Running in the morning... help!

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Cynnie20012
Cynnie20012 Posts: 33 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi,

I love running, i can run for 5 km with just a few couple-of-seconds march intervals (closer to the end) and I love to run.

However.... I can only do it in the evening. I have a routine : coming back from work, eating dinner (for me just some slices of bread with peanut butter or jam or ham or cottage cheese as I eat my major meal at lunchtime), then I wait between 1h30 to 2h (depending on how quickly I feel my stomach digested it) and then go running in the evening. After workout (that almost always takes exactly 30 mins) I have a small portion of yogurt with a bit of whey and go to sleep.

But I cannot make myself get up in the morning and go running. There are days in a week when i only need to be at work at noon.. And I think i should be able to get up and fight... But when i have a small breakfast... I dont want to go running anymore. A very few times i forced myself and i hated it...

Any tips and tricks how to slowely chang my mindset and morning routine to start actually doing it? Even if only 1 workout a week.

Replies

  • chandanista
    chandanista Posts: 986 Member
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    How would you feel about running on an empty stomach? That's my personal preference.
  • beccamh
    beccamh Posts: 85 Member
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    Why do you want to start running in the morning? It seems like you have a really good routine going in the evening.
  • Kanuenue
    Kanuenue Posts: 253 Member
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    I am not big on what time I run, as long as I do it. In the morning I feel stiff after rising so I do a few minutes of yoga while my coffee brews, have a cup, then after some jumping jacks and plyometric stretches, then I hit the pavement. Within 20-30 minutes I am out the door. I wait for breakfast because a 5 k can be done in 30 min and I hate running with food in my stomach. This works for me on my AM running days.
  • vjsanvil
    vjsanvil Posts: 15 Member
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    I hate any type of exercise in the morning, however, my social life forces me to workout some times in the morning (like three times this week!). What has helped me is to put my running clothes next to my bed. When I wake up, I force myself to not hit "snooze" and instead put my workout clothes and get out the door within 5-10 minutes of waking up. Before you know it, the run is over and it's breakfast time. The more weight you lose (if that is a goal), the more motivated you will be to stay committed to running in the morning. when necessary.
  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
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    Why do you want to start running in the morning? It seems like you have a really good routine going in the evening.

    I was thinking the same thing? It sounds like you're not a morning person (5AM is my favourite time to run - but I've been out of bed by about 4:30 for the past 30 odd years or more...).

    As they say, if it ain't broke......
  • debi_f
    debi_f Posts: 330 Member
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    I prefer running in the morning. I drag myself out of bed (never said I liked getting out of bed), get into my running gear, then set off. Generally, the first 2-3 minutes are "groggy," but after that, I start to feel energized and strong. Having an empty stomach means there's nothing sloshing around in there to give me cramps.

    On those extra tough mornings, I keep myself moving by thinking about what I'll have for breakfast once I get home! ;-)
  • bert16
    bert16 Posts: 725 Member
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    I agree with both the responses above... if running in the evening works for you, then just do that; and if the issue in the AM is post-breakfast, just run on an empty stomach (there's no need to fuel pre-run for a 5K run). Aside from that, I think it's just an issue of being prepped and ready to go; I set aside my clothes, put my shoes and HRM by the door, and when the alarm goes off, remind myself how much better I'll feel all day knowing that my run is in the bank.

    Happy running! :flowerforyou:
  • kmorris246
    kmorris246 Posts: 312 Member
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    I'm a morning runner :-) I get up at 5:30 am 3x week. I get up, brush my teeth, get dressed (after hitting snooze once ;-), and head out the door. On these days, I actually don't even eat breakfast until 8 or after. After my run, I usually drink a couple cups of coffee- after a 6 mile run, I'm surprisingly not very hungry.

    This has worked really well for me. I live in VA and the humidity is ridiculous here. Running anytime after 9 am would cause me to pass out ;-)
  • VixB1842
    VixB1842 Posts: 36
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    I used to be a reluctant morning runner...I felt great once I had done it with just a small breakfast but after a month or so I became really anemic and was so lifeless and generally ill with no energy, my alarm would go off in the morning and I would lie there and cry. I put it down to burning off more calories than I was eating until around 9pm...I would always have a small lunch if I got a lunch break at all as I had a very active job. Even after 3 months of doing this I only lost 3lbs.
    I know now that I have a better relationship with food and am fueling my body correctly but if I don't eat when I get up I feel sick within about 20 mins and light headed. I've reached a point where I'm working 10hr shifts again and the only time for exercise is either on my day off or in the mornings which would still give me at least an hour or so of family time in the evening.
    I just have no idea how to go about tackling it again. I'm not sure I will be able to run on an empty stomach or would the sickness and lightheadedness pass once I started exercising and my body stopped expecting food?

    I can't leave an hour between having bfast and exercising, 30mins max as I still want my 8hrs sleep. Its so difficult changing routine so I'm with you on that one. I'm just so scared of going back to where I was before that I'm scared to try new things.

    I just don't know what to try first I guess.
    So difficult!!
  • elliej
    elliej Posts: 466 Member
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    I'm an evening runner too and find I get so so tired if I try to run on no calories in my belly. On the weekends I go a few hours after a good breakfast. So essentially I have no suggestions for you.
  • caramammal
    caramammal Posts: 147 Member
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    i also love running, and find it really hard to do so in the mornings, not sure why, thats just how it is for me too. What i have found is that when i dont want to run, even if i have zero energy i will get my stuff on and just go out the door, and think to myself, right, i'm going to do this distance, 5k or whatever and im going to run for a minute, then im going to walk for a minute. 100% of the time this works and end up running half the time. This is also good for speed training if you can run at a much faster pace that normal for that minute.
  • MzPix
    MzPix Posts: 177 Member
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    It sounds like you have worked out a good relationship between your mind and body by running at a time that works well for both. That's an accomplishment that a lot of people are still struggling with.
    Maybe on days you want early morning exercise, you could do something that similarly respects that mind/body relationship for that time of day. (I don't know what that would be for you specifically. Maybe yoga or dancing around the house in jammies?)

    Anytime I run, I do it in the late afternoon or evening. The thought of crawling out of bed and running makes me giggle slightly, and then sigh as I look out the window and sip my coffee.
    lol
  • BerryH
    BerryH Posts: 4,698 Member
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    Yep, you don't need to pre-fuel if you're only going out for half an hour. I usually have a sip of water, thrown on some clothes and get out the door before my brain's realised what's happening :laugh:
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
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    Meh.....I'm an evening runner. My vote is just do what works for you. I personally think all healthy changes should be made so that they fit your life and routine as comfortably as possible, otherwise you might not stick with it long term. I only run in the morning for races.
  • mojohowitz
    mojohowitz Posts: 900 Member
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    I figured out to run in the morning I had to get up at 4:30 am. It took about two weeks of just waking up and getting up at this time to reset my clock before i could actually run at that time. I require about 30 minutes of coffee and stretching to wake up enough to start running.

    Having said that, my running schedule has went to he** in a handbasket in recent months. :(
  • heatherlas
    heatherlas Posts: 21
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    I use to be an evening runner/exerciser but a few years ago my scheduled changed so that I'm running or going to the gym early in the morning before I go to work. It took me awhile to acclimate myself to that schedule, but once I did it for a few weeks I was hooked. If I'm going out to run first thing in the morning after getting out of bed I'll go eat half of a banana and a bottle of water and let that digest while I'm getting dressed. That gives my body 30 mins to an hour (depending if I'm running at my house or exercising at the gym) or so to digest it. That way I'm ready for a 3-6 mile run. I have also gone with no breakfast and that's fine for me on shorter runs, but I prefer to have a little something before hand. I like if I have an hour to digest before I run/exercise. You just have to experiment. Try different things and see how you feel.

    I have tried to run in the evenings a few times and find that it's hard for me to do so. I don't have a great routine down on eating and can feel sick. I know I can go back to evening work outs, it will just take me a little bit of time to try things out and see what feels best. It will take a little while, but once you find out what works, you will be able to do it.

    Happy running.
  • Lyerin
    Lyerin Posts: 818 Member
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    I run mostly in the AM, and I don't eat before I go (but I don't have high mileage right now). I have found though that even if I eat something (like if I run later in the AM on a weekend), I am still just fine as long as I eat something sensible. If you want to run in the AM and eat a banana or some peanut butter toast or some oatmeal, you should be just fine.

    What you're doing now sounds like it works for you though. Why change up something that is working?
  • beattie1
    beattie1 Posts: 1,012 Member
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    Hi,

    I love running, i can run for 5 km with just a few couple-of-seconds march intervals (closer to the end) and I love to run.

    However.... I can only do it in the evening. I have a routine : coming back from work, eating dinner (for me just some slices of bread with peanut butter or jam or ham or cottage cheese as I eat my major meal at lunchtime), then I wait between 1h30 to 2h (depending on how quickly I feel my stomach digested it) and then go running in the evening. After workout (that almost always takes exactly 30 mins) I have a small portion of yogurt with a bit of whey and go to sleep.

    But I cannot make myself get up in the morning and go running. There are days in a week when i only need to be at work at noon.. And I think i should be able to get up and fight... But when i have a small breakfast... I dont want to go running anymore. A very few times i forced myself and i hated it...

    Any tips and tricks how to slowely chang my mindset and morning routine to start actually doing it? Even if only 1 workout a week.

    Sounds to me like you're an owl, not a lark. I'm sure if you are motivated enough you COULD get up early, run then have breakfast & get on with your day. If there's no reason to, why bother? You're doing fine as you are and there's no special virtue in being a lark.

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