Should newbies get started with fitness, should they do aerobic or anaerobic first?

The first is whether you can persist, and the second is whether it matches your fitness goals.

When I first got into fitness, I stood at the door of the gym and stared at the guide map for almost half an hour. On the left was the bright treadmill area, where several people were sweating profusely while running, and on the right was the cold equipment area, where a few big guys were lifting metal plates with clanging sounds. I was so confused at the time that I was afraid that I was standing in the wrong line and was working in vain. Later, I was introduced by the membership consultant, saying that novices must first run for 40 minutes to do aerobic training, otherwise they will not have the strength to do anaerobic training, and their training will be in vain. I believed it, and I ran continuously for less than half a month. I didn’t lose two kilograms. My knees hurt so much that I was shaking when I walked down the stairs, so I took a week off.

Later, after chatting with friends in the fitness circle, I realized that there is no standard answer to this question. People in different circles have completely different opinions.

Most of the people who focus on healthy weight loss are doing standing aerobics, and their logic is also very practical: many novices usually get out of breath even when climbing the third floor, and their core strength and movement patterns are all blank. When they touch the equipment as soon as they get up, they will either hurt their waist or shoulders due to wrong movements, or they will give up after two painful exercises. On the contrary, the aerobic threshold is low, and you can go out for a run by wearing a pair of comfortable shoes. If not, you can jump on the spot at home or walk briskly downstairs. First, develop the habit of moving every day, which is better than anything else. I helped my aunt adjust her fitness plan a while ago. She weighs 160 pounds and is tired from going out to buy groceries. I started letting her walk around the neighborhood for 40 minutes every day after meals. She lost 18 pounds in two months. Now I take the initiative to add dumbbells to exercise her arms, and she is in great condition.

But if you ask any gymnast, they will definitely roll their eyes and tell you that only beginners should do aerobics first, which is a waste of the benefits period for beginners. This is not unreasonable. The first 3 to 6 months when you first get into fitness are the "newbie bonus period" when muscle growth is the most efficient. Even if the training intensity is not high, the muscle mass can still increase. The more muscles you have, the basal metabolism will be higher. You can burn more calories than others while sitting, and it will not be easy to rebound after weight loss. My best friend is a typical example. When I asked her to run before, she found it boring to be exposed to the sun, and she fell flat after two runs. Later, she followed the blogger to practice strength training at home, using two bottles of mineral water as dumbbells, and doing shoulder and back core exercises for 20 minutes every day. She has not lost two pounds in three months, and her waistline has shrunk by 6 centimeters. The jeans that she couldn't fit in before are now baggy, and she feels more energetic.

I chatted with an old gym coach who has been working in the gym for more than ten years. He said that now when taking a newbie to the first class, he will not arrange a fixed training content first. He will first take him to try all the items to see which ones he is interested in. Only when he is interested will he stick to it. Only when he sticks to it will it be effective. It is more effective than any sequence technique.

As for the quarrels on the Internet about "doing aerobic first to lose muscle" and "doing anaerobic first and then aerobic has no effect", to be honest, we ordinary novices are not competing in bodybuilding competitions. Our poor muscle mass is simply not enough to lose muscle, and there is no need to worry about the gap in calorie consumption. If you are in good condition today, you should first exercise for 40 minutes and then run for 20 minutes. If you don't want to move today, just walk briskly for half an hour. Even if you want to dance at home for half an hour today, it is ten thousand times better than sitting on the sofa and scrolling through fitness posts and wondering about "what to do first."

If you really can't make up your mind, try it twice in the first week. Try running for 30 minutes and practicing dumbbells for 20 minutes according to the tutorial. Whichever one will make you still willing to move the next day, choose whichever one you want first. There is really no need to set so many rules for yourself at the beginning. When it comes to fitness, getting started first is the prerequisite for all techniques.