7 Benefits to Running in the Morning and How to Make the Shift

Is there a best time to run? Besides the most obvious answer of “yes, whenever you can” there’s a little more nuance to it. Perhaps even some science!

If morning running is one of your goals, find out how to make the switch…or, more importantly, if you really need to switch from your evening run!

Morning run? Evening run? Runch? Does one specific time result in the best workout? Do you burn more fat by doing that fasted morning run? Do you run faster by going later in the day?

Confused yet? Let’s break it down….

Immediately, I think of Laura’s post with 5 reasons not to workout in the morning. All entirely valid points, proving that if you HATE morning workouts then you don’t have to feel forced in to them just because that seems to be the standard for many ruuners.

Yet, I still encourage anyone asking me for tips to run consistently, to lose weight or hit anew PR to aim for a morning workout, so what gives? It turns out the benefits of a morning workout routine might just make Ben Franklin’s old statement “Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise” truer than he might have ever known!

Morning Run Benefits

Following are seven of the biggest benefits to implementing a daily morning workout. If you’ve been trying to talk yourself in to making the switch, sometimes it helps to appeal to your reward centers!

That’s right, I LOVE tapping in to our subconscious anytime I want to make a change. Simply saying that you should is an awful way to get your body and brain excited for that 5AM alarm. Instead, find one of these benefits you can latch on to when that buzz sounds to help you get up.

Brain Booster

Studies have shown that exercise can increase mental acuity for up to 10 hours post workout! Best to put this to use with an AM workout rather than wasting all that added focus on the hours we’re sleeping.

Appetite Control

Morning runners often report feeling less hungry throughout the day. {Cavet first time marathon runners would entirely disagree and say they are hungry 24/7}.

However, studies have tried to dissect the cause of this appetite reduction and found two answers: it’s a direct result of the workout itself or it’s a mental shift from starting the day in a healthy way and wanting to continue feeling good.

Quality Zzzz’s

It turns out that today’s morning workout might help you sleep better tonight by helping to better regulate your hormones throughout the day. Adrenaline will be highest in the morning and naturally taper off throughout the day, rather than being ignited late in the day by an evening workout.

Checkout 7 ways a morning workout could improve your entire day #fitness Click To Tweet

Sweet Silence

It seems now we’ve become scheduled from the moment we hit the snooze button the first time to the second we fall asleep. Growing to do lists for both ourselves, our families and our jobs…it’s like a non-stop party of voices in our head all day long.

Early mornings offer a bit of quiet and solitude to mentally prepare for the day. It’s absolutely my favorite way to slow down, while of course speeding up.

Consistency

AM exercisers tend to be more consistent over the long haul with their routine. And we all know that consistency is KING when it comes to results!! This is likely because as the day progresses life gets in the way or we feel too exhausted after the stress of a fully work day to hit the gym {even though it would help!}.Workouts Feel Better

Working out at the same time each day actually signals your body to prepare in advance for exercise. Yes your body will start getting ready even while you sleep!

That’s gotta be the coolest way to burn extra calories ever. The muscles involved in your workout will actually begin to wake up while you are sleeping, making it easier to get up and preventing injury by acting as a warm up of sorts.

Depression Blaster

According to Web MD the endorphins generated during a workout might be one of the best ways to ward off depression and handle life stress “Endorphins also trigger a positive feeling in the body, similar to that of morphine. Research has shown that exercise is an effective but often underused treatment for mild to moderate depression.”

Now what so many of you are wondering…how to start a morning workout routine.

How to Become a Morning Runner (worker outer)

After years of running after work, I realized a morning run habits was necessary if I wanted my running to truly continue. I found this tips made it possible to make the switch and now, I can’t imagine anything besides my morning sweat.

So let’s dive in to how to start running in the morning…and more importantly, how to stick with it for more than a few days.

Like Clockwork

Our bodies quickly adapt to new routines and will begin to automatically get sleepy and energized at the right time of day if you follow a consistent schedule. This means going to bed and rising at the same time every single day whether you have a shorter or longer workout planned. Yes, this includes weekends!

Nighty Nighty

It might be time to start using the DVR a little more if you find yourself always catching the Daily Show at 11PM and thus missing your 5AM wake up call. Make a small change, by simply moving your bed time up by 10 minutes each week.

Over time you may find that going to bed earlier feels more natural as your hormones begin regulating.
Tips on how to fall asleep faster >>

Easy Movement

Start by swinging your arms in circles, twisting a little bit side to side and taking some great big deep breathes to fill your lungs and start moving oxygen through the body.

It doesn’t take something high intensity to start waking up your body pretty quickly. Next do this short dynamic warm up routine to give your muscles and brain a few more minutes to wake.

Prep like a Mad Woman (or man)

Layout your clothes, have a quick breakfast ready to go, pack your lunch the night before, have your work clothes picked out…in other words do whatever you can to make your morning faster.
Tips to meal plan like a pro>>

Smile. Seriously.

Find the workout you enjoy the most and start there. Maybe that means a cardio or spin class where you can meet friends, maybe it’s a mentally refreshing yoga class or a stress busting run. It could take some trial and error to find the workout that fits you, but once you have it will make the earlier morning alarm far more bearable.

Can’t commit to always doing mornings? Find out how to make the most of evening runs>>

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