, especially abdominal fat, and increasing physical activity throughout the day.
Interestingly, resistance training contributes to increased self-confidence and energy levels. This, in turn, naturally encourages greater movement throughout the day, which further amplifies the effects of fat loss.
If your primary goal is to improve cardiovascular fitness, the order of exercises is less important, as both methods promote equivalent improvements in aerobic health. Contudo, se o foco principal for a perda de gordura e a otimização da atividade física diária, as evidências científicas atuais apoiam fortemente a prática de iniciar pela musculação.