Early morning exercise

mrsvezeau

I have been working out 5 days a week at 5:00 am. I normally do not eat before heading out to the gym - is this a good thing? I am feeling ok to get through my work out but I can tell I am hungry by the time I get home. Is it best to work out on an empty stomach or should I be eating beforehand? If so, what should I eat?

Meghan0129

Cardio before carbs in the morning is great for burning calories. I give you credit for getting up that early. I get up at 5:30am to do cardio and I will admit I am a zombie for the first 30 minutes. :laugh:
I drink a protien shake when I get back from the gym then follow up with breakfast and hour later. Please note that I am not a professional but this has been working for me.
Be careful not to burn yourself out.

SoldierDad

I have been working out 5 days a week at 5:00 am. I normally do not eat before heading out to the gym - is this a good thing? I am feeling ok to get through my work out but I can tell I am hungry by the time I get home. Is it best to work out on an empty stomach or should I be eating beforehand? If so, what should I eat?

Army says PT before eating... Burns more cals.

Meghan0129

I have been working out 5 days a week at 5:00 am. I normally do not eat before heading out to the gym - is this a good thing? I am feeling ok to get through my work out but I can tell I am hungry by the time I get home. Is it best to work out on an empty stomach or should I be eating beforehand? If so, what should I eat?

Army says PT before eating... Burns more cals.

I would love to be put through a military workout.

pmjsmom

There are differences of opinion on this. To be honest, I do not eat before my morning workout but I do have a cup of coffee. I ALWAYS have breakfast after working out, though--I wouldn't make it through my shift if I didn't (I'm omly working 4/hrs a day right now).

mrsvezeau

Thanks for the advice. I will just keep doing what I am doing... I am also a zombie in the morning until I am done. Then I feel so much better that I got up and got it out of the way.

Meghan0129

Yeah, I have never been a morning person. I take half a no-doz on especially hard mornings... I know that terrible but it is necessary sometimes. :laugh:

SugarHi

Early bird here too. I am up at 4am every day!

Good for you Sometimes it can be hard :flowerforyou:

mrsvezeau

Most mornings I have to pick up a friend on the way to the gym so that keeps me in check. She is super motivated and if i don't pick her up or we are late - I hear about it!

AndreaLee

It depends on whether you have problems with low-blood sugar in the morning. You could try a small snack of 5 to 10 almonds and 1/2 a glass of orange juice and see if it helps with getting through it easier.

Meghan0129

It depends on whether you have problems with low-blood sugar in the morning. You could try a small snack of 5 to 10 almonds and 1/2 a glass of orange juice and see if it helps with getting through it easier.

I could see how that could be an issue. The last thing you want is to get dizzy while doing cardio.

Meghan0129

Oops, double post.

iplayoutside19

I work out in the mornings on an empty stomach too.. At least most of the time. During longer runs I can feel myself hitting a wall, but it's nothing that's really been a big hindurance.

....and time of day has nothng to do with how many calories you burn. A Calorie is a measure of energy, not a measure of time, weather, or daylight.

Azdak

There are differences in opinions, but there are not differences in facts. Having some calories on board and circulating blood glucose increases workout performance with no effect on fat oxidation.

By "eating", I am referring to a 100-200 Cal intake that is relatively low in fat and contains 20-30 g carbs.