Is it a good idea to go for a hilly 18-20mile road ride and then go to the gym?

I have heard it said that you shouldn’t really do such things for at least an hour after such exercise.

i can’t think of any reason why a cardio workout followed by resistance training would be a bad idea. if anything you’d be properly warmed up for such activity.

I was thinking more like with respect to picking up colds etc.

oh right, that would not even cross my mind.

I do weights after a ride or run twice a week – so far not died and get very few colds.

I used to do weights before a run/ride. Switched to doing it afterwards, and the only downside is that my legs are tired and i’m not able to lift as much weight/do as many reps – so i now do my weights and run/ride on different days.

No harm imo and experience.

I’d also say it depends on your gym goals – if you are bulking up, the ride might “overtrain” you and hinder gains. If doing general maintenance or fat loss stuff, the ride will be ideal.

surely it depends on how fit you are and whether or not you’ve got the strength do it.

That’s what riding/gyming is partly for though – to total yourself. I’m sure most could manage that sort of ride then a gym session. If not, they soon would be able to.

+1 ride then gym. I do it most days I aim to go to gym. Gym great way to exercise for bike IMHO. You will find it handy to have a snack bar near the end of your ride to keep your enegry levels up and I always eat straight afterwards.

Oh, I can manage it fine. It’s just that someone else on here was saying that for an hour after a ride you are pretty vulnerable to viruses etc.

Mikey – really? That sounds like total BS to me! Ignore.

Probably more internet “old wives tales” being spread around

was that the “magic hour” someone suggested the other day? if so that was more to do with having an hour to get changed out of wet cold clothes to prevent you getting a cold….

then that was rubbished by someone saying that being cold has nothing to do with getting a cold.

riding would be a great cardio warm up as long as you get on those weights quick enough and keep that heart rate up.

classic Chinese whispers Phil. your immune system does take a hit after exercise.

I’ve read that after hard training your immune system is going to be slightly down – some articles i’ve read suggest avoiding crowded places for an hour after you finish.

Can’t say I’ve ever had an issue with riding and then going to the gym, and i don’t get many colds either. But then if i was going to go to the gym after a ride, i’d shower and eat and then go so its a good while after the “magical” hour that i’d be at the gym.

Not really relevant to getting a cold, but……..

Weight and Cardio training shold be done on seperate days for maximum benefit/effect. Obviously a warm-up is neccessary before a weights session, but doing a cardio session first means your are effectively using up energy, etc you should be putting into a weights session, or it will simply reduce the effort you can put in and the effect. Better to do Cardio after weights if it needs to be the same day.

It does all really depend on what your looking to achieve and time available at the end of the day.

Biggest issue I have had with my off road then gym sessions are
1 Glares from other gym users if there is the odd mud splash on your clothes etc
2 I am not as fit as I thought I was 🙂

What I was told was that weight training and endurance are not a good mix together. The cycling tends to get in the way of the beneficial effect of the weight training. Therefore it won’t so you any harm but perhaps the benefit of doing the weights in the first place is lost ? If it makes you tired by not stronger whats the point? Having said that if I’m short of time I’ll happily do both.

Yup depends on what you are aiming for. I always warm up on a spin bike before weights, but it’s just that, spinning to get warm, sometimes I zone out and start doing intervals 😉 – but the purpose is always just to get warm, not as an end in itself. Certainly I can’t do the thing I see lots of gym users doing which is walk in cold and start pumping massive weights. But then I do use a Uni gym and you get all sorts, plus the students are just coming back so we’ve got at least a month of lads hanging out in groups in sleeveless tops, getting in the way until they get bored and find something else to do….

Oh and the colds thing from the other thread – you are defo more vulnerable just after exercise to picking up stuff – speaking from experience, am very careful especially around this time of year which is when people start coughing and spluttering 😯

what I like is a good hard ride in the morning then a trip to the gym with the kids where they get in the swimming pool and I sit in the jacuzzi.. followed by a load of cake and tea. kinda perfect day for me.