Master the Morning Workout

Early bird or night owl by nature, there’s something to be said for the perks of working out in the a.m. hours. Popping out of bed and lacing up your sneakers as the sun rises is not everyone’s cup of tea. But the perks are. Here’s how to master your morning workout and reap the benefits of an early morning endorphin rush.

When I lived in the Boston area I frequented an early-bird spin class that launched into neon-light and coffee fueled madness at 6 am. The transition from the quiet, empty roads of a Boston suburb to the volume-on-max playlist of my workout was an adrenaline rush. I loved it.

I live in rural Vermont now. While I’m many miles and many cow fields away from Boston’s white light spin classes, I still love the feeling of a morning jolted awake by a good sweat session. Especially now that daylight savings time is over and it gets dark by 4:30 pm.

The Perks of a Morning Workout

More Energy

You’ve felt that intense adrenaline rush before – maybe when you have to slam on your breaks when the car in front of you stops, or your friend jumps out from behind a door and your heart leaps out of your chest. That’s because adrenaline is a fight or flight hormone. It’s your body’s way of reacting to a sudden stress. And you probably remember that it took you a while to calm down even after the “stress” was removed.

Exercise at any time of the day signals your body to produce adrenaline. Adrenaline puts you on high alert and prepares you to face whatever comes next. A long time ago, that meant lions and tigers and bears, oh my. These days, the beasts you face are more like tight schedules, deadlines, relationships, and so on. When adrenaline enters your blood stream, you breathe harder, your heart pumps faster and your muscles get ready to move.

Working out in the morning is like a jolt of caffeine without consuming coffee. It wakes you up, pushes the sluggishness out of your bloodstream and energizes you mentally and physically for the day ahead.

Mood Booster

Adrenaline isn’t the only hormone your body pumps out during exercise. Working out stimulates the release of serotonin, the happy hormone, and dopamine. An increase in these happy hormones positively impacts your mood and over all sense of well-being. So working out in the morning not only wakes you up, it wakes you up on the right side of the bed.

*Major bonus: studies show a link between regular exercise, especially in morning sunlight, and relief from symptoms of depression.

Better Sleep

As a follow up to all of that hormone talk, the increase of adrenaline, serotonin and dopamine from physical activity from your morning workout helps to regulate your body’s natural rhythms and sleep cycle. Compounded by the increase of melatonin in the morning, especially when you work out in the morning sunlight, your body naturally regulates it’s sleep cycle.

Healthier Choices Throughout the Day

When you walk out of the gym after a killer workout, do you crave a Whopper immediately? Probably not. Part of that is physiological – blame it on your hormones. But a lot of that is mental, too. You’ve just done something wonderfully good for you body, why not ride that wave?

Exercising first thing in the morning is a healthy way to start your day. Studies show that women who exercise in the morning are less fired up about food. Moreover, because your first choice was a healthy one, you’re more likely to make choices on that same wavelength so as to keep the healthy times rolling.

Metabolic Jolt

When you work out in the morning, your body goes into recovery mode for the rest of the day. A hard work out that increases EPOC, excess post-exercise oxygen consumption, will have your body’s metabolism will continue to burn more calories to recover.

The nutrients from the whole wheat English muffin with eggs and avocado that you have for breakfast post-workout get right to work refueling, rebuilding and making you stronger.

More Likely to Get It Done

When you wake up early to hit the gym, there’s nothing standing in your way. You’re coming off of a full night’s sleep with an open hour with no expectations. Heading right to the gym in the morning hours guarantees that you fit in exercise. Waiting until the end of the day? You can find a million reasons to skip the gym when you’re tired at the end of the day.

How to Set Yourself Up For Success

Don’t Make a Drastic Timing Change

If you currently wake up at 9:30 am it’s unrealistic to think that a 6:00 am wake up time will be no problem for you. Start off slowly, by waking up 15-20 minutes earlier than you usually do. You might not be able to fit in a full workout, but your body will start to adjust and you’ll recognize the benefits of those few extras minutes. Do that for a few days then cut back another 15-20 minutes. Repeat this cycle until you’ve reached your goal wake up time.

Do NOT Hit Snooze

Eliminate the option of a snooze button. When your alarm goes off, it means “get up”. It does not mean “rationalize your way through this”, hit snooze three times or “maybe later”. Tell yourself those are not options. If that takes putting your alarm clock across the room, do it!

Create a Supportive Nightly Routine

Going to bed earlier isn’t hard if you make a few tweaks to your current nightly habits. Once you create a routine, your body will read that routine as the cue to start getting sleepy. A few suggestions:

• Turn of electronics 1-2 hours before bed.
• Drink chamomile tea.
• Read a book in bed.

Pack Your Bag at Night

Preparedness is next to godliness, know what I’m sayin’? Nothing is more stressful than a morning spent rushing around attempting to prepare yourself to leave the house.

Wait there is something more stressful – doing that and then getting to the gym for your morning workout and realizing you are missing your sneakers.

Don’t let mayhem happen to you. Prep a bag, and maybe even coffee and breakfast, at night so all you have to do is throw clothes on and head out the door.

Set Up Accountability

Whether you sign up for a kick butt spin class or you enlist a friend to meet you, finding a way to hold yourself accountable can positively impact your morning workout success in a big way. Even better, find yourself a trainer that you jive with and set up 1 or 2 workouts a week, in the morning.

>> My favorite way to hold myself accountable is my Passion Planner…it’s an incredible place to plan and track your long-term goals and the daily actions (like hitting the gym in the a.m.), that you will take to achieve them.

Allow Yourself to Sleep in Sometimes

It’s nice to sleep in once in a while. Allow yourself a guilt-free that.