Is cardio training useful for anaerobic (weightlifting) performance?

Reading Time: 5 minutes

In this blog, we’ll discuss the difference between aerobic and anaerobic performance, and address whether cardio training should be performed if you are strictly an anaerobic (such as weightlifting) athlete/individual

When it comes to exercise performance, there’s basically only 2 types of people in this world – those who perform cardio, and those who actively avoid it (we see you).

And it’s not that those who DO perform cardio regularly “enjoy” it – many of them don’t – they just might believe that by doing regular cardio (long distance) training it might actually HELP anaerobic (weightlifting/sprinting) performance. But is that true? Should cardio and anaerobic training be kept separate, or can training one positively affect the other?

Before we answer that question, we have to truly understand the difference in the two:

Cardio (or aerobic training) involves longer periods of submaximal endurance exercise aimed at improving cardiovascular and respiratory performance. Common aerobic events are long-distance running or cycling/swimming events lasting longer than 2 minutes. Anaerobic training (short-burst, high intensity bouts) such as weightlifting, sprinting, and many other sports (hockey, soccer, football etc.) requires short periods of high intensity output followed by rest. Each type of training method requires distinct energy and muscular demands to optimally perform and increase performance. Think of it this way:

Someone who trains predominantly aerobic (cardio) will have a goal to increase their overall distance, or decrease the time to complete a long-distance event

Someone who trains mostly anaerobic (short burst) will try to increase the intensity (amount of weight lifted) or decrease the time it takes to complete a sprint

So then again, the question becomes – is there a degree of cardio training that can HELP optimize anaerobic performance, or vice-versa? Should both individual training methods be trained on their own, or is combining the two in training the best way to make improvements? Well, as always, the answer is it depends, but let’s break it down a bit:

Recovery from exercise

One of the main benefits of having high cardiovascular (cardio) performance is the ability to physiologically recover from exercise bouts. The aerobic system is what supplies oxygen and replenishes energy (ATP) over both short and long periods of time. Therefore, having a strong aerobic system (through cardio training) allows the body to replenish energy while sustaining oxygen consumption.  In fact, those who are more highly aerobic (cardio) trained have better exercise capacity and produce energy (ATP) faster. In order to optimally replenish ATP and anaerobic fuel sources (such as creatine phosphate), we REQUIRE energy from the aerobic system. Therefore:

aerobic training IMPROVES our ability to recover, even if we just do anaerobic events

However, is this ALWAYS the case? Again, it’s not that easy, and it depends… 

1-off (anaerobic) events

In some anaerobic events, the goal is to lift as much weight as possible ONE TIME, or sprint as fast as you can ONE TIME, or throw this ball/javelin ONE TIME. These are called 1-off events, because athletes are evaluated for their ability to do this ONE TIME. Through training in the gym, the goal is often to improve the amount of weight you can lift ONE TIME (known as a 1-repetition max), or throwing a weight as far as you can. In these events:  

there is an argument to be made that performing cardio training might actually be counterproductive to pure anaerobic (1-off) individuals

 For this very specific (and elite) population, doing cardio training may impair their ability to generate the high amounts of force required to lift/throw. Because our body is so good at adapting to the training stimulus, if one of these individuals were to perform more aerobic or cardio training, it may shift some of their fast and explosive muscle properties to become slower, thereby limiting their ability to create high forces and lift heavy/throw far.

Therefore, in summary, there is strong evidence to show that having some degree of aerobic performance (through cardio training) can help improve anaerobic function in MOST people, however if you are a pure 1-off anaerobic athlete/individual, then perhaps skipping the cardio might be best. Put another way, YES you should train cardio for high intensity intermittent sports where recovery between bouts or competitions relies on aerobic performance.

As always, thanks for reading and let us know if you have any questions!

-Coach Kalan

Key Takeaways

-       Some people perform cardio training, some actively avoid it (and often hate it)

-       Cardio (or aerobic training) involves longer periods of submaximal endurance exercise

-       Anaerobic training requires short periods of high intensity output followed by rest (weightlifting, sprinting, and many other sports such as hockey, soccer, football etc.)

-       Each requires specific energy and muscular demands through training and performance

-       Aerobic (cardio) training IMPROVES our ability to recover, even if we just do anaerobic events

-       Main benefits of high cardio performance is the ability to recover from exercise bouts

-       performing cardio training might actually be counterproductive to pure sprinters/powerlifters, throwers etc.