Do you try to squeeze your workouts into your evening schedule and often find excuses to skip your workouts? Do you struggle waking up early for a crack of dawn sweat session? If you are not waking up to get in your morning exercise in, you are not alone, but you should know that you are missing out!
Researchers suggest that people who go to bed early and get up early are receiving benefits that night owls are not, such as less stress, guaranteed daily workouts, healthy breakfasts for themselves and their families, and overall alertness and preparedness for the day. Researchers will also advise that physical activity or regular exercise has many health benefits including; decreased blood sugar, improved blood pressure, reduced stress hormones, improved mental health and can actually lead to healthier eating throughout the day! The time of day that you workout really does impact your success and your life!
If you are looking to improve your life in any of these areas, it is time to make the switch but I know it is super hard. That is why I have put together a list of 25 tips for making the shift to early morning physical activity doable for you.
Getting Ready For Your Early Morning Exercise
Change your sleep schedule ~ Just as adjusting to jet lag can take several days, don’t expect that a bedtime of 2 hours earlier, is going to automatically make you want to jump out of bed 2 hours earlier in the morning. Give yourself 2 weeks to adjust to this new schedule and know that it is normal to need an adjustment period.
Use light to trick your body into easing awake ~ Set a dimmer light to come on 15 minutes before your alarm goes off so that your body begins to wake up naturally. Check out the reviews on this product!
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Set multiple alarms ~ If you prefer to keep your alarm clock close to your bedside, I recommend setting at least 2 alarms. The first alarm gives you a chance to lay in bed and think happy thoughts for the day. It is a chance to reflect on the positives in your life and the reasons for the change you are trying to make. The second alarm is just in case you slip back to sleep.
Keep your alarm further than arm’s length ~ You wouldn’t want to wake the kids this early so you better jump out of bed quickly to shut the alarm off. DO NOT hit the snooze button either! Okay, so now that you are up, stay up. It is time to workout!
Start your morning with heart-pumping music ~ Music is a natural adrenaline booster that will help get your body and mind ready for morning exercise. Set your alarm clock to play music as your wake-up call.
Wear your workout clothes to bed ~ You can wear them or have them laid out and ready for the morning. A bonus to wearing them to bed is that you will be nice and warm when you roll out of bed. There is nothing worse than being cold when you wake up! That leads me to tip number 7.
Set your house temperature to warmer than usual when you awake ~ A cold, drafty bedroom is a good way to make you want to crawl back into bed under your blankets. Eliminate that excuse. I use the Ecobee programmable thermostat for this trick!
Keep a glass of water beside your bed ~ There are so many reasons to start his habit tomorrow! When we awake from a night’s sleep we are dehydrated. Drinking a glass of water, before our feet even hit the floor gets our organs up and going quickly. Try it, you will notice your body just feels better as you get around in the morning. As an added tip, are you looking to cleanse as part of your new healthy lifestyle? Add a drop of lemon oil to your water the night before. This concoction will detox, hydrate, and awaken your body for the day.
Buy a Coffee Maker for your room ~ If you are a coffee lover, your incentive for getting up could be that your coffee is right there waiting for you to drink it. Can you imagine waking up to this one doing its thing?
Diffuse peppermint oil in your room ~ Peppermint oil makes the body alert which will help you get awake and moving in the morning. If you can’t diffuse it, keep a bottle beside your bed and smell it after you turn your alarm off. The peppermint oil will alert your senses that it is time to move. Prefer a different look? Check out the diffuser below and scroll down to find a variety of diffusers you could use.
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Keep a cold washcloth by your bedside ~ A cold washcloth on your face will wake up all of your facial nerves! You could also splash cold water on your face.
Put a picture of your reason by your bedside ~ Maybe you want to look the way you did before having kids? If so, then your bedside picture should be of your former self. If you are working towards looking great on your upcoming cruise, a scenic coastal picture should do the trick. Whatever the reason, make sure you literally do not lose sight of it.
Make your bed ~ Not only will you benefit from slipping into a neat and tidy bed every night, but the action of getting up and moving will keep you from wanting to crawl back in. The added benefit is that your significant other will need to get up with you! It is always easier to do things together vs alone. If you don’t have a significant other at home that leads me to the next tip…
Don’t do it alone ~ Whether you are meeting a friend at the gym or your dog is counting on you for his/her daily walk, this is a great way to ensure accountability for getting up for your morning workout.
Change up your workout so it stays interesting ~ Get excited about your workout routine. I love the Beachbody On Demand app on my Apple TV because it allows me to pick from so many different workouts.
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Stop thinking about how early it is ~ When you commit to working out in the morning, you also need to commit to the idea that time is only a number. It may be 4 am in your home, but it is 10 am somewhere else. It isn’t too early if you go to bed at a reasonable time. Aim for no less than 7 hours of sleep per night.
Pay attention to how you feel ~ Do you usually feel the 2 pm slump? Try working out in the morning and pay close attention to how you feel the rest of the day. When you aren’t craving chocolate in the afternoon, you will come to rely on your morning workout routine to keep your eating in check too.
Invest in some hot workout gear ~ If you want to feel good, you should first look good! Start your day off looking hot. There are so many to choose from, but here are some of my favorites. Make sure you look and feel your best at the gym.
Have a pre-workout snack ready and waiting for you ~ Start your day with something yummy like peanut butter, chocolate chip bars made with oatmeal, PB, egg, vanilla, baking soda, and chips.
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Eat 2 breakfasts ~ Eating a pre-workout snack and a post-workout breakfast will help keep your metabolism burning and will be satisfying.
Make your workout a habit ~ Wake up at the same time every day and look forward to this time for yourself. Soon it will become a habit just like brushing your teeth.
Don’t eat after 7 pm ~ Having hunger pains is a good way to motivate you to get out of bed and get to your pre-workout snack.
Reward yourself every night ~ With your workout, already in for the day, you can choose to spend your evening however you need to. Be sure to carve in some time for yourself at night to do something you enjoy.
Make getting up at the same time a routine ~ If you wake up every day at the same time, your body will eventually begin to wake up naturally. Have you ever noticed your body can get you up, even if you forgot to set your alarm? Make your wake-up time a routine so that you begin waking up more naturally over time.
Try it for 3 weeks, then skip two days ~ Prove to yourself that you can do this, then see what your body feels like when you have skipped your workout for 2 days straight. I have come to need my workout in order for my body to work as it should. After two days of missing a workout, I start to have tension in my shoulders, I feel fatigued, and I miss the endorphins that keep me emotionally balanced. I challenge you to listen to your body, it will tell you what it needs.
Waking up early for a morning workout can truly be a life-changing decision. It is not easy. I hope that some of these tips can help you achieve your personal fitness goals. Also, be sure to check out my post on staying true to your diet and fitness goals even while traveling! And working out is just one part of a good morning routine.
Wow these are some great ideas. You have given so many creative ideas that I had never heard before!
What great tips! I’ve tried multiple alarms and that doesn’t work for me. But putting the alarm far away does work. And I’m definitely going to try the dimmer and peppermint oil tactics! Thanks for sharing.
Catherine
These are great tips. It can be so hard getting out of bed to workout in the morning but the tips you have listed will really help!
I workout early in the morrnig twice a week (pilates lesson at 7am).
I liked all your tips even if I can’t eat 2 breakfasts and I normaly eat my dinner at 9ish 😀
I find it very hard to get up in the morning! I will try some of these tips and hopefully i will do better with exercise.
I am not a morning person at all, and it is nice to have some tips to get things done in the morning. Thanks for all the tips. I want to start off on the new year on the right foot and this will be helpful.
Great advice for this night owl who is challenged by early morning wake ups. My alarm clocks are my tiny people who like to get up far earlier than I would like to, so I end up savoring me time in the evening. Clearly, that doesn’t help on the workout front. Great tips for switching my habits and kickstarting a healthier new year!
Love these tips! I am so not a morning person and these will help me get up and working out much more easily.
Excellent tips. I try so hard to get up earlier because I know the benefits, but the bed is so much more comfortable. Will give the music and setting 2 alarms a try though.
That’s great. I would love to have those. 🙂 Thanks for sharing this one. I’m starting to workout daily too.
very nice tips, I am never able to wake up early to work out :p I really want to!
There are a lot of great tips here, one of my favorites is the music. Music is so helpful in helping me fully wake up in the mornings on my way to work.
These are some amazing tips I will definitely try them I really struggle with sleeping at night and I tend to skip breakfast for waking up late ?.I will try to start sleeping early ?
GREAT post! You have no idea how much I needed this. Your tips are very practical and realistic. I’m waiting for my new diffuser and some essential oils in the mail actually so I’m looking forward to using them in my room to help me get energized in the morning. I pinned this to one of my boards Thanks for sharing!
I am a working mom so if I don’t workout first thing in the morning it doesn’t happen. LOVE this!!
Love all these tips! The hardest part is just getting started and into the habit. I think that finding something that you love and enjoy doing makes the biggest difference.
Early morning workouts are great as long as I can go straight from my bed to workout. Very helpful.
These are all such great tips! Honestly the tip that made me chuckle but would probably work for me the most is wearing my workout clothes to bed! I hate changing out of my pjs in the morning because I feel all cold and stiff. I think that wearing my clothes to bed could be really helpful.
Sleeping is one of the most important thing to keep a healthy life. A good sleep helps us to be more active for the day. Thanks for the tips and keep going forward.
These are some really great suggestions! I struggle to get up in the morning and I’ve definitely never worked out in the morning. I’ve had a pretty flexible schedule the past few years. But now that my schedule is tighter I would like to start waking up a little earlier than necessary and spending time on myself like working out etc. I really want to use some of these tips. I think that alarm clock that resembles sun or daylight would be perfect for me! I really want to try that out.
Wow I think I should be using all these tips regardless to whether I want to work out (or not). All these really sound like they are making up for a wonderful morning. Thanks for sharing!
Early-morning workouts are so difficult to get out of bed for but they do give you the best rewards afterwards
I prefer evening workouts! It just fits into my schedule better and then you can just go home and rest your muscles. Great post though!
These are fantastic tips, I will definitely be using them. Thanks!
Great list! I especially like using the diffuser and the light that turns on gradually (also coffee maker in the room….I can’t wake up anymore without coffee). Thank you for the tips!
I’ve been in the mindset of wanting to get back into shape but it’s so easy to just want to skip in the mornings. I’ll have to remember these tips.
Thanks for the tips! It’s going to be difficult for me to adjust my sleep schedule but if it’s for getting a healthy body, then I’ll do it!
great article. I’d definitely bookmark this one. Hope to find more like this.
I work out of an evening after work, however there are some really cool and useful tips of how to make getting up in the morning easier! Thanks for sharing, i’m definitely gonna try some of these out…
I totally need this! This is really helps for my body goal thanks for sharing
Wear your workout clothes made me laugh out loud… It’s a brilliant idea.
Wear your workout clothes to bed made me laugh out loud… It’s a brilliant idea.
I need to get back into the habit of working out early. I always feel my best when I do.
I love what you guys are up too. This sort of clever work and exposure!
Keep up the wonderful works guys I’ve added you guys to my personal blogroll.
Set your house temperature to warmer than usual when you awake ~ I’m going to have to try this tip ASAP!
It works really well for me
Wow, these Early mornings workouts tip very usefully, thanks to it.
I’m lucky in that I have my own personal alarm clock in the shape of a small feline. Prior to her addition to the household i needed various alarms in order to wake up, and even then I was good for nothing. Now I get up at 6am every day and, although i don’t work out right away, being up earlier means it can easily be added in without missing out on other things.
I have seriously been asking in groups about how to get myself to wake up. My chronotype just is not a morning type although I really want to be. LOVE LOVE LOVE some of these ideas. I can’t do the light clock because my hubby has no interest in waking early and he sleeps until around 9 or 10. LOL! But I love the washcloth idea, listening to music right away and drinking water are all tips I’m going to try TOMORROW! Thank you for writing this!!!