Which comes first: weights or cardio?

Cardio and weightlifting are two important components of effective gym time - the question is, which should you do first?

The answer:  weights come first.  If you want to walk on the treadmill or jog lightly for a couple minutes to help warm up before your warmup weight sets, that's fine - it's always good to get moving a bit, elevate your heart rate slightly, and signal your body that harder work is coming.  Running six miles before you start lifting isn't just a bad idea, it's dangerous.  Lifting when you're already tired not only encourages you to cheat and use bad form, it also increases the chance of injury or an accident.  Tripping and falling off the treadmill is bad; dropping an 80 pound dumbell on your chest is much, much worse.

Summary: weights first, then run yourself into the ground as long as you like.

Just ask for the spot already!

You're getting ready for a heavy set on the bench.  Six reps.  You can do it.  You get under the bar, liftoff, first three reps are easy, fourth feels a bit slow, and as you reach the top, you realize you're a bit tired.  Do you really want to drop that weight on your sternum?  Probably not.  You put the bar up and resolve to get a spot next time.  Only you don't.

Why not?  Who knows.  I see guys on the bench all the time whose last rep before they shelve the bar is far too easy.  That last rep should be a close, close thing, which is exactly why you need a spotter - they can take a tiny fraction of that weight and allow you to maximize the value of that set.  In this case, specifically, the adage 'No Pain, No Gain' is spot on - if you aren't pushing hard on that last rep, you aren't making any progress.

Now, let's be honest - when you're putting up 100 pounds, asking the guy on the bench next to you (who's lifting triple that) for a spot can be a little intimidating.  I know, because I've been on both ends - when I started lifting at a gym, my heavy bench set was with 135 pounds.  Ask anyway!  I'm the guy on the other bench now, and I am always happy to spot someone, no matter what they're putting up.  I love seeing the lighter guys working hard and really enjoy helping them succeed.

Last thing - check your weights, and don't go heavier than you can manage for the sake of appearance -   good progress can be made with a 10/6/3/6/3 pyramid (as much as you can lift for that number of reps), so know your limits and push them within the bounds of safety.

Lift hard!