Morning workouts..... how do you do it?

I set up my clothes and stuff the night before....set the alarm and then just DO IT. After a while it becomes habit and gets easier. I prefer it since it sets the tone for the day energy wise and if anything comes up later i have no excuse for missing my workout.

I get up at 5:15 every morning to work out. It's not easy and most mornings I'd love to turn off my alarm, roll over and go back to sleep! However, like the Nike slogan says, I "just do it." There is no easy way. You just have to set your alarm and GET UP when it goes off. If I allow myself to make excuses for why I'm too tired to get up, I'll never do it, so I don't allow myself to do that. No matter how much I want to sleep longer, I force myself out of bed when the alarm goes off.

I've been getting up at 5 AM for the past six weeks to work out. I take my labrador for a two mile walk and on the weekends, I "sleep in". I'm usually up by 6:30 AM and we do three miles. Granted, it's cold and dark and I'm a little messed up since last weekend's daylight savings (I keep waking up at 4 AM but I refuse to get out of bed until 5, still waiting to get used to the change) but now the sun is starting to come up near the end of my walk so it's a little better. I lay out all my workout clothes the night before, my fitbit vibrates at 5:00 to get me out of bed and my dog is so excited to go out for his walk that I think I would feel guilty if I skipped it now. It was 27 degrees yesterday morning (my dog had to wear his coat!) but 40 this morning. The cold days really s*$& but once I get moving, it's not that bad. I just started C25K on Monday (did week 1 day 2 this morning) and I'm not sure what I'll do when the snow flies, I'll try to walk/run outside as best I can but we also have a gym down the street so I may need to move it inside. I dread seeing the sad look on my dog's face if he doesn't go out with me, he's quite the motivator! They say it takes six weeks to make it a habit. I'm in week 6 and I have to agree, it is a habit now. I really don't think about NOT doing it. Morning workouts are not for everyone but for me, it's really the only way I know I'll do it and can still get my son out the door to school on time, get to work, etc. Good luck!

There are many benefits to working out in the morning. But none of them matter when it's cold, dark and the bed is warm...getting up is really hard!

I am a morning person and it is still hard. But here is how, and why I do it. First, everything for the morning is ready. Shoes, gym clothes, sweat towel, iPod, ear buds, even a filled water bottle is in a pile so I don't have to stagger in the dark to find my stuff. That is critical for me! (I've heard some people even sleep in their work out clothes but that seems extreme.) I even go so far as to pack my lunch and make breakfast the night before, so I have more time to work out. But the rest is mental. One more hour of sleep is such a waste when you consider you can burn over 500 calories in that same time frame (depending on your work out). Once you're out of bed, it gets easier and I remind myself of that. Splash water on your face first - that helps. The biggest benefit for me is the endorpins. I'm addicted! When I miss a day I am "off" - I do sooo much better mentally, have a better attitude, higher energy and a clear head. Plus I know I've "checked it off" the list, and the thought of having to work out is no long hanging over my head. I give myself the weekends to sleep as late as I want, but during the week, 5x a week, the alarm goes off at 4:45 am. So much easier in the summer, but it is my commitment to my health and fitness, and I've made it a priority. Plus then I get to just relax after work - that is a huge benefit.

For me it's like anything else in this journey - Just Do It. No Excuses.

Well I wouldn't say Im as Crazy as others to do a middle of the night workout but if that's the time they have that is awesome to still make it work.

I counted backwards from when I had to be at work and how long it takes me to get ready for the day and that's when I get up. lol I want as much sleep as possible.

I have to be to work by 9 so I have to leave my home by 8:30 and it takes me 45-1hr to get out the door, my workouts are anywhere from 35-47 mins so I give myself an hr so I can get dressed, setup in my basement. so that means I have to get up at 6:30 to get it all done. I also Printed a schedule and put it on my Mirror so I can see it every day and mark it off that I did it! this helps and also there is no.. "hum what workout should I do today" going on. I really like my sleep so If I know I have a shorter workout that day I will get up at 7 instead. lol but I still get up right after the alarm goes off grab my workout clothes off the end of my bed and get to it!

I agree that going to bed earlier is key but I honestly am doing good to get to bed before midnight. so some days its hard but its my ME time and I need it to get me through every day. The days I don't im dragging and so need my ME time.

Find a workout that you absolutely LOVE and that will call you out of bed in the morning I also have my alarm clock set with the message saying "You won't get results hitting snooze!!"

I like that idea of having that kind of message on the alarm - good little motivator. I'm starting on AM home workouts again having recently quit the gym. I got better results and stuck to it when I was doing AM home workouts. Did my 3rd AM workout this morning. As others have said I prepare everything the night before and set my alarm for 6am. I spend about 5 mins waking up then get up to get to it! Feel so much better for it during the day and because I've made the effort to get up and workout I'm more conscious of the food I eat because I don't want my hard work to go to waste so I tend to make healthier choices throughout the day.

Once you're in a routine you will be fine, good luck!

If the issue is getting out of bed you could get this alarm clock. It runs away from you getting progressively louder. :devil:

http://www.nandahome.com/

I agree with the person that said find a work out you love. I started bootcamp over two years ago in the summer when Im off of work. I became addicted and when work started back in the fall I started going to a 5am class. I absolutely love the class, it gets my day going and I really enjoy getting home after work and having my workout behind me. I do go to bed very early every night since I get up at 4am every morning,and my social life has suffered a little, but the benefits far outweigh that! I am stronger than I've ever been, have met so many wonderful people who are crazy enough to get up and kick butt at 5AM!

Bump for reading later.