which is the best workout time? morning or everning?

har114
har114 Posts: 10
edited September 22 in Fitness and Exercise
For Burning calories, which is the best workout time? morning or evening? thanks

Replies

  • secostley
    secostley Posts: 409 Member
    You would think that running a mile in the morning or evening at the same pace and time theorectically costs the same amount of calories. However, from my research, working out in the mornings burns more calories when you look at it from the standpoint of:

    1. Getting a workout in in the morning before you eat
    2. Burning up calories at a higher level throughout the day as an after-effect of the morning workout (i.e. increased metabolism)

    I personally experience greater weight loss when I switched my workout times to the morning.

    Would like to hear some others' thoughts on the issue.

    Shawn
  • NightOwl1
    NightOwl1 Posts: 881 Member
    Workout whatever time fits better in your schedule.
  • har114
    har114 Posts: 10
    You would think that running a mile in the morning or evening at the same pace and time theorectically costs the same amount of calories. However, from my research, working out in the mornings burns more calories when you look at it from the standpoint of:

    1. Getting a workout in in the morning before you eat
    2. Burning up calories at a higher level throughout the day as an after-effect of the morning workout (i.e. increased metabolism)

    I personally experience greater weight loss when I switched my workout times to the morning.

    Would like to hear some others' thoughts on the issue.

    Shawn


    thanks shawn, thanks for calorie burning after effect info..nice to know that..it was very big help :D
  • colochel
    colochel Posts: 263 Member
    I read today that between 5-7pm your energy level is at its highest. But it makes sense that if you workout in the mornings you will continue to burn more calories throughout your day.

    I've also heard it's beneficial to split workouts throughout the day. Half a workout in the am, half in the pm.

    Good luck!
  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
    I had this question a long time ago...before joining MFP...and this is basically what I found out:

    There are pros for both morning and evening...and after reading gobs of articles (peer-reviewed scientific articles, not in grocery store mags) the conclusion is still inconclusive as to which is "best."

    So if after years and years of countless hours of research science has pinpointed what's best for everyone, then I believe the answer must be this:

    Just workout whenever YOU can. Whatever works best for you is going to give you the best results because you will do it. :flowerforyou:
  • mkirby
    mkirby Posts: 30 Member
    I find if i cycle to work in the morning (fasted) then i dont need to eat as soon as if i had got the bus in. It does make me drowsy during the day though.

    For that reason i prefer to workout in the evening, i find it helps get rid of any agro developed during the day.
  • CarolHudson11
    CarolHudson11 Posts: 372
    I don't know which one is exactly better for burning calories, but I feel like I'm more motivated to do it in the evenings. I have to get up at 5:30 every morning anyway....any earlier is almost impossible for me. If I plan a workout in the morning, I find that half the time I don't get it in b/c I love the snooze button. If I plan one in the evening, I always do it unless there is some kind of family/work thing I can't get out of. Do what's best for you - as long as you're working out, I think it's all good! :)
  • rawdefault
    rawdefault Posts: 66
    Studies have shown that exercising in the morning (before breakfast, but allowing a small snack for energy if need be) is the most effective time to workout.
    I literally read a study on this only weeks ago- if only I could remember the link so I could post it here!
    It's also good to exercise again later in the day - even for 10 or 15 mins - as getting your heart rate up again is great.
  • LadyBarb
    LadyBarb Posts: 116
    I have try both morning, afternoon and evenings. Morning workouts are great, you get it done and you can do something esle during lunch time. Like a walk, or another gym workout. I have recently change it back to lunch time,. One the classes that I want are during noon time and it helping me to get back to where I was. I'm doing this until I feel I will not missed any more gym time and return back to morning or just get it at noon. Evening times, are hard, I want to rest, but need to get the family together and I had a 2nd job at home as well. Bottomline, what ever will work for you, just do it,
    Barb
  • Fancy_Nancy2
    Fancy_Nancy2 Posts: 545 Member
    Both me and my hubby works out so what we do is I workout in the morning (I need to be home by the time he ready to go to work) and he works out at about 7:30 - 8:00 pm. Now am I a morning person heck no but this is what works best for our family since we don't want to hire a sitter and our gym has no child care:(. So bottom line do what works best for you and situation.
  • iplayoutside19
    iplayoutside19 Posts: 2,304 Member
    Work out when it fits into yoru schedule.

    I've read the studies on this. They were done in a controlled enviorment over a specific situation...none of which are real life. Unless you are a professional athlete....the difference in calorie burning is negliagible.
  • brockenbach
    brockenbach Posts: 1
    Morning! Here is a link to a great article that was sent to me by my bootcamp instructor. Very interesting.

    http://fitness.mercola.com/sites/fitness/archive/2011/01/04/the-benefits-of-exercising-before-breakfast.aspx?aid=CD945
  • emmyvera
    emmyvera Posts: 599 Member
    morning: one of my friends who is a fitness trainer/coach and speaker said that is the best time for calorie burn and helps with metabolism.

    however, i do it in the evening...... i have a VERY hard time getting up to workout in the morning when it is dark outside. i will try again when the sun starts rising earlier :smile:
  • kjensen15
    kjensen15 Posts: 398 Member
    For me I have found that if I do an hour of cardio in the mornings and weight lifting after work I have the best results for my body. It also helps me b/c I HATE cardio so I can get that out of the way first thing in the morning then I don't dread going to the gym after work b/c I know I only have about 45min to an hour of work to do between warming up and lifting. I would love to be able to get it all done in the morning but that would mean I would have to get up about 4:30! That isn't going to happen!

    I really do think its just whatever you feel works best for you and fits into your schedule. The most important thing is that you do excercise!
  • JennaK
    JennaK Posts: 43 Member
    I think it depends on the person. Personally, for me, in the mornings I don't push myself hard as I do in the evenings because (a) I usually had to wake myself up earlier and am tired and (b) if I haven't eaten, I don't really have the energy to push through it.
  • shreddingit
    shreddingit Posts: 1,133 Member
    dont be fooled by working out in the morning bfore you eat, you need to eat 90 minutes before a workout...your not doing your body good by working out on an empty stomach....I workout at 9pm and finish at 11:30 pm and have been seeing the best results ever!
  • whaggwood
    whaggwood Posts: 11 Member
    This is an article on the subject that makes sense.

    http://www.intense-workout.com/cardio.html
  • ropedancer
    ropedancer Posts: 115
    I think it's different for everyone, but here's what works for me.

    I can't eat first thing in the morning (makes me sick), so what I've been doing is working out before breakfast. As I don't have to be on the road until 9AM at the latest, this typically does not require me to wake up too early. When I work out in the morning, I feel it helps me wake up and gives me more energy for the day.

    Sometimes don't work out in the morning. This is typically due to not sleeping well the night before, and wanting to make up some of that sleep in the morning. In this case, I typically work out later afternoon (before dinner). I find this can also work well, but I feel "flabbier" throughout the day as a result. It's kind of a strange feeling.

    Hope you find a time that works for you :)
  • clover27357
    clover27357 Posts: 19
    I used to work out in the evenings because thats when I felt most alert. However, I weigh myself before my workout "Wii Body Test" and everyone knows you weigh the least in the morning, so I started working out about 2 hours after having breakfast. Right away, I noticed consistant improvement in my balance. I always eat after a workout, so morning routines don't leave me feeling guilty about eating late at night.

    Basically, the morning meal is your break from fasting all night. I don't think it'd be too safe to keep fasting while working out and then break it just so you can digest it better. If I were you, and Im no dietitian, I'd pick before lunch or a few hours after breakfast to exercise.
  • LisaZaugg1976
    LisaZaugg1976 Posts: 1,144 Member
    I workout in the morning it works with my day better :) and I feel good for the rest of the day :)
  • heathersmilez
    heathersmilez Posts: 2,579 Member
    I had this question a long time ago...before joining MFP...and this is basically what I found out:

    There are pros for both morning and evening...and after reading gobs of articles (peer-reviewed scientific articles, not in grocery store mags) the conclusion is still inconclusive as to which is "best."

    So if after years and years of countless hours of research science has pinpointed what's best for everyone, then I believe the answer must be this:

    Just workout whenever YOU can. Whatever works best for you is going to give you the best results because you will do it. :flowerforyou:

    Agreed. The best time is the time that works for you. Any sort of increased burn from doing it in the morning is minimal. Its all calories in and calories out. I’ve worked out in the evenings (other than weekends, I work out at like 10:00 am) for the past 5 years.
  • JillyBean819
    JillyBean819 Posts: 313 Member
    The only workout I get in the morning is waking to my alarm, moaning/yelling at my alarm, and slamming my fist on the 'snooze' button. I'm sure that burns roughly about 10 calories.

    I am NOT a morning person so the thought of waking earlier than I need to in order to get sweaty and active is just not my cup of tea. I find that evening workouts are best for me. I guess it's just good to get it in whenever you can.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    For Burning calories, which is the best workout time? morning or evening? thanks

    Yes.
  • mariabee
    mariabee Posts: 212 Member
    For Burning calories, which is the best workout time? morning or evening? thanks

    Yes.

    Exactly!
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    Morning! Here is a link to a great article that was sent to me by my bootcamp instructor. Very interesting.

    http://fitness.mercola.com/sites/fitness/archive/2011/01/04/the-benefits-of-exercising-before-breakfast.aspx?aid=CD945

    Keep in mind that this was a very short term study done under unusual feeding conditions. One of the biggest mistakes that "fitness experts" make is that they tend to inappropriately generalize the results of a narrow study to the population as a whole or to project an isolated physiologic occurrence into an unproven "cause and effect" relationship. This study was interesting but hardly conclusive.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    This is an article on the subject that makes sense.

    http://www.intense-workout.com/cardio.html

    Unfortunately, what "makes sense" is often--as it is in this case--contradicted by the actual facts.

    All too often people regard an exercise workout as though it is some hermeticallly-sealed isolated event, unrelated to anything else we do during the day. Our metabolism is a dynamic process and everything we do throughout the day, week, year, etc, is interrelated. The changes that occur during a workout are just transient responses to the demands of the activity--they are not permanent.

    For example, people often place a great deal of importance on the "fat burning" quality of a workout. Yet, research has shown pretty conclusively that the body responds to the amount of fat burned during a workout (which is a trivial amount to begin with) by regulating fat oxidation the rest of the time after the workout. If the workout burns a higher amount of fat, the body burns less the rest of the day, and vice versa. At the end of 24 hours, the total amount of fat burned is the same, whether you burned more fat or more carbs during exercise.
  • markymarrkk
    markymarrkk Posts: 495 Member
    This is an article on the subject that makes sense.

    http://www.intense-workout.com/cardio.html

    Unfortunately, what "makes sense" is often--as it is in this case--contradicted by the actual facts.

    All too often people regard an exercise workout as though it is some hermeticallly-sealed isolated event, unrelated to anything else we do during the day. Our metabolism is a dynamic process and everything we do throughout the day, week, year, etc, is interrelated. The changes that occur during a workout are just transient responses to the demands of the activity--they are not permanent.

    For example, people often place a great deal of importance on the "fat burning" quality of a workout. Yet, research has shown pretty conclusively that the body responds to the amount of fat burned during a workout (which is a trivial amount to begin with) by regulating fat oxidation the rest of the time after the workout. If the workout burns a higher amount of fat, the body burns less the rest of the day, and vice versa. At the end of 24 hours, the total amount of fat burned is the same, whether you burned more fat or more carbs during exercise.


    Very well said! and it makes me feel better about what I'm doing in the gym!! I wish MFP would give me calorie points for the Weight lifting I do
  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
    For Burning calories, which is the best workout time? morning or evening? thanks

    Yes.

    :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

    True but funny to read, nonetheless.
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