If you don’t make time for exercise, you will probably have to take your time off for an illness. Personal work, professional work, or career shouldn’t be reasons to not work out because it directly affects both your mind and body fitness. We all have extremely busy schedules, managing our social life, careers, and personal time. Amidst that, one must take out anytime to work out. It is the time you give to yourself for the betterment of your health. While most people suggest early morning to be the best time to workout, here we have factual and statistical information that explains the benefits of working out at different times.
Benefits of Working Out Early in The Morning:
It’s safe to say that our alarm clock is our biggest enemy during the initial stages of a workout plan. But once the practice becomes habitual, you will not need an alarm clock to wake you up as your circadian rhythm/biological clock automatically adjusts to your time.
The common benefits of exercising in the morning:
- Allows you to stay consistent with your workout regime as other commitments have fewer chances to interfere in the morning. If you develop the habit of waking up, you would probably complete your exercise even before the day starts, helping you be more consistent.
- As exercising releases happy hormones like endorphins and serotonin, there are higher chances that you will approach your day with a positive outlook and stay happier throughout the day.
- Anthony Hackney, a professor at the University of North Carolina from the department of exercise and sports science says that our body’s hormonal composition supports weight loss goals in the morning with higher growth hormone enabling you to predispose better metabolism of fat. Research has found that our body can burn 20% more body fat when we exercise in the morning rather than during the evening or night.
- A study published in Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise identified that women who had 45 minutes of a brisk walk in the morning were least distracted by junk food compared to those who did not exercise or work out.
- You will experience a better sleep cycle during the night. Working out early in the morning keeps your body in the fat-burning mode throughout the day and you will feel more sleepy as the day ends.
Benefits of Working Out In the Afternoon or night:
It is better late than never. Even working out during afternoon time or evening has immense benefits than not working out at all. However, there are arguments that the increased heart rate, body temperature, and sweats late in the night can disturb your sleep patterns and make it tough for you to fall asleep. Thus, you can avoid heavy high intensity workouts during the night, and instead, do some stretching or relaxing yoga and mild workouts. Here are the benefits you can enjoy when you workout during the evening or afternoon:
- A study has found that our body temperatures are already high during the afternoon, and one might perform to the maximum during those times as our body is already ready.
- As we might have had our breakfast or even lunch by the time we work out, our body will have enough energy in the form of blood glucose enabling us to perform the high-intensity workouts better.
- Though there are arguments about the disturbance of sleep while working out at night, one study has found that exercising at night can reduce late-night cravings as the hunger levels are less. However, do not directly exercise at night, take a shower, and go to bed. If your schedule is too busy, workout before 2 to 3 hours of sleep to gain better benefits.
- The body produces higher levels of testosterone hormone in the afternoon which is responsible for muscle growth and stamina. So, you can easily indulge in resistance or weight training. Also, the cortisol levels are higher in the morning and lower in the afternoon/evening helping you to perform your exercises better.
Final Advice:
Early birds win hearts when it comes to the right time to work out. However, instead of spending 24 hours in front of your screen or sitting idle on the couch, you could take some time out to work out during afternoons or evenings as they also have their advantages. It is fine to have thousands of reasons not to work out but, finding one reason to stick to that process is good enough to be consistent and achieve your fitness goals.
