Strength training vs cardio after 40 is one of the questions I get asked most, so let’s talk about it.
One of the biggest changes I’ve made to my own training in my 40s is this: I’ve stopped expecting every workout to do everything.
For years, especially in the home workout world, we’ve been sold the idea that a workout is somehow more effective if we lift weights, get our heart rate through the roof, sweat everywhere and finish completely exhausted.
But sometimes I want to build strength. Sometimes I want conditioning. Sometimes I want both. And sometimes I just want to walk.
Those sessions do not all need to look the same to be worthwhile.
Strength Training vs Cardio After 40: Which Do Women Need?
When it comes to strength training vs cardio after 40, both have a place.
Strength training gives us something cardio can’t: a progressive way to challenge our muscles and build or maintain strength.
Cardiovascular training gives us something strength training alone doesn’t completely replace: dedicated work for our cardiovascular fitness and endurance.
That doesn’t mean you need to spend hours doing both. This week on my channels is actually a really good example.
My Heavy Compound Leg Day on GFG Lifts is deliberately strength focused. There are no random cardio exercises between sets just to keep your heart rate up.
You lift. You recover. Then you lift again. And that’s exactly the point.
My Upper Body Strength + SIT workout, on the other hand, combines proper upper-body strength work with short sprint interval training bursts.
Different workout. Different goal. Both useful.
Why I Don’t Add Cardio Between Every Strength Set
If your goal is to lift a challenging weight well, you need enough recovery to actually do that.
Turning every rest period into jumping jacks or mountain climbers may make the workout feel harder, but harder and better are not automatically the same thing.
If you’re constantly out of breath, the thing limiting your next heavy set may be your cardiovascular fatigue rather than your muscles.
Sometimes I want you to put the dumbbells down. Breathe. Recover. Then pick them back up and give me another quality set.
That’s strength training. And it doesn’t need apologising for because it didn’t burn enough calories on your watch.
Where Strength + Cardio Workouts Fit
I still love combining the two. You only have to look through my channel to know that. 😂
MetCon, strength and conditioning, HIIT with weights and Strength + SIT are some of my favourite formats. They’re incredibly efficient when you want to train your muscles and conditioning in the same session.
The difference is that I’m programming the conditioning intentionally rather than sprinkling random cardio into a strength workout because I feel like you should always be sweating harder.
In a Strength + SIT session, for example, we can do a block of focused lifting followed by a short, hard interval. Then we recover.
That keeps the strength work strong and gives us a separate conditioning stimulus.
What About Walking?
Walking is probably the least glamorous part of my training and one of the most consistent. It doesn’t need to destroy you to be valuable.
Walking gives me extra movement, aerobic work and active recovery without adding another demanding training session to the week.
And some weeks, particularly when my energy isn’t great, it does a lot of heavy lifting in terms of keeping me consistent.
What Does a Balanced Week Look Like After 40?
There isn’t one perfect schedule. But when I weigh up strength training vs cardio after 40, I like to think about the week as a whole rather than judging every individual workout.
You might have:
- 2–4 strength-focused sessions
- 1–2 conditioning sessions
- walking and general movement throughout the week
- proper recovery
Some of your strength workouts may include conditioning too. That’s fine.
The goal isn’t to perfectly separate everything into boxes. It’s simply to stop believing that every workout needs to contain every possible training method.
The Takeaway
If you finish a proper strength workout and you’re not lying on the floor gasping for air, you haven’t failed.
If you take a walk instead of doing HIIT, you haven’t failed.
And if you enjoy a workout that combines strength and cardio, that’s not somehow inferior to traditional lifting either.
With strength training vs cardio after 40, different sessions have different jobs. What matters is what your training looks like across the week.
Lift. Condition. Walk. Recover.
You don’t have to squeeze all four into the same 30 minutes.
Try These Workouts
For a dedicated strength session, try my Heavy Compound Leg Day on GFG Lifts.
For a strength-and-conditioning option, try my Upper Body Strength + SIT Workout.
And if putting the whole week together is the part you struggle with, that is exactly why I create my monthly workout calendars and structured 28-day plans.
I’ve already done the programming. You just press play.
Penny x
