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! So if running in the morning is one of your goals, find out how to do it…or if you really need to switch from your evening run!
Morning run? Evening run? Lunch run? Does one specific time result in the best workout? And is it about more than that?
The real answer is YES…well and no.
Confused yet? Let’s break it down….
Immediately I thought of Laura’s post with 5 reasons not to workout in the morning. All entirely valid and 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!
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 are 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.
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. {OR take advantage of the time change this weekend!!} 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>>
When do you prefer to workout?
When do you actually workout?
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Emily says
It’s so true that if I go to bed at a good time I can get up and get in a good morning run. I love the refreshment and the life that a morning run gives me; sometimes I can’t do it, and that’s okay, but I’ve actually become more of a morning runner again in the past 6 months.
Emily @ Pizza & Pull-ups says
I am definitely a morning workout person. I will work out in the evening if I have to, but my motivation is always lower. I love working out early and knowing I got it in for the day.
Holly says
I’ve been working out at lunch but now that I’m running more – and it’s getting warmer out – I cannot take the lunchtime heat outside. I have to switch my runs to mornings. I can’t run on an empty stomach and once I eat I have to ‘settle’ so I’m hoping for something mid-morning. I have to make a point to eat as soon as I get up and chug water to make sure I’m adequately hydrated.
Emma says
I run on an evening but that’s mainly down to my normal working hours. On a weekend I prefer to run on a morning.
Jenny says
This was pretty much just the thing I needed. I’ve always been an afternoon or evening runner, but now with how crazy my schedule is getting I need to switch over to morning runs at least half the time. In fact I was going to post about it soon on my own blog. Now I’m going to include a link back here for it.
Nicole @ Fitful Focus says
I’m just starting to try to get back to morning workouts. I was very diligent about it when I lived in NYC because I never knew what time I’d get off work in the evening. Now that I’m in Texas, I want to get in morning runs before it gets too hot out!
Deborah @ Confessions of a mother runner says
Part of me wishes I could get up and do the super early runs but I so need my coffee first 🙂
Kimberly Hatting says
I do the bulk of my runs in the early hours (5:00 most of the time), but tend to do my strength workouts in the evening before bed (or in intervals in between blogging).
Annmarie says
I am SUCH a morning workout person because of a lot of the benefits you listed! <3
Travis says
I always prefer working out in the mornings as it really releases a lot of energy in me. I tried working out in the afternoons and I couldn’t sleep later in the evening LOL