When is the best time to exercise?

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amazingcarol
amazingcarol Posts: 3
in Fitness and Exercise
This question may have been addressed before, if so I apologies. I have been walking everyday for an hour per day and I just wanted to know , is it better to walk in the morning or afternoon, or does it matter?

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  • amazingcarol
    amazingcarol Posts: 3
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    This question may have been addressed before, if so I apologies. I have been walking everyday for an hour per day and I just wanted to know , is it better to walk in the morning or afternoon, or does it matter?
  • lotusfromthemud
    lotusfromthemud Posts: 5,335 Member
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    The best time is one that you can stick to.

    There are lots of opinions "do it first thing, etc." But, any time of day is fine! I know that if I could only workout first thing in the morning. . .I wouldn't do it!

    If you get an energy boost from your workout, you may want to keep it away from bedtime.:flowerforyou:
  • splenda
    splenda Posts: 24
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    I read an article a while ago, saying that if you make it a point to exercise when you first wake, it will be easier to stick to your workout schedule in the long run. Also, if you get it out of the way right away, you will have less opportunity to procrastinate, and eventually run out of time.

    Works Very well for me, but then again I want to avoid the onlookers (even if they are all in my head :glasses: )
  • hollychristine
    hollychristine Posts: 124 Member
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    I prefer to do it first thing in the A.M. its a good energy boost and I get it out of the way before I can comeup with an excuse to veg out.
    Then I take a walk after dinner.
    I guess it is whatever works for you, but I'm going to do some further research because now you got me curious.
    I'll be sure to post my findings FYI
  • BlazinEmerald
    BlazinEmerald Posts: 842
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    Lord have mercy , I cant wait for the day I can say exercising is an energy boot. Cause right now it just kicks my azz. HAHA I do mine in the evening after kids are in bed , I have no desire to wake at 5am just to get my azz kicked.
  • jayme03
    jayme03 Posts: 64 Member
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    I agree, the last thing on my mind when I wake up in the morning is exercise. I'm up at 4:45am everyday and just making it through the morning is the only thing on my list. I workout when I get home from work and I do it before supper, so around 5pm. It makes supper seem so much tastier :wink:
  • JulieB21
    JulieB21 Posts: 492
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    I'm up at 3:45 every morning and get my exercise out of the way by 8 or so. It's done-I don't have to think about it again and I don't run the risk of running out of steam as the day progresses. I love exercising in the morning and then try to walk throughout the day.
  • msarro
    msarro Posts: 2,748 Member
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    I don't think there really is a specific 'best time' however I like to exercise in the morning because it wakes me up. That, plus a shower and good breakfast, and I'm all bright eyed and bushy tailed to take on the world.
  • GIGINATOR
    GIGINATOR Posts: 355 Member
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    Best time is morning right out of bed if you can. Exercising before you eat actually boosts your metabolism for several hours afterwards. I think banks has talked about this before on here. If you can't do this exercising any time rather than nothing is great!
  • FitJoani
    FitJoani Posts: 2,173 Member
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    Anytime that works for you. I work out in the morning, afternoon and evening. My best if the afternoon though. I get out of work head to the gym and I have that energy from moving around still in me, Im not drained and I am not sleepy and dragging, but even when I am either of those ways I get a second joly with a quick jog!!!!
  • banks1850
    banks1850 Posts: 3,475 Member
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    GIG is right, I did post on this. Viviakay is also right though.

    The science behind when to work out is based on metabolic function. Studies suggest that you do have a SLIGHTLY elevated metabolism in the morning when you wake up. But those same studies were very clear in the fact that this isn't really very beneficial to working out at a specific time of the day. While the metabolism fluctuates throughout the day, it's only by a few % one way or the other because of anabolism and catabolism (breaking down tissue and building tissue). So while technically it's better to exercise in the morning, in practice it makes such a small difference that it is neglegable.

    What this means is, basically what viviakay said: Work out when you can commit to it, you don't need to set a schedule, if today you work in the morning and tomorrow it's at night, so be it, as long as you do it, it doesn't matter so much what time of day. But if setting a schedule helps you commit, go for it! :smile:
  • dshandt
    dshandt Posts: 192
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    I'm up at 3:45 every morning and get my exercise out of the way by 8 or so. It's done-I don't have to think about it again and I don't run the risk of running out of steam as the day progresses. I love exercising in the morning and then try to walk throughout the day.

    OUCH! :noway: 3:45? I'm sometimes up UNTIL then...... Serisously, I truly admire you!

    My husband and I used to be very disciplined and run before he left for work in the morning, but now that our schedule is more flexible, I fit it in when I can. I'd like to develop that first-thing-in-the morning habit again to some degree, tho. Especially now that the weather is gettng nice and I can walk outside!
  • bjigglepants
    bjigglepants Posts: 93
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    i'm NOT a morning person, so morning has never worked for me. i don't stick with it in the morning. i do mine at 8:30pm for an hour, then go to bed. i take trazadone for insomnia, so not being able to fall asleep isn't an issue for me. that stuff knocks you OUT.

    i agree that whenever it works best for you to work out, that's the time to work out. good luck!
  • Xtracrispy69
    Xtracrispy69 Posts: 55
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    Might be my opinion, I feel that evening is the best 7ish to be specific. Always felt that the body shouldn't be jolted too much in the morning. Through my own experience I have never been able to perform exercise in the morning to the same capacity as in the evening, even with the use of an energy drink.
  • amazingcarol
    amazingcarol Posts: 3
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    Thank you guys for all of your answers. I think I 'll go with what I have been doing and do what works for me as I am not a morning person. Right now I walk every evening around 5PM or 6PM. Whenever it warms up around here I will try an early morning or late evening walk according to the heat. Like some one posted as long as I am doing something that's a good thing.:smile: .So far I have been very faithful about walking daily:happy: Thanks to everyone that replied. Amazingcarol

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