Workout in before work

Does anyone get up early to get a workout in before work? How early and what do you do?
Thinking to workout in the morning.. but I love my bed too much. Any advice? :blushing:
«1

Replies

  • lindainprogress
    lindainprogress Posts: 129 Member
    cant wait to see the responses to this. I too, like the sound of an early workout but hate the sound of an early alarm clock. Plus, I love love love my memory foam mattress. Thanks for opening up this topid
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    Well, I don't "work" a regular job, but there are days when I have to be somewhere by 9am, and I drive my kid to school between 7-7:30am during the school year, and I get my workout done before that or it doesn't happen.

    It was tough to get up super early at first, but the feeling of regret later in the day for not having done it outweighed the feeling of dragging myself out of bed at 4:45am. :smile: Plus, after a few days of getting up that early, bed time started happening earlier and the sleep balanced out.

    Generally I'm up by 4:45, working out in the living room by 5:00, done by 6:00. In the summer I have a bit more flexibility since there's no school, but I still get it done early to beat the heat and be done before the rest of the fam is up.

    Part of what helps is just getting the right mindset - I resolved that I was going to do it, so I did! I lay my workout clothes out the night before, have my workout all ready to go (DVD, online vid or whatever), so all I have to do is roll out of bed, into my workout gear, grab the dumbbells and press play.

    I've been keeping this schedule for over two years now and I love it - getting the workout done first thing is a great start to my day.
  • KristiRTT
    KristiRTT Posts: 346 Member
    Always! I know I will skip my workout 75% of the time if I wait until after work! I get up at 445 and am at the gym or running by 530! I am home by 645 and leave for work at 745! It's not easy, but you make it a priority! I don't have to worry about getting anyone else ready but myself, so that helps!
  • stuffinmuffin
    stuffinmuffin Posts: 985 Member
    What motivates me for early morning workouts is I know I'll feel good about myself all day knowing that I've done it.

    I enjoy working out though so it's not too much of a struggle to get up. However I work flexi-time and currently the majority of my workouts are at midday which means I can have lunch straight afterwards.
  • icck
    icck Posts: 197 Member
    I like to lift weights first thing in the morning. It's what I do when I'm not at work, and I do it on the days I do too. I roll out of bed around 6am (or earlier if I need to leave before 8), lift weights in my pajamas, stretch, then I'm done by 7am and start to get ready for the day. Sometimes I'll have a 10min run if the mood takes me.
    I'm really not a fan of working out in the evening and force myself to do it if I miss my morning work out, so I keep that mind when my alarm goes!

    To go to the gym before work I need to be there at 4am :yawn: so I just work out at home.
  • DR2501
    DR2501 Posts: 661 Member
    I get up earlier to work out yes. 3 days per week (mon, tues, Fri) I wake up at 6am, walk the dog for 45 minutes, do either hill sprints or kettlebells then cycle to work (6.5 miles). Wednesdays (dog walker day) I wake up at 7 do kettlebells then cycle to work. Thursday is my rest day so I wake up at 7 and just cycle to work.

    Its hard because I love my bed too, but I struggle to have the energy to work out after work after long hours (I'm a lawyer) and 99/100 I'll make an excuse. It does get easier to wake up early though, providing you get enough sleep!

    ETA I work out at home which makes it easier.
  • jtm4210
    jtm4210 Posts: 108 Member
    My alarm goes off at 05:00 and I'm usually up either running or lifting by 05:30. Then I get to work feeling smug and virtuous ;)

    Admittedly this is a lot easier during the summer when the morning is bright and also the coolest part of the day - it's so humid at the moment that even the thought of working out later in the day is exhausting! Hopefully I'll be able to maintain this routine when the mornings are dark and gloomy...
  • Candicem99
    Candicem99 Posts: 71 Member
    Well most people think I am a little nutty, but I get up at 4 am to workout. Normally six days a week I workout from 4:00 to 5:30pm then get ready for work after that. I like the feeling that I got my workout in and then I don't have to worry about it when I get home. Normally after work I go for a short bike ride.
  • snowflake930
    snowflake930 Posts: 2,188 Member
    Just got done. Up at 2 a.m. M-F.
    At the gym at work by 3:30, I have it all to myself and watch movies while I work out.
    Mostly elliptical or treadmill.
    I go for walks after work and on weekends, up and down the hills of our woods with wrist and ankle weights.
  • DR2501
    DR2501 Posts: 661 Member
    Wow 2am! That's dedication.
  • beelisa
    beelisa Posts: 3 Member
    I wake up 3 hours before work , this gives me the time I need to workout, get ready, prepare and eat a healthy meal then drive to work. Doing my workout before work keeps me consistent. I feel better at work and think more clearly. The pros out ways the cons in getting the workout done before work. To put it simply I feel awesome when my workout is done before work. Plus I can fit in a second workout with my fiance when I get home from work before he goes off to work. Workout Bonus points for me.

    It helps to plan a head of time which workout you are going to do and commit to it. Have your workout outfit ready to go when you wake up. In the past I would waste too much time just trying to decide last minute if I should go run, pilates or kettlebells. So I just wrote a schedule and check it off.
  • misskris78
    misskris78 Posts: 136 Member
    Up at 4:30, done working out by 5:30. "Me time" from 5:30-6. I leave the house for work at 7:45 after getting the kids ready for their day. Luckily I have a very short commute.
  • loribethrice
    loribethrice Posts: 620 Member
    I work out as soon as I get off work. On my days off I go at 5am. I work 11p-7a though, so I guess it's easier for me.
  • jfauci
    jfauci Posts: 531 Member
    I'm up at 3:30 AM and at the gym by 4. I do cardio and weights and I'm done by 5:15. I usually leave for work by 7 AM. I tried the evening workout, but it wasn't for me. Between long hours at work and responsibilities at home with the kids, I never seem to get there. The early AM workouts are perfect for me!
  • logg1e
    logg1e Posts: 1,208 Member
    What's the saying? "Get up and get to the gym before you have a chance to realise what's happening".

    It's a great feeling to be starting the working day with that post-exercise buzzy feeling.
  • workout_ninja
    workout_ninja Posts: 524 Member
    I dont do it often as I have a wonderful boss and a gym at work, but on the occasions when i know i wont be able to work out at work, I get up at 5:55, out the door at 6am and run 5 miles. Im back in at 7am, just in time for my son waking up. The hubmeister and i then take it in turns to shower and make sure our son is ready. Its not easy, but its so rare I do it that I dont complain - as others have said, its harder to deal with the feeling of regret than the feeling of waking up at that hour!!
  • bobfreyict
    bobfreyict Posts: 1 Member
    I am an early workout guy mostly because I never really know when I will get out of the office in the evening and I do not want to delay any evening activities. I also found that when I workout late I have a more difficult time getting to sleep at a normal time. I am up and at the gym by 330 (thanks Planet Fitness!) and generally done by 5 Monday through Friday. This allows me to recover, relax, eat breakfast and get into the office by 7 every day. On the weekends I generally get into the gym around 8 unless I have something planned early.

    Best of luck!
  • COMBAT_CLAIRE
    COMBAT_CLAIRE Posts: 5 Member
    I get up at 6am, get to the gym for 7am when the doors open and try to squeeze in a longish run (between 2.5-3.75 miles) and a warm down or a shorter run (1.5 miles) and a stint on the spin bike/rower. This then gives me enough time to get showered and changed before getting to the office for just before 9am. I have a Weetabix breakfast shake at my desk which keeps me going until lunchtime.

    It makes me feel good for the rest of the day. I find it easier to go regularly in the mornings than in the evenings when I am tired or can think of an excuse not to go!
  • maasha81
    maasha81 Posts: 733 Member
    I'm in office at 6am so working out early is not for me.

    However, my buddy works out in the am. He sleeps in his workout gear; sneakers & banana at his bedside and just starts his morning workout ( he workouts at home ). He also preps his smoothie ingredients in a little bag so it's just to dump and blend.
  • LiftAndBalance
    LiftAndBalance Posts: 960 Member
    I started going to the gym in the mornings mainly because my gym is tiny so it doesn't take a lot of people to be crowded and right when it opens at 7am seems to be the only time it's empty (it certainly isn't after work). I absolutely have to force myself to get up and go there by reminding myself that later I won't want to go with the crowds. I also have to force myself through the warm up since I'm really not a morning person but once I start with the actual work out (lifting weights), I feel great.
  • Derry5
    Derry5 Posts: 9 Member
    I do exercise before work quiet often, usually only do Cardio and abs. Then do weights after work.
  • littlekitty3
    littlekitty3 Posts: 265 Member
    I get up at 4am. I would get up later if it wasn't for the fact that I need to beat everyone to the shower since everyone takes last minute showers and one of them is in there for 45 minutes.
  • Unice95
    Unice95 Posts: 11 Member
    I started working out in the morning approximately 3 months ago. I love my bed too. I started out getting up 5 minutes before time to do stretches. Eventually, the time increased and my exercises changed. I am now jogging 1 mile, in place, 20 minutes before my normal wake up time. I workout to Leslie Sansone's dvds. I wake up at 4:45am to be finished by 5:05am. Mentally...a little is a lot....don't think it's not. I also have to be in the bed by 10pm on the dot or I will not want to wake up at 4:45am. I hope this helps. I truly love doing it in the morning.
  • patrickblo13
    patrickblo13 Posts: 831 Member
    I wake up M-F at 4:50am back home from the gym by 6am (the gym is literally 2mins away). I love early morning workouts. I have more energy during the day and I can't make an excuse for not going. Not to mention I have almost the entire weight room to myself at that time.
  • 365andstillalive
    365andstillalive Posts: 663 Member
    Early morning workouts are the worst thing in the world... until you do them for about 2 weeks and then everything changes.

    I'm lucky in that I work kind of an irregular job (contract to contract) so while I'm typically working 5 days a week, I get periods (like the last month) where I've been off for an extended period of time (usually 2-3 weeks). What's been really important for me has been finding a workout schedule that works for me, whether I'm working that day or not.

    Because my job primarily takes places at malls and festivals (I'm a face-to-face fundraiser), I often don't have to be in until 9/9:30, so I get up anytime between 6-7 and workout depending on how far I have to drive to get to work. If I'm not working that day or start later on, I'll do longer workouts (45-60min), but if I work I try to keep it under a half hour, enough to wake me up, put me in a good mood, but not enough to make it impossible for me to go into work and stand/walk for 8+ hours and chat with people.

    If you're looking to start morning workouts, I'd really recommend starting with something that's only going to force you out of bed less than a half hour earlier than you currently get up, like a short run. As you get more comfortable with that wake-up time and notice you have more even energy throughout the day from working out, you should be able to lengthen it to get in a complete workout before you have to head in without feeling like you're losing sleep.
  • My Fitbit wakes me up at 5am, at this point my body is expecting it and I usually have to use the bathroom anyway. I'm not always excited to get up and sometimes I do lay there for an extra minute and contemplate sleeping instead. Ultimately I always get up. Once I'm up and heading out for my workout I'm happy I did, every time. My exercise right now is just going for a 2 mile walk each morning. Its the best time to me because it is quiet out, not much traffic, and its a good time to wake the body up, clear the mind, and get energized for the day. When most people are just waking up and starting their day I look back and think I've already walked 2 miles and I feel great. By 6:30 I'm ready to leave for work and it really does make me feel good for the rest of the day. Sometimes later in the day, after work, I will go for another walk, On the weekends I do 4-5 miles in the morning instead of two. I hope at some point to go for a run in the morning instead of a walk and very soon I plan to actually use my gym membership to go lifting after work.
  • InsanityForMe
    InsanityForMe Posts: 73 Member
    Well, I don't "work" a regular job, but there are days when I have to be somewhere by 9am, and I drive my kid to school between 7-7:30am during the school year, and I get my workout done before that or it doesn't happen.

    It was tough to get up super early at first, but the feeling of regret later in the day for not having done it outweighed the feeling of dragging myself out of bed at 4:45am. :smile: Plus, after a few days of getting up that early, bed time started happening earlier and the sleep balanced out.

    Generally I'm up by 4:45, working out in the living room by 5:00, done by 6:00. In the summer I have a bit more flexibility since there's no school, but I still get it done early to beat the heat and be done before the rest of the fam is up.

    Part of what helps is just getting the right mindset - I resolved that I was going to do it, so I did! I lay my workout clothes out the night before, have my workout all ready to go (DVD, online vid or whatever), so all I have to do is roll out of bed, into my workout gear, grab the dumbbells and press play.

    I've been keeping this schedule for over two years now and I love it - getting the workout done first thing is a great start to my day.

    ^^ I do my workout in the early morning too. It is the only time I will be able to get it done. I have gotten use to it and love my routine
  • Eaglesfanintn
    Eaglesfanintn Posts: 813 Member
    I've always been a morning person, so getting up early is no big deal. I get up at 4:00. Take the dogs for a walk and then go for a run. Like others have said, I know if I wait and try to do it after work, it's 50/50 at best that it will actually get done. I do try to go to the gym twice a week at night as well, but it's kind of hit and miss.
    The other good thing about early workouts - especially if you're a runner - is you miss the worst part of the day. So, I still get up early on the weekends to get my longer runs in before it gets to be too hot.
  • fclefguy
    fclefguy Posts: 10 Member
    I work Monday-Friday 5am-2pm and i get up ( or at least try to) everyday at 3, give myself 15-30 minutes to wake up before I start exercising. I try to get 30-45 min in each morning usually cardio with some weights. I also try to do 45-60 min every night before bed with just weights/bodyweight. Unfortunately that doesn't normally happen until 9 or 10 at night though..
  • Mad4282
    Mad4282 Posts: 171 Member
    Always! I know I will skip my workout 75% of the time if I wait until after work! I get up at 445 and am at the gym or running by 530! I am home by 645 and leave for work at 745! It's not easy, but you make it a priority! I don't have to worry about getting anyone else ready but myself, so that helps!

    ^^^^THIS! I keep the same schedule and it truly has helped me immensely. I have lost near 40 pounds and have only missed one workout in three months thanks to getting them out of the way in the morning. I find myself to have more energy during the day as well. Another bonus is when I have downtime after work sometimes I sneak in a short second workout just because, but I know if I get home and am too tired or want to go out with friends I can do that knowing my workouts are all done!