Should I do yoga before or after my gym workout? Totally confused about timing

Rahul Bohra

Hi everyone!

I just started going to the gym 3x a week (mostly weights and some cardio) and want to add yoga to my routine. But I’m getting conflicting advice!

My gym buddy says to do yoga AFTER lifting to cool down and stretch. But I saw a YouTube video saying yoga BEFORE workouts helps prevent injury and warms you up better.

Now I’m totally confused

My main goals are:

Don’t want to injure myself
Build some flexibility
Maybe help with muscle soreness?

Would love to hear from the yoga teachers here - does the timing actually matter? Or am I overthinking this?

Karen Burgoyne

Not a teacher, but I do Zumba five times a week, daily Tai Chi practice , and general gym workouts on machines a couple times a week.

I always practice Yoga first thing in the morning, then allow at least an hour before other classes. Yoga makes my muscles relaxed and warmed, my spine feels open and flexible. It also sets my mind in a good place and gives me a feeling of strength.

A gentle Yoga session after the gym activities is also beneficial if I am feeling tired after a class, which at 71 is almost always :-).

Niyata Sahu

Hey Rahul! Great question - and no, you’re definitely not overthinking it!

This is one of the most common questions I get from students who do both yoga and gym workouts.
Quick answer: Based on your goals (flexibility, injury prevention, soreness relief), I’d recommend doing a SHORT yoga warm-up BEFORE lifting (5-10 minutes) and a LONGER yoga cooldown AFTER (15-20 minutes).

Here’s why this works best for your situation, Before Your Workout (5-10 Min Dynamic Yoga):

Since you’re doing weights and you mentioned being really stiff, a brief dynamic yoga warm-up will:
Wake up your joints (especially hips, shoulders, spine)
Improve your range of motion for exercises like squats, deadlifts, overhead presses
Reduce injury risk by literally warming up cold muscles
Focus on: Cat-Cow (spine), hip circles, arm rotations, a few gentle Sun Salutation movements.
After Your Workout (15-20 Min Restorative Yoga):
This is where the magic happens for flexibility and soreness relief! Post-workout yoga helps:
Release muscle tightness
Reduce next-day soreness (DOMS)
Focus on: Hip openers (pigeon pose), hamstring stretches, spinal twists, child’s pose. Hold poses longer here (1-2 minutes each).

So, Yoga before or after workout? The answer is both! Post-workout yoga is essential for recovery and pre-workout yoga helps prevent injury.

My Recommendation
Since you’re new to both gym and yoga, I’d suggest starting with just 5 minutes before and 10 minutes after for the first 2 weeks. As it becomes routine, extend the post-workout session to 20 minutes.

Check out our blog: Yoga Before or After Workout: Which is Better? - it covers exactly what poses to do when!
https://myyogateacher.com/articles/yoga-before-or-after-workout

Annelise P

Love this question, and sharing from a Yin Yoga Perspective – a form of yoga that’s perfect to balance out the yang activity be it a workout of dynamic yoga.
Yin yoga is slow, grounding, and focused on deep connective tissues rather than muscles. It’s about stillness and release — not activation or warm-up. So timing does matter, but it depends on what you want out of the practice.

If your goal is performance and safety during lifting:
Do the yin after your workout.
Yin postures help your body cool down, calm the nervous system, and release tension in fascia and muscles after effort.

Doing yin before lifting might make your joints and muscles too relaxed, reducing stability and strength during your workout.

If your goal is flexibility and mindfulness on rest days:
Do yin on separate days from your lifting.

That’s when you’ll really benefit from long-held poses. It’s also great for recovery and soreness — yin increases blood flow and parasympathetic activity (your body’s “rest and repair” mode).

In short:
Yin yoga after training or on rest days works best.
Avoid yin before strength or cardio sessions — your body needs tone and engagement, not deep relaxation.

Jitendra Gupta

Rahul Bohra Great question - my logish answer to your question https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ykfak9tlf0xpagjwg2xo4/Jitendra-Muscle-movement.mov?rlkey=lp70mltk23bot0osi2t396gmh&dl=0

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Should I do yoga before or after my gym workout? Totally confused about timing