Exercising before or after work?

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Replies

  • jim_golfer
    jim_golfer Posts: 4 Member
    Morning for me and get it done early.
    Gym @7am, start work 8:30 am..... (Gym I use is absolutely rammed in evening).
  • Tedebearduff
    Tedebearduff Posts: 1,155 Member
    ArtsieSarah wrote: »
    Hey all,

    Recently my schedule has changed and it's been hard trying to figure out what's a good time to exercise. I used to have an hour lunch break and I'd exercise at that time which was a perfect way to beat afternoon grogginess. I literally had nothing else to do with that free hour!

    I don't have that long lunch break anymore and I need to figure out if I should work out before or after work. I seem to be tired either way. I'm not a morning person, I can barely get up for work as it is, and then I'm beat after work and I just want to wind down and have dinner! What is everyone else's routine?? I feel like I have to choose between 2 not-so-hot options.

    Being a morning person, is just a term that ppl use it's not a real thing (IMO). If you want to workout early just go to bed earlier and wake up earlier, you adjust your sleep schedule so if you require 8hrs of sleep to feel good go to bed at 8PM and then wake up at 4AM and then go workout before work. You adjust it, more or less.

    If you find yourself super tired everyday as mentioned above go to bed earlier is all. As for when to workout the morning is usually allot slower then any other time at the gym from my experience, second slowest time is around 1:00 in the afternoon until about 3:00. After 5:00 is "no thank you" for me it's just to busy, but clears back out around 8:30
  • mtaratoot
    mtaratoot Posts: 14,244 Member
    If left to its own, my body would prefer to sleep from about midnight to about 08:00. This creates a challenge for me four days per week when I have an appointment at 07:00 with my desk. My gym opens at 05:00, but it's not likely I'll take advantage of that. Gym employees tell me that's when it's actually most crowded, especially the pool.

    I like to go when I don't have to rush. I have three-day weekends, so I try to go mid-day on Mondays when it's really not crowded. That means it's also best if I go Saturday. It's also a less busy day. I try to go one or two evenings after work each week, but if I only get in two or three times in a week, it's fine. My gym isn't convenient, and we have some equipment at work, including some nice new machines. I can get some cardio at work on my half-hour lunch or quickly after work. I still like to hit my gym because I also can get in a swim and a steam. These are my little treats, and that's why I even BOTHER with a gym now that we have all the equipment at work.

    There's some evolutionary advantage to having a tribe where people's circadian rhythms aren't all the same. If everyone slept at the same time, there would be more time when the clan/tribe would not have eyes watching and could suffer attack from an animal or another clan. With some early birds and some night owls, there's fewer hours when the tribe is unprotected. Somewhere along the line, our culture has given more value to early birds. People who's clocks run later are often viewed as lazy. It's not true. It's just different biology.
  • katsheare
    katsheare Posts: 1,025 Member
    For me the day starts right if I'm up by 6 and either running or bodyweight exercising by 6:10. Have to get the family up and started by 7, and bedtime can last as late as 9, so if I want any time with my partner I only have the mornings.

    The trick to starting early is ending the previous day early. It all cascades.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    I'm a morning person, and I always feel energised and ready to take on the day after my morning workout.
    Whatever time would work best for YOU is the answer, when is it most convenient? which time is likely to be more sustainable?
  • fittodress2018
    fittodress2018 Posts: 23 Member
    I tried doing the afternoon workouts and in many ways after a day of work you always seem to find an excuse not to completed. I start my work shift in a hospital at 6:30 am, so now I am waking up at 3:30 am and working out atleast 1 hour daily doing cardio on my elliptical. I lost more than 50 pounds 2 years ago and I have put some weight on I blame it a lot on stress.. but here I am at it strong 💪🏼
  • MarvinsFitLife
    MarvinsFitLife Posts: 874 Member
    Go to bed at 8pm up 4am give yourself some time to get in the rhythm...morning workouts are the best
  • Sarah412elizabeth
    Sarah412elizabeth Posts: 5 Member
    edited December 2019
    I’m a morning person, usually getting up at 4:00 to workout before the day starts, but recently started working at 5:00 am - so I’m trying to convert to an after work exerciser. It’s so tough. I just want to relax in the evenings!
  • Aermorgen
    Aermorgen Posts: 10 Member
    For me, before work and before the rest of the family gets up is best. I have 1.5 hours between 5 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. that I look at as "mine." It's too early in the day for my job to expect me to be working on things and nobody else is awake to distract or have needs for me to take care of. Later in the day-- anything can happen. A work crisis can come up, or a 1-hour meeting can run 2 hours and push the rest of the work day longer. Someone can get sick and be sent home from school. Even enjoyable everyday interactions can interfere: my husband wanting to talk about something he's doing, or me wanting to just hang out with the family once we're all home.

    For me, planning to exercise early in the morning means that it gets done, and nothing that occurs later in the day can take it away. It's the easiest time for me to protect and keep consistent. The drawback to the schedule is that I'm usually ready to drop by 9:45 p.m., an hour that would have seemed obscenely early pre-kids.
  • notmyachillesheel8
    notmyachillesheel8 Posts: 285 Member
    I far prefer before work. Just have to get up early but it’s worth it
  • amy19355
    amy19355 Posts: 805 Member
    If I can't get to the gym, then I like to break my workout into short sessions of 15 minutes because it's easier to find 15 free minutes a couple times a day. It's harder to find a 30 minute chunk of time, for me.

    I chose a gym near to my office, and am fortunate to have a long enough lunch time that I can get there 2x a week to work with a trainer. I really like the mid-day workout time slot the best; it's something to look forward to (leaving the office) and is followed by a nice sense of self-satisfaction.

    I've got a nice bodyweight workout I do at home, sometimes as 3 x 10 minute sessions, or other times as 2 x 15 minute sessions, and rarely as a 1 x 30 minute session.

    good luck to you!
  • lcatalan93
    lcatalan93 Posts: 45 Member
    I workout after work if you feel like if you go home and then dont have any energy. I would pack your workout outfit change at work before you leave and then head to the gym maybe have a protein bar for energy? I usually do this and it helps me sleep better since I to am not a morning person. xD
  • zoom789
    zoom789 Posts: 7 Member
    The best choice for you is the one you can do consistently. Don't mind getting up early? Go in the morning. But if you think 5 am is a good time to go to bed, early morning workouts may not be your cup of tea.

    You know your schedule better than we do. Figure out what you can do regularly without your work/family/body objecting too much and make it a habit.
  • invaderbree
    invaderbree Posts: 27 Member
    Before for me. By the end of the day I have no energy and would likely skip it. Great start to my morning 🌞
  • Expat75
    Expat75 Posts: 4 Member
    I’m a morning person and cannot motivate to go after work, but where I live (France) gyms don’t even open until 8, a few at 7:30. (Not really a 24/7 culture here.) So I bit the bullet and bought an elliptical bike for my apartment - at a minimum, I can do 15-20 minutes on that before my shower and I’ve done at least something. On a great morning, I’ll do 30-45 minutes elliptical plus some strength work, squats abs etc, on a mat, and really feel I’ve put in a good session. Gyms now are for weekends, and the rare evening when I can motivate to do a class or something. You can adapt a routine that works for you (and btw a floor workout at home can be every bit as solid as a weights session if you really need it to be!)
  • jlhalley7835
    jlhalley7835 Posts: 188 Member
    For me I always go before. If I wait until after It’s tremendously harder to give the type of effort I need to give to make the workout worth while. I get to the gym bw 4:30 and 5 am and workout until 6 am and head to work immediate following. It gives a good boost of energy throughout the day, and I don’t have problems falling asleep like I did when I was working out at 6 pm.
  • gillianlsteele
    gillianlsteele Posts: 6 Member
    I have to admit I usually train in the mornings at 5am, and on cardio days I train twice a day 5am and 5pm. I find when I train in the morning I'm alot more alert in the day and I find my mound is better and I'm also sleeping alot better
  • DanyellMcGinnis
    DanyellMcGinnis Posts: 315 Member
    I do yoga for a half hour in the morning, really helps me work some of the stiffness out. But then I do cardio and weights in the evening, just so I have time. Otherwise I'd be getting in to the office at like 11 AM and staying until 8 PM or something and that won't work for me.

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