Morning workouts?

Okay so normally after work I would go workout... if I felt like it. Most of the time I would go. However the last few weeks I have switched to morning workouts. Never would I have thought that I would be okay with getting up at 4:45 or 5am every morning but I have to say it’s been awesome. I go to the gym knock out my hour shower and go to work. Sometimes I’m so proud I go back to the gym that evening and helps me kee food choices in check so I don’t undo the work I did that morning. What’s everybody’s preference? Anybody switch from evening to morning or morning to evening?

Replies

  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
    Depending on where I am in a training cycle I'll have a lot of days with both morning & evening workouts. I am much more consistent with my morning workouts. I find getting out for a run or a swim or rowing first thing in the morning is just a great way to start the day.
  • 2011rocket3touring
    2011rocket3touring Posts: 1,346 Member
    I switched to mornings. Exercising in the evening made it difficult to sleep.
  • Ironandwine69
    Ironandwine69 Posts: 2,432 Member
    5.30am gym is my favorite. Has been for years.
  • wittsabouther
    wittsabouther Posts: 26 Member
    edited November 2017
    That is true. It’s so much easier to sleep now when I workout in the morning.
    I switched to mornings. Exercising in the evening made it difficult to sleep.

  • LiftHeavyThings27105
    LiftHeavyThings27105 Posts: 2,086 Member
    I work out better in the morning, all things being equal.

    However, now that I am doing the 16/8 Intermittent fasting (from 7PM til 11AM) that does not work so well. So, I go at lunch (the luxory if the gym being right down the street from the office).

    Going after work (I work until 6PM most days) puts me in the gym with the rest of the world. High chance of the squat rack being used.

    So, I go at lunch (1PM). Very few people in there at that time. All the better for me.

    I time my carbs pretty well. Well, still working that out. More than 90 minutes before work out and I suffer. Anyway...

    Find out what works best for you....and the only way to do that is to experiment with things.
  • notreallychris
    notreallychris Posts: 501 Member
    I work out at lunch time. Only time I can. Crowd isn't bad. Usually the same peeps in there. Works for me.
  • wittsabouther
    wittsabouther Posts: 26 Member
    I work out at lunch time. Only time I can. Crowd isn't bad. Usually the same peeps in there. Works for me.
    I work out better in the morning, all things being equal.

    However, now that I am doing the 16/8 Intermittent fasting (from 7PM til 11AM) that does not work so well. So, I go at lunch (the luxory if the gym being right down the street from the office).

    Going after work (I work until 6PM most days) puts me in the gym with the rest of the world. High chance of the squat rack being used.

    So, I go at lunch (1PM). Very few people in there at that time. All the better for me.

    I time my carbs pretty well. Well, still working that out. More than 90 minutes before work out and I suffer. Anyway...

    Find out what works best for you....and the only way to do that is to experiment with things.

    I totally see where y’all are coming from with that. If I could do that I probably would but I’m to far from the gym at my work. When we switch buildings in December I’ll be near the work onsite gym so I might have to give a lunch workout a try. Thanks for the input. :).
  • gtrslmmr
    gtrslmmr Posts: 4 Member
    I switched to mornings also, which seems to be working ok for me. I may also add an 'after work' work-out session to supplement my overall plan.
  • DX2JX2
    DX2JX2 Posts: 1,921 Member
    I mainly do mornings for practicality and because I like how accomplished I feel over the course of the day. However, I have found that I can usually 'hit it' harder during evening workouts. That said, the consistency of morning workouts easily overshadows any benefit of incremental effort obtained during an evening workout.
  • mygrl4meee
    mygrl4meee Posts: 943 Member
    my hours on the job vary.. So I started a new gym that gave me better options.. I love it when I can go to the gym then right to work.. Or go right from work to the gym.. I just choose on what fits best with my plans. Downside to morning workout is that I can only do a half hour class.
  • MeechyLA
    MeechyLA Posts: 159 Member
    I run in the mornings, it's a great way to start the day in terms of my mind / body!
  • allaboutthecake
    allaboutthecake Posts: 1,535 Member
    I get in anywhere between 2-5hr morning cycle rides. Time in the saddle keeps me sane.
  • Purplebunnysarah
    Purplebunnysarah Posts: 3,252 Member
    I prefer morning runs but will switch to the afternoon (warmest part of the day) when it is really cold out.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,011 Member
    edited November 2017
    I work out right before dinner most of the time. I am naturally a night owl and am the most productive and energetic from 3 pm to 7 pm.

    I went through a period in my early 30s when everyone was all over me about "successful people get everything done before the sun comes up" stuff. I tried for months to shift my biological clock to be a morning person and it was just torture LOL. I gotta be me :)

    Having said that, I think most people do better working out in the morning, I think it's a great way to set a positive tone for the day. You just have to play around with it and find the right schedule for you.
  • wittsabouther
    wittsabouther Posts: 26 Member
    mygrl4meee wrote: »
    my hours on the job vary.. So I started a new gym that gave me better options.. I love it when I can go to the gym then right to work.. Or go right from work to the gym.. I just choose on what fits best with my plans. Downside to morning workout is that I can only do a half hour class.

    Same for me. In the morning i have one hour and that’s it. Got to be at work.
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  • Pwapwa1983
    Pwapwa1983 Posts: 4 Member
    I love a morning work out its the best . Gives me energy to fuel my body all day and its a great way to start your day
  • Sp1tfire
    Sp1tfire Posts: 1,120 Member
    I like it. It makes the whole day feel productive and healthy and keeps me on track maintaining. Then the rest of the day is mine to do whatever I want!
  • wittsabouther
    wittsabouther Posts: 26 Member
    katadx wrote: »
    I like it. It makes the whole day feel productive and healthy and keeps me on track maintaining. Then the rest of the day is mine to do whatever I want!

    That’s exactly how I felt.
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
    edited November 2017
    the mornings are nice if i make it in early enough - so quiet and there's so much space. what i gain on the space though, i lose on the sense of having unlimited time thanks to knowing that i need to get done soon enough to be somewhere else by x o'clock. i guess it's just a question of whether the walls are pressing on me, i.e. space. or the ceiling, i.e. the time-cap problem.

    i default towards evenings for another reason as well. i can never be sure when i wake up what state my body will be in. if i'm not stiff then it's fine, but if i am then the 'workout' time tends to get wasted on me trying to work that out first. if i start by going to work, that gives me the entire day to assess what kind of shape my body is in. i think that's a rheumatoid arthritis issue, but i have found that i need to take it into consideration or my morning workouts can get me hurt.
  • fishgutzy
    fishgutzy Posts: 2,807 Member
    I only swim after work when I'm in China on business. And that is only because no gym opens at 5am here.
    At home, I'm at the Y at 5am each weekday. Swim 4 miles before work. Nice way to wake up. I love the smell of chlorine in the morning.
  • JellybeansMomFl
    JellybeansMomFl Posts: 16 Member
    edited November 2017
    I go to the gym for 5am and workout about an hour. I come home shower and cook breakfast for the family. After breakfast I go for a walk around 0720 with my 9month old before I head to work.
    I feel more energized for the day. Then in the evening i call my Aunt who lives in a different state and we walk together and talk on the phone. My 9month old is with me and enjoys the scenery.
  • ashharris424
    ashharris424 Posts: 68 Member
    I'm a great excuse maker so afternoon workouts were a struggle. I would be "too tired" or have "too much to do". Waking up at 3:30 in the morning really leaves me no excuse. Once I'm awake, I'm awake so there's no point in trying to go back to bed. I usually hate life until about 10 minutes into the workout but afterward, I feel so much better!
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,626 Member
    if i dont do it in the morning, it aint gonna happen lol
  • rheddmobile
    rheddmobile Posts: 6,840 Member
    I've tried mornings but I just can't. Never been a morning person, and I also use exercise as a way of lowering my blood sugar so working out after meals is better for me. Also, our gym is really crowded between 6 - 8 am.

    Although I do my main workout later, I do a small ten minute routine of gentle stretches and bodyweight before breakfast, which really seems to wake up my body and drop my after breakfast glucose numbers. Used to be around 130 two hours after breakfast, now it's under 100 within an hour. And I eat a big carby oatmeal with apples and dairy breakfast.
  • dutchandkiwi
    dutchandkiwi Posts: 1,389 Member
    For me it strongly depends I do both and work around my schedule to see what fits best.
    During weekdays I have a morning workout of about 30 minutes and day/evening workouts/classes. To me it is a routine and once that is in place I start playing with it to avoid getting bored