How Does Pre Training Cardio Impact Muscle Growth?
The short answer
Doing a short bout of cardio before you lift may actually help—not hurt—muscle growth. In the study the coaches break down, a period of short-term aerobic conditioning performed prior to resistance training augmented muscle hypertrophy and satellite cell content in healthy young men and women. The likely mechanism involves improved blood flow and priming the muscle for the work to come. So a light aerobic primer before strength work isn't necessarily “junk volume”—it may support your gains.
Can cardio help with muscle growth? Listen to this episode of the Garage Gym Athlete Podcast below.
How Does Pre Training Cardio Impact Muscle Growth?
In this episode Jerred, Trampis, and Ashley look at a study on how short-term aerobic conditioning prior to resistance training can potentially help with muscle growth. They also dig into the reality of achievement—how progress is something you work at daily, over decades—and cover this week's Meet Yourself Saturday workout, Out & Back.
What the research says
The featured study—Short-term aerobic conditioning prior to resistance training augments muscle hypertrophy and satellite cell content in healthy young men and women—tested whether a period of aerobic conditioning done before a resistance training program would change how much muscle people built. As the title indicates, the pre-conditioning augmented muscle hypertrophy and increased satellite cell content (satellite cells help repair and build muscle). The coaches discuss the nuances and how blood flow may play a role—but the practical signal is that some aerobic work before lifting may set the stage for better growth rather than interfering with it.
In this 56-minute episode we discuss:
- Cycling
- Out & Back
- The reality of achievement
- Blood flow
- Cardio prior to resistance training
- Tips for MYS
- Updates and announcements
- And a lot more!
Diving deeper…
If you want to go a little bit deeper on this episode, here are some links for you:
Study of the Week
Garage Gym Athlete Workout of the Week
Want a program that blends conditioning and strength the right way? See how it works inside the Garage Gym Athlete membership.
If you haven’t already, be sure to subscribe to the Garage Gym Athlete podcast on Stitcher, iTunes, or Google Play using the link below:
Be sure to listen to this episode:
—
Thanks for listening to the podcast, and if you have any questions be sure to add it to the comments below!
To becoming better!
Jerred
Frequently asked questions
Should I do cardio before or after lifting?
It depends on your goal, but this study suggests a bout of short-term aerobic conditioning before resistance training can actually augment muscle growth. If your main aim for a session is heavy strength work, keep the pre-lifting cardio light enough that it primes you rather than fatigues you.
Does cardio kill your gains?
Not necessarily. In this research, aerobic conditioning done before resistance training increased hypertrophy and satellite cell content. The “cardio kills gains” idea is more about excessive, fatiguing volume than about including aerobic work at all.
What are satellite cells?
Satellite cells are muscle stem cells that help repair and grow muscle tissue after training. The featured study found that pre-training aerobic conditioning increased satellite cell content, which is associated with greater muscle-building potential.
Train like an athlete. For life.
Programming built this way: hard when it counts, sustainable the rest of the time.
Related episodes