“You aren’t a morning person, are you?” he mused.
“No, I’m not. There is a reason mornin’ and mournin’ sound the same.”
L.A. Casey, Aideen
Hitting the gym or running outdoors in the morning is a scary thought for many people. It can seem like “mission impossible!”
I am not a morning person myself, and I never thought I would ever be able to drag myself out of bed to go to the gym before work.
But at some point, I realized that my evening workout routine wasn’t working. I missed far too many workouts because of fatigue, social engagements, or working late.
To add insult to injury, when I did make it to the gym, my sleep suffered at night. After I hit midlife, my body needed more time to slow down, and often, I could not fall asleep.
So, begrudgingly at first, I decided to give it a try and establish a morning workout routine.
It was not easy, and there was a lot of trial and error until I started having success and eventually managed to establish the morning workout habit.
Here is how you can make morning exercise possible, even if you are not a morning person.
Plan Ahead
Make sure you plan your morning workouts ahead of time, taking into consideration your work and other commitments. Do not try to schedule a morning workout session the day after a birthday party or when you have to catch a plane at an ungodly hour!
Make sure to block the time for your workout in your calendar at least a week earlier.
The Day Before
Success in getting up early for your morning workout is not determined by your willpower. It depends entirely on your preparation the day before.
Here is the routine that will maximize your chances of success:
- Avoid caffeine after lunchtime
- Have a light early dinner
- Switch off TV and electronic devices at least two hours before bedtime.
- Read a book, listen to relaxing music, talk and have a good time with your partner
- Dim the lights two hours before going to bed and if you need to read, use a reading lamp
- Cool your bedroom; it helps with quality of sleep
- Prepare all your workout and work clothes for the next morning. If your partner wakes up later, make sure you place everything outside the bedroom.
- Prepare your breakfast, if you plan to eat before your workout
- Prepare your coffee maker so that the only thing you have to do after waking up is pressing a button
- Do everything else necessary to limit the decisions you make in the morning
- Sleep for at least seven to eight hours
In The Morning
If you have done a proper preparation the day before and you had a good sleep, you are very close to your goal. There are only a few more steps left:
- Avoid hitting the snooze button, if that’s your thing, it is getting more comfortable with time
- Follow a set routine every time. It helps a lot if the morning routine is as decision-free as possible. Distractions are not good for what you try to achieve at that time, which is to get to the gym or outdoors.
- If resistance kicks in, at any point during these crucial moments, use your willpower to push through until your warmup. You know that it feels great after that.
Switching from evening to morning workouts is not easy, but neither is it as hard as many of us think.
There are many rewards in doing so, even you are not a morning person; achieving your fitness goals, better sleep, more time with family, better social life, personal development, etc.
Give it a try, you certainly have nothing to lose.
