Cardio For Powerlifters: How to Incorporate it While Making Gains
Cardio. The most dreaded form of exercise. Ask any Powerlifter if they'd like to go for a run, and you’ll probably be met with confused and annoyed looks. On a real note, though, there are tons of myths surrounding cardio and strength training. You’ll hear that it kills your gains, will ruin your training sessions, and there’s no reason to include it. The truth is, cardio actually does have some benefits to supplement your training, and there are many different types you can choose from. Avoiding cardio is unnecessary and detrimental to your health, well-being, and longevity. Let’s bust some misinformation & discuss how & when you can incorporate cardio while still hitting PRs.
Will cardio “destroy your gains?”
One of the oldest and most prevalent myths out there, the truth is no, cardio will not inherently “destroy your gains.”
However- too much of it can certainly impact your performance.
From a specificity standpoint, there is interference between cardio and strength training. The two forms of exercise work different energy systems, train different qualities, and both cause fatigue. A hard cardio session can impair recovery for tomorrow’s training day. Going for a run before a heavy squat session is not a good idea. You’ll learn that pretty quickly if you try!
Heavy Powerlifting sessions require mainly the ATP-PC & Glycolytic energy systems- those that fuel 15-60 seconds of hard effort; (ATP) or 1-3 minutes of *relatively hard* effort (Glycolytic). Low/Moderate intensity, long-duration cardio relies on the Oxidative Energy system. Powerlifting is mainly an anaerobic activity (doesn’t rely on oxygen for fuel, high-intensity, shorter bursts) whereas long-duration cardio is an aerobic activity. If you’re trying to be a marathon runner or win bike races while also being a Nationally-Qualified Powerlifter, you’re training two somewhat opposite qualities. But, most of us don’t enjoy cardio enough to do that.
In moderation, and when done intelligently, you can certainly continue making gains while doing cardio and even see some training benefits from it. Plus, certain types have more carryover & less interference than others, which we will discuss below.
2. Benefits Of Cardio for Powerlifting
Yep, you heard it here- not only will it NOT destroy your gains, but cardio can actually support them, too.
A) Improved work capacity:
This is a simple way of saying you’ll be able to do more work & recover more efficiently.
With cardio in your routine, your body becomes more efficient at using energy, you’re forced to recover faster, and your heart and lungs have a greater capacity.
While we don’t need extreme cardiovascular abilities to perform heavy lifts, having the ability to recover more readily & handle more is a major benefit if you want to keep getting strong.
B) Easier to maintain weight class-
If there’s one thing Powerlifters hate more than cardio, it’s cutting weight. While cutting weight isn’t recommended for those newer to the sport, once you’ve got some experience, it may be part of your reality.
Manipulating your food intake too much can impact your performance. Adding a little cardio to your weekly routine can help keep you fueled while staying at your desired weight class.
C) Improved quality of life-
Being able to do simple activities in daily life, like, walking up the stairs without heavy breathing improves how you feel. When we do zero cardio, any form of movement can feel like a 5-mile run. The easy solution? Strengthen that heart, and you’ll quickly feel more energized and capable.
D) Hearth health benefits-
Strength training has numerous health benefits, but when those upsides are combined with cardiovascular ones? It’s a winning combo. For a lower risk of heart disease, improved lung capacity, lower blood pressure, and more- doing some cardiovascular training can go far when it comes to better health outcomes.
E) Improved longevity & resilience-
If you’re strong but can’t walk or run to save your life, what good will it do when you need to fight a bear? Jokes aside, an increased chance of living, staying healthy, and more capability and potential all lead to a more resilient you. The more you can handle, the more your body is adapted to, the better your health condition, and the longer you’ll get to do what you love. Longevity is everything in both Powerlifting and life.
Clearly, cardio can provide some benefit to you as a lifter and as a human being. But if you want to focus on your strength & develop your potential as an athlete, you want to incorporate your heart stuff strategically. Too much volume, intensity, or frequency, and you won’t be hitting the numbers you want to. Here’s how to do it, below:
3. Incorporating different types:
During meet prep, prioritizing your training and recovery is key. This means that you need to be very strategic with how you include cardio. In an off-season cycle, things don't need to be as specific, but as you get closer to the big day, performance should be your priority. Cardio can be divided into three main categories based on energy systems & intensity. Here's how to include each one:
A) High-intensity, short duration
HIIT training (high-intensity interval training) has become quite popular in the fitness industry. It’s time efficient, effective, and characterized by 10-30 seconds of high-intensity work followed by short rest periods. This type of training can be extremely taxing, but it also uses mainly fast-twitch muscle fibers, as we need in Powerlifting, and can provide a good bang for your buck. This means there may be slightly more specificity. You can do HIIT on an assault bike, spin bike, rowing machine, sprint, etc.
HIIT also comes with a greater fatigue cost, so bear that in mind. Sprinting will likely have the most interference with Powerlifting since it’s more taxing on the joints, but done in moderation (maybe once a week, before a rest day) can be fine.
Other options will be less stressful on the joints: bike/swim intervals.
I wouldn’t recommend doing HIIT more than 2x/a week, and always do it before a rest day. You could do it after a training session or on a separate day if you’ve got 2 rest days back to back.
B) Moderate intensity
Moderate intensity is what most people think of when they hear the word “cardio.” This includes things like jogging, going for a run, biking, swimming, etc., at an intensity that elevates your heart rate and is difficult to get through. It’s great for heart health, burns a lot of calories, and can be enjoyable to some crazy people. Usually, it’s done anywhere from 20-60 minutes.
Moderate intensity may be the least compatible with Powerlifting, and here’s why:
-it can be taxing on the joints,
-it’s not very time efficient
-it impacts your recovery.
This isn’t to say that moderate intensity can’t be incorporated at all, but it should be done carefully. If you want to include it, choose a lower-impact option, and do it either after your training or before a rest day, no more than 2-3x/week. You may still notice fatigue but your body will adapt to the routine.
C) Low intensity
Low-intensity is probably the easiest form of the 3 to incorporate into your training. I believe it’s a very underrated form of cardio. Many believe that cardio needs to be exhausting, extremely taxing, leaving you dead- but when your training is already serving that purpose, why make it overkill?
Low-intensity cardio includes walking, light jogging, light biking, etc- anything that feels relatively easy, you can still talk throughout, and doesn’t require a ton of exertion.
It still provides many health benefits- from joint health, brain function, and lower disease risk- there's a reason that step counts have become so popular.
Low-intensity cardio can be done every day if you wanted to. It’s not fatiguing enough to impact following training sessions. It doesn’t stress out the joints too much. You can walk daily and still continue making strength gains.
While it’s not time-efficient, it’s far easier to incorporate which can add some convenience. When training is your priority, closer to a meet, if you want to add cardio, this might be the best bet.
D) “Conditioning/GPP” work
Another category that still falls somewhere in moderate/high intensity is “finishers”/”GPP”- basically, cardio is included in your programming rather than separately.
An easy way to get that heart rate up and improve work capacity is to add some conditioning to the end of your workout. This could include supersets/circuits of carries, sleds, KB swings, med ball slams, throws, etc. There are many ways to go about it: choose a couple of exercises and perform a few sets or a set-time AMRAP or EMOM.
The benefit of this form of cardio is that it’s time-efficient, (literally, 5-10 minutes), high-intensity, and can be added to your program. That way, it doesn’t interfere with the following days- you’ll have time to recover. You can still see improvements in your cardiovascular health, and doing conditioning work in a fatigued state will improve your overall work capacity. And, your strength won’t suffer.
*Note: If you are a newer athlete, you can likely fit any type of cardio into your routine, as training doesn’t need to be quite as specific or focused to make progress. This advice is for those in meet prep at a higher level.
Cardio is notoriously avoided and hated by most Powerlifters, yet it shouldn’t be written off so quickly. Cardio can have numerous benefits to you as an athlete and be incorporated without sacrificing gains. While there is a degree of interference, if you go about it intelligently, you can continue making strength progress. Choose the right forms of cardio, adjust the volume and frequency, and you’ll be good to go. Staying healthy and being a more resilient athlete with more variety will support your Powerlifting goals. Don’t sleep on cardio entirely, just go about it the right way.
