Today, I met a whole new breed of people: the morning exerciser.
At one time, I was one of these people. In high school, in college, in the days before I was in the “real world.” But not anymore. Now, I am an evening exerciser. I’m the one who rushes to the gym after work in hopes of grabbing the last free treadmill; I’m the one who signs up for classes two days ahead of time so that my spot is ensured.
Not today, though. Today, I joined the morning exercisers in the gym. I felt really proud of myself, setting my alarm for an unspeakable hour and going to bed just after 9 pm.
Getting myself out of bed wasn’t even as difficult as I thought it would be! I drove along the desolate road to the gym, expecting to see an empty parking lot as I pulled in right at 5:15 am.
Um. Not so much.
The gym was crowded with tons of faces that I didn’t recognize. Probably because, when I’m normally at the gym with the usual evening exercisers, the morning exercisers are at home playing with their kids, lounging on the couch, or enjoying dinner at a reasonable time. And the workout class that I signed up for? It was packed! I had to squeeze in between weights and yoga mats to get a good spot in my Tabata Burn class (6 rounds of 4 minute intense exercises, with a minute of rest in-between sets).
Then I felt silly. Silly for thinking that I’d be the only one working out at the gym that early in the morning. Apparently, some people do this every day! Who knew 
!
The past couple of weeks, I’ve cut down my workouts from 5 days a week to 3 days a week, just because I’m busy in the evenings and can’t make it to the gym. This morning taught me that there really are no excuses. Work late in the evenings? Work out before work. Committed to carpooling your kids to sports after school? Work out before they wake up. Have weeknight plans with your husband/family/friends/whoever? Get to the gym in the morning. It’s pretty satisfying to know that your workout is finished before most people’s alarms go off.
I might be joining the morning exercisers more often. It’s not bad at all 
.
What’s your favorite time of day to work out?
When do you usually work out?
Way to go! I like working out in the morning way better, because that way your evening is free to do whatever you like. And I’ve noticed that if I work out in the morning I feel better throughout the day!
Thanks! Very true!
Oh man, I wish I could get up! I tell myself that as long as I’m still working out in the evening then I’ll stick to that time but as soon as I no longer want to work out after work I’ll have to make the switch!
Wow! Good for you Emily! That’s awesome that you pushed yourself to get up and workout in the morning before you go to work. I bet it felt pretty good too! I like to work out on my lunch break. My work has a gym with showers and lockers so I can get cleaned up afterward and I still have a good 45 min workout 5 days a week (not including my riding on Sundays).
Thank you!
I’m soooo a morning exerciser! I love showing up when the gym is opening and being done before most people are out of bed. Yes, love.
I wish my gym offered more of my favorite classes in the morning. That’s why I usually go in the evenings, because that’s when they’re offered!
it still amazes me how many runners I see out early each morning, I can’t exercise at night so doing it in the morning works for me.
What an accomplishment
It really is! It is definitely difficult getting out of bed that early in the morning, but once you begin doing it, it really does become routine. Morning time is my favorite time of day and I love getting everything done before I leave for work.
My big tip (that has helped me get back into morning workouts after the holidays) is evening preparation. I set up the coffee pot, gym bag, packed lunch in the fridge and workout clothes at the end of the bed; it has really helped me get back to it and keep my routine
Thank you for the tips!
No problem.
I used to be a strict morning exerciser but over time I’ve found that my workouts just gradually shifted to later in the day. Now I just kind of try to get them in whenever I have time or whenever I feel like I need to burn off a little bit of energy.
Wow, very impressive. I prefer to work out in the morning, but like, 8 or 9 am in the morning. Not 5 am! And due to my work schedule, I usually have to work out in the late afternoon/early evening. Which means some days, I get lazy and just don’t go.
I am a 5 AM guy! I hate doing it after work. That’s my relaxing time!
You go girl!!! Or should I say welcome to the dark side… Haha!!! I am a beautiful big morning exerciser.. Up around the same time… 5am and the gym calls my name.
I honestly don’t know how people go after work. I’m exhausted. I
I don’t care if it makes me sound crazy, but I LOVE that drive to the gym when it’s so early it’s dark outside and it’s just quiet and still peaceful. Something about it is comforting and never fails to make me proud that I have a great workout under my belt before many people even wake up for the day.
I’m glad you got the morning exercise in. I for one like it a lot because then you have the whole rest of the day (after work of course) to do other things!
I’m glad you’ve found what works for you!!! I have a long commute, so evenings usually don’t work me. I’ve found that morning’s work best for me. I wrote some tips on my blog you mind find helpful! Enjoy!
http://www.livehalffullblog.com/2013/01/07/10-tips-for-working-out-in-the-morning-and-not-hating-it/
I used to be a morning exerciser. Every morning, without fail, I was up and I loved it. And then all of a sudden.. I wasn’t. Now I can’t get up anymore and don’t know what happened to me, I wish I could get it back though! I’ve started to embrace my evening workouts though, I love yoga at the end of the day and find that I’m less prone to injuries at night when it comes to running and lifting. I have faith that I’ll being a morning exerciser again someday, but it’s just not in the cards for me right now : )
Dang girl!! I couldn’t peel myself out of bed at that time of morning!! GO YOU! I’m def a later morning exerciser, but I have to do it after work. My ideal time is 7 or 8ish!
It was tough. I was kind of regretting it by the afternoon
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