Fitness
Rise and Sweat: Why You Should Exercise Early
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While it might sound impossible to get up and enjoy a sweat session before 9am, starting your day with a workout has some serious advantages over leaving it to the end of the day.
If you hit the snooze button on the daily, here are a few benefits that will morph you into a morning exerciser!
You could be more active throughout the day.
Working out increases productivity and gives your endorphins a boost! It not only makes you feel better, but it also helps to keep you concentrated for those back-to-back meetings you’ll face once you head into the office.
You could lower your blood pressure.
In a study by the U.S. National Library of Medicine, researchers had participants use the treadmill for 30 minutes at three different times of the day: 7am, 1pm, and 7pm. The people who worked out in the morning had blood pressure 10% lower than those who didn’t, which continued all day and even decreased to 25% by the evening. Since most heart attacks can happen in the early morning, an a.m. workout may also serve as a preventative measure!
You might sleep better.
Have you ever finished your 8pm barre class and felt like your body was too hyped up to fall asleep at bedtime? It’s more common than you think. The National Sleep Foundation says that a night workout boosts the body’s temperature and stimulates the body, which makes falling asleep harder. Squeezing in a sweat sesh in the morning leads to deeper, longer sleep when you hit the pillow at the end of the day. So, think about switching up your sweat time to maximize those Z’s.
You can create a habit.
Health Psychology found that the most consistent exercisers are people who make it a regular part of their routine. It’s much easier for evening plans to get derailed than morning ones—think a friend invites you to happy hour or a late-night work emergency makes cancel your evening yoga sesh. Setting that morning alarm keeps you consistent, which means you can tap into all the health benefits of regular exercise, like increased immunity, stamina, and an all-around better mood.
