Concept2 Forum

Is there actually a "right" or "better" time of the day to exercise?

I would say..anytime that you actually do it..
But I, as a fitness professional, have heard all the pros and cons of day versus night.
Some will say that early in the morning is best..when we are freshest and have the most energy.
Most will say in the evening or late afternoon when the body is warmed up..muscles are warm and stretched.
But each individual has to find their own best time.
There have been studies to give reasons for both times of the day.
I work out in the afternoon.I am not a morning person.
If I am doing a challenge I will work out or row 2 to 3 times a day.I have to make my schedule fit this type of routine.


PJM

My favorite time is to start running 30 minutes before sunrise.

I've been lax about this recently on the erg, and am planning to begin earlier again, especially through the summer.

In the evening. I have a desk job, so it feels good to do something physical after sitting all day.

badocter wrote:I have a desk job, so it feels good to do something physical after sitting all day.

So you sit down for a bit longer!

I get up at 5AM, so I should be erging by 5:45 at the latest and done before 7AM. That way I can feel virtuous all day, and just mess around with free weights in the evening.

Weight lifters have long believed that the greatest weight control benefit from cardio work is obtained by an AM workout on an empty stomach. Actually there is no reason this should be more beneficial, though many quite plausible explanations for the belief are given. But physiologically-- no, it doesn't matter.

If you have trouble sleeping, getting up at five and rowing for an hour will go a long way to curing you. By the time your bed time rolls around, you're ready to sleep soundly (take your melatonin please)!

Anyway! The best time to exercise is when you have the time to do it.

Oreo Bomb wrote:Is there actually a "right" or "better" time of the day to exercise?

I row in the morning, after coffee and before breakfast, primarily because I know that if I don't do it then there will be many days when "something comes up" and I miss out. I have sparse anecdotal evidence that rowing later in the day (I have done so on rare occasions) improves my performance but that is not a prime motivator for me. Number one priority is to get the meters in and stay fit and early morning works best for me

john

I would guess that the "best" time to exercise for most would be late in the morning through early in the afternoon. That is when I do best if I race on the weekend. But most of us have jobs or other things to do in the middle of the day that gets in the way of training full time.

I row at night, after dinner and after the kids go to bed usually, so around 9pm. Not really a good time, but the only time I have most days (I can barely get up in time to get to work, so rowing in the morning would never work for me).

Several times I have tried squeezing in work outs when I should be doing something else or leaving something requiring further thought until I have finished. The result has been poor focus and disappointing workouts.

I row at a gym near work in the morning before work. this is usually starting only 75mins after breakfast and is not ideal. Given my huge appetite I would say any time that the last significant meal has been digested. When staying somewhere with an erg, I have had some great workouts before breakfast, but the thought of surviving my commute and workout before food is not worth contemplating!

Regards

Iain

I was an early morning rower.

Now it's decided for me by whether my wife is working 6am tp 2:30pm, 2:30pm to 11pm or has a day off.

I've had a struggle to get over the "I'd prefer to stay in bed" option when I should be doing a morning workout.

Well I switched up from rowing in the morning to the evenings after my little girl goes to bed and it has been great. Motivation is way up for two reasons: 1) I don't have to add the challenge of getting up in the morning to the challenge of rowing itself; and 2) TV is much better in the evenings than the morning. Nothing like yelling "Deal! DEAL!" on each pull or watching the Flyers get spanked in the conference finals.

Philly is the new cursed city. We can't catch a break...