What’s up, fellow Obsessives?

My daughters are going back to school this week, which means the teacher squad is returning to my 5 a.m. class and bringing waitlists back into my lift.

If this situation also applies to you, take it as a sign to spend a few minutes today prebooking!

— Kevin

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I’m not sure how or why it happened, but I used to be a start on the rower guy.

Then I became a start on the tread guy

I can’t tell you how or why that happened either. There was no moment of clarity, no coach telling me to switch or no article that I read extolling the benefits of cardio first.

One day I liked finishing my workouts on the tread, the next I liked starting them there.

Right now, I can’t imagine myself going back to starting on the rower and I get a little thrown off any time I get to class late and all the treads are taken.

If you’re reading this, I know you probably feel the same way about your starting point. It’s one of the bigger debates in OTF Obsessive land and subject of many a Reddit thread.

But does it matter?

Your legs will always be freshest at the start of class. If that day’s workout has a surplus of push or all-out paces, your body is going to be the most capable of hitting them without having gone through 23 minutes of lifting weights.

There’s also people who just like getting running out of the way instead of pushing it to the latter half of the session and dreading it the whole time. You get up there, you get after it and then everything is gravy from then on.

Rowing or lifting first means your heart builds more gradually instead of spiking right away. Some people like that entrance into the hour, particularly the early morning classes when you need a little time to wake up.

It can also help you on the tread block because by the time you get there, you’re already warm. Some Obsessives swear their pace always feels better with the work done during the weight set, “fresher” legs be damned.

Then there’s just the pure strength cases. If building strength is your main priority, you’re always going to be able to lift heavier and more without 23 minutes of cardio getting in the way first.

While this is a case of “feel” for many of us, there’s plenty of actual exercise that’s been done on this … and it leans toward starting on the rower or floor.

One study found that people who lifted first before doing cardio saw noticeably better results in fat loss compared to people who did it the other way around. Both sets of people, however, saw their cardiovascular fitness improve at similar rates.

But before everyone makes a mad rush to the floor, there’s other research that shows the order doesn’t move the needle much on overall fitness gains. There’s a small edge toward strength before cardio, but not a huge one.

I’m Team Personal Preference on this one. Only you know the goals you’re chasing and how you best work out. There’s a reason why Orangetheory gives you a choice on where to start when you walk through the door, space permitting of course.

But I’d like to hear from you. Are you a tread-first person no matter what, a floor-first loyalist or do you like to switch it up? And if you’ve ever switched your habit like I did, I’d like to know why. Maybe it’ll jog my memory. Hit me up at [email protected] and vote in the poll below!

Warning on this one: Earmuffs for bad language!

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