Best time to exercise??

mcloud1977
mcloud1977 Posts: 22 Member
edited November 16 in Fitness and Exercise
would you say morning before work, straight after work or evening before dinner or evening after dinner??

I feel like I work out before dinner does me nothing as I get full up with dinner and if I do it after I'm too tired
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Replies

  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    Whatever time works best for you. There isn't a golden hour of exercise.
  • LovelyIvy466
    LovelyIvy466 Posts: 387 Member
    Whenever you can make yourself. When I'm really busy I do it at night because that's the only time I have. It's very hard to make yourself get up and exercise after a full day, but I make fitness a priority, so I do it.
  • mcloud1977
    mcloud1977 Posts: 22 Member
    I start work early so struggle to get up even earlier and by the evening time comes in shattered
  • LovelyIvy466
    LovelyIvy466 Posts: 387 Member
    I have TRIED to get up super early to work out, and I can't do it. The few times I did, I was in such a pissy mood for the rest of the day that everyone agreed it wasn't worth it, lol. I find that exercises that are in a class setting are best for after work hours. I can motivate myself easier if following someone else's lead. It's a lot harder if I'm working out at home.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    whenever you feel like it and can do your best work. There is no "best" time.
  • mcloud1977
    mcloud1977 Posts: 22 Member
    Sometimes I don't feel like working out but after I do workout I feel great
  • Rocketqueeen
    Rocketqueeen Posts: 96 Member
    Definitely whatever works for you and your schedule. I used to have a different job and would exercise right after work, before dinner. I wouldn't be as hungry after exercising so I would eat less after. Since switching jobs, I get home at 9pm. There is NO WAY that I am going to work out and then have dinner at 10/11pm. Now I get up early and do it before work. So it really is up to how you can fit it in.
  • mcloud1977
    mcloud1977 Posts: 22 Member
    Definitely whatever works for you and your schedule. I used to have a different job and would exercise right after work, before dinner. I wouldn't be as hungry after exercising so I would eat less after. Since switching jobs, I get home at 9pm. There is NO WAY that I am going to work out and then have dinner at 10/11pm. Now I get up early and do it before work. So it really is up to how you can fit it in.

    I'm going to try and get up before work at 4 am and then work out, it will be hard as I need to motivate myself and that's hard :)
  • slideaway1
    slideaway1 Posts: 1,006 Member
    Best time to exercise??

    3.22 pm any other time and your just wasting your time. ;)
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
    It's best to lift weights at 11:20am but only on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. It's best to do cardio between 5:30pm and 7:30pm in the evening.
  • belgerian
    belgerian Posts: 1,059 Member
    For me I go for my run during my lunch hour at work, work in a college town nice parks with nice walking/running/biking paths. Sometimes I will hit the gym on my way home after work. But realistically anytime you can work it in your schedule.
  • slideaway1
    slideaway1 Posts: 1,006 Member
    I used to be flexible......but now I cant do Tuesdays !! :D
  • mcloud1977
    mcloud1977 Posts: 22 Member
    Hornsby wrote: »
    It's best to lift weights at 11:20am but only on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. It's best to do cardio between 5:30pm and 7:30pm in the evening.

    Noted thanks
  • mcloud1977
    mcloud1977 Posts: 22 Member
    belgerian wrote: »
    For me I go for my run during my lunch hour at work, work in a college town nice parks with nice walking/running/biking paths. Sometimes I will hit the gym on my way home after work. But realistically anytime you can work it in your schedule.

    I've just started running on my lunch last week so hope that helps too
  • jrline
    jrline Posts: 2,353 Member
    edited April 2015
    whenever you can fit it in to your day
  • isulo_kura
    isulo_kura Posts: 818 Member
    For me 5am as then I don't have all day to make excuses. As others have said what ever fits around your life
  • am1llion
    am1llion Posts: 3 Member
    An early workout makes me feel energized all day. In the evening I prefer the buddy system where I meet up with a friend for a walk or take a class. When I roll solo, I tend to work out very late if it's the gym - when it's less crowded.
  • slideaway1
    slideaway1 Posts: 1,006 Member
    I once tried to work out at 4.55 but something didn't feel right. I left it five minutes and had the best work out of my life. True Story. ;)
  • 2essie
    2essie Posts: 2,861 Member
    I do it first thing in the morning before the rest of the day gets in the way. That way I know it is done and nothing is going to stop me like 'Life'. Lol
  • Justygirl77
    Justygirl77 Posts: 385 Member
    mcloud1977 wrote: »
    would you say morning before work, straight after work or evening before dinner or evening after dinner??

    I feel like I work out before dinner does me nothing as I get full up with dinner and if I do it after I'm too tired
    In the morning for me, to get a metabolic burn going. Then again in the afternoon/evening to keep a burn going. Right now, it's mainly walking for 60min, with some biking, and I'm trying to restart lifting after a month off! Well, I've lost 10.5lbs in under 4 weeks.
    People's schedules differ so much, you just have to pick YOUR best time, and have some fun with it.
  • ladybarometer
    ladybarometer Posts: 205 Member
    I like working out in the morning, because I don't have to worry about it after work that way. It does require me to get to the gym at 5:30am, but once I'm finished I feel good and energetic for the day. I don't always feel like working out after work, and a lot of times things will pop up that prevent me from doing so.
  • cjenkins91
    cjenkins91 Posts: 92 Member
    I prefer going to the gym first thing in the morning before work, that means I wake up at 4:30 am M-F , yeah it's early but it has a lot of benefits. Main ones being that it's done early and I don't have to worry about it the rest of the day and another is that I am usually the only one in the gym - which is great. Also, it makes it so that nothing else gets in my way the rest of the day.
  • Dovekat
    Dovekat Posts: 263 Member
    On a late shift (14:30 - 21:30) I go before work normally in the morning. On an early shift (07:30 - 14:30) I go about an hour maybe two after I finish.
  • MonkeyMel21
    MonkeyMel21 Posts: 2,396 Member
    Personally, if I don't work out in the morning, then it will not happen. I have to be to work at 7 am so I wake up at 4:45, get everything ready and leave the house about 5:15. I get to the gym about 5:45 and work out till 6:20 then head to the locker room. When I work out on the weekends (which isn't every weekend) I go whenever the daycare is open at the gym. So, 8:30 am-1pm on Saturdays, and 1pm-5pm on Sundays.
  • dolliesdaughter
    dolliesdaughter Posts: 544 Member
    edited April 2015
    The best to exercise is when you do it. As long as you give 100% the time of day does not matter. I use to feel bad that I couldn't get up with the chickens to workout. I only worked out after work; until a friend of mine told me that she admires that after working an 8 hour work day I can go workout after work. I have been doing it since Jun 2011 and lost 100+ pounds.
  • UncreativeMe123
    UncreativeMe123 Posts: 52 Member
    For me it really depends on the activity. Yoga in the morning upon waking is a must, and I know I won't get it done any other time. Cardio has to be early as possible in the afternoon (2pm ideally, but if I was working now, I'd go RIGHT after work, otherwise it interferes with my sleep). Now regarding sleep, once I am working, I could probably pull off swimming in the evening (let's say 7:30 or 8pm), since it doesn't amp me up as much as other cardio. So basically, just try to figure out how different exercises affect you, and then fit it in your schedule based on your needs.
  • winram11
    winram11 Posts: 12 Member
    As stated before, there's no golden hour that's good for exercise. ANY exercise is better than NO exercise, so anything you do, at any time, is good.

    The real struggle is to find some time that works for your personal schedule. For example, if you're not an early riser, the idea of waking up early to squeeze in some exercise has a lower chance of long term success because it really doesn't fit your lifestyle. It's easy to make excuses for things that don't fit naturally. So if you start down this path, make it a time of day that has longevity first.

    As a personal example, thanks to work and kids, the only time I could really exercise was after 8pm. The "common wisdom" out there was that late-night exercise is bad because exercise in general tends to boost people awake. I've not found that to be true at all, at least that I can be asleep within 90 minutes of being done. And to the points above, late night is great at the gym when it's less crowded. If you get tired after dinner, and that's a good time for you, you might want to consider what you're eating - a low mix of protein/carbs can drop your energy level considerably, so there's opportunity there.

    Also when you do exercise, minimum of 30 minutes and something that doesn't kill you is best. There's always more difficult, but you should feel like you made an effort at the end. Sweat is success! I started with 1 mile of walking at a slow pace, now I'm up to 3.5 miles of walking at a 6+% incline, most days. It's all about heart rate and difficulty.

    All those points above should give you a plan for how and when you want to tackle this. Hope it helps.
  • AgentOrangeJuice
    AgentOrangeJuice Posts: 1,069 Member
    And on the reverse side of this, as in Calories in, it doesn't matter what time of day you eat.
  • dieselbyte
    dieselbyte Posts: 733 Member
    Hornsby wrote: »
    It's best to lift weights at 11:20am but only on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. It's best to do cardio between 5:30pm and 7:30pm in the evening.

    So true. I've started lifting at 11:30 instead of 11:20 and haven't had any gains for months...
  • Reneesjourney2bfit
    Reneesjourney2bfit Posts: 32 Member
    I worked out once in the morning and I realized I can't do morning workouts, for some reason I get extremely sick. Maybe, I pushed myself too hard that day or something (normally workout 60-90+ mins) but, after I left that day I felt sick at my stomach all day long...and it was the normal stuff I do every day. So, I just stick to my evening and night workouts, never have a problem. I guess, that was my bodies way of telling me, keep you butt in bed and get more sleep. lol
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