Advice on Getting Up for AM Workouts?!?

I do my workouts in the afternoon, mostly. Unless it's summer and the afternoon temps are 100°+ and then my motivation is that if I don't get my run in before the sun is truly up I won't be able to run at all except on the treadmill and I hate the treadmill.

It takes great motivation to do early morning workouts, I have a busy lifestyle and find myself in the gym at 4:30am. You've got to want to do it early, if you set out your training gear the evening before your more likely to get up. Give yourself achievable targets, even if it's as simple as 'x' amount of time in the gym or even 'x' of treadmill or lifting etc. Targets are a good insensible.
Why do you want to train am? If you don't mind me asking? There is a saying that goes ' I don't have time to train, I make time'.

Going to bed earlier... and making the sun come up earlier!

I cannot get up if it's still dark except for the fear of getting fired. So... I'm not help!

Some people suggesting things like this to me:

1) Don't let yourself hit snooze, tell yourself you either get up and do it before work or you're going to be late for work
2) Put your workout gear right by the door the night before so you can throw it on and go - or sleep in the gear

I forgot the rest haha, but if I think of more I'll come back.

1.) first you have to make the decision to DO it. Take away the option to not do it. Sort of like showering and brushing your teeth daily. You just do it - it isn't a decision you make, because you don't give yourself the option to NOT brush your teeth or shower.
2.) get to bed early. If you are getting enough sleep, it is easier to get up in the morning.
3.) get your stuff set out ahead of time. On Sunday, I lay out all my work out clothes for the week. The night before, I get my work clothes packed up (I go to the gym at work.) and my lunch packed, etc. I can't have anything left to give me an excuse in the morning.
4.) try not to hit snooze. Snooze is the devil.

I only do it on rare occasions, but I never regret it. It's nice to have it out of the way and knowing I can come home from work and do nothing. My mornings are pretty busy, so it doesn't happen often.

When it HAS happened, I was prepared. Clothes were out the night before and I knew exactly what my workout was going to be. Without a plan, it's easy to talk yourself out of it.

tazduffy wrote: »

I had to buy an actual alarm clock and set it across the room (I would just push snooze on my phone and go back to sleep)

I'm naughty and will still get up and turn off the alarm and go back to bed!

Getting enough sleep is crucial. If I've gotten enough sleep, I'll find myself waking up about 15 minutes before my alarm even. If not, there's no dragging me out of bed.

Program the coffeemaker before going to bed, set out your gear, and go! I will get up, get my cup of coffee and then sip it while I slowly get dressed (a process when you're running in 20 degrees)—that helps me clear up any brain fog. I also find that brushing my teeth first thing or drinking a glass of water immediately upon waking helps refresh me and gives me a little wake-up jolt!

I'm normally an evening gym/runner-type, so one of my New Year's goals was to shoot for running at least two mornings a week. Runner's World made the good point that just two mornings per week is easier to stomach when you know you have five other mornings to snooze.

I am not a morning person. But my life is so hectic that if I don't get the workout done in the morning, I may not be able to fit it in that day. I put my clothes right by the bed. I do my best not to even think when the clock goes off. If I think, I'll snooze just 5 more minutes and then it goes downhill from there (Snooze IS the devil). I just sit up and change. I don't even go to the bathroom until after I am dressed and ready to workout. Then to the bathroom and straight to the elliptical.

For me, I know if I don't workout in the morning, I'm just not going to do it at all. No matter how many times I tell myself that I will workout when I get off work, it rarely happens. Then I get upset with myself for not working out. So I just get up at 4:30 and do it...

F1tnessCh1ck wrote: »

I started doing challenges and I would be accountable in fitness groups. If I didn't do my workout in the morning, I would be exhausted and not be able to complete it after work - I'm like a walking zombie after work. So, I started getting up at 6 for 30 day shred and 21 day fix, then 5:30 for Insanity and now I'm up at 5:50 every morning for Insanity Max 30. Just find accountability somewhere - somewhere you don't want to be seen failing and you'll be motivated to show up, lace up and get it done!

Maybe this is why I can't do it. I have to get up at 5:45 just to get to work on time. I'd have to get up at 4:15 or 4:30 if I wanted to go to the gym.

cheekyraspberry wrote: »

martinmcneely1 wrote: »

It takes great motivation to do early morning workouts, I have a busy lifestyle and find myself in the gym at 4:30am. You've got to want to do it early, if you set out your training gear the evening before your more likely to get up. Give yourself achievable targets, even if it's as simple as 'x' amount of time in the gym or even 'x' of treadmill or lifting etc. Targets are a good insensible.
Why do you want to train am? If you don't mind me asking? There is a saying that goes ' I don't have time to train, I make time'.

My job often keeps me busy in the evenings with networking events or meetings. My evening schedule is often just too unpredictable to work it in regularly. Also, I have a dog. In the warmer months, I was taking him for a run with me, but now it's just too cold. I feel bad leaving him all day and all evening!

I know that the best way to work in regular exercise is to do it in the AM, but just having a rough time with it so far.

You do know you don't need to work out to lose weight, right? Frankly, sleep is much more important than exercise for weight loss. If the timing just isn't working for you focus on the diet aspect of it for awhile. When you're ready to make fitness a priority you'll find the time to fit it in to your day.

I read an article somewhere, and it first it seemed very silly, but I think it's accurate. A lot of getting up in the morning is muscle memory. Your brain isn't fully engaged yet. So practice your muscle memory. Move your alarm clock across the room. One evening, when you are in your pajamas and all ready for bed, try setting the alarm for 1-2 minutes from that point in time, and lie down. Get up and turn off your alarm clock. Set it again, lie back down, and try it again. Whatever you would normally do after you turn off your clock (go to the bathroom), pretend to do that. It will become like clockwork - I get up, I press this button here, and then I go to the bathroom.

I know it sounds very weird, but it really has helped me. The practicing kinda retrained my brain. Every now and then, I start having problems getting up in the AM, so I have 're-rehearse'.

cheekyraspberry wrote: »

You do know you don't need to work out to lose weight, right? Frankly, sleep is much more important than exercise for weight loss. If the timing just isn't working for you focus on the diet aspect of it for awhile. When you're ready to make fitness a priority you'll find the time to fit it in to your day.

I know, but I have fallen off the wagon as far as exercise and I always feel better when I am regularly getting exercise in.

Then there's your motivation.

It helps to practice the 5 p's: Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance.
Basically, I get everything ready the night before - lay out my gym clothes, my work clothes, and anything else I need to get ready for the next day (i.e. hair dryer, flat iron, towel), so that all I need to do it roll out of bed, eat a quick breakfast and go. After my wo, it is back home to quickly shower, hair, makeup, etc. and catch my bus to the train station and the train to get to the office. After doing it for awhile, it becomes a habit and you start to REALLY enjoy/value having your evenings free.

I do laundry and meal prep on the weekend so that I am not scrambling around during the week. I bring most of my food for the week with me on Mondays so I have less to carry the other mornings.

Wow, that was probably TMI. Sorry.