The Perfect Time of Day to Exercise
Just as our diet varies daily depending on our workouts, many athletes wonder, what is the perfect time of day to exercise? The problem is that the opinions of coaches and doctors vary and the question remains up in the air. So what time is the perfect time of day to exercise?
Is training a morning activity?
There are many athletes and experts who recommend training in the morning. Set apart from heavier meals, the first moments of the day allow us to control our weight and speed up metabolism. According to this idea, physical activity should be done in the first few hours of the day.
We must remember that first thing, we have an energy component on our side. It’s not that we have more energy, but that we come from a state of rest. Generally, people feel more active during these hours. In addition to the physical factor, there is a favorable psychological component.
Considering the social component, doing exercises in the morning can favor professionals to cope with a busy daily schedule. In these cases, the right thing is to complete your workout in the short period that you have free. But morning training also has a downside.
The cons of exercising in the early hours of the day
Exercising in the morning has ‘small’ risks. Remember that when we wake up, our body temperature is very low. Therefore, and after eight hours of inactivity, our muscles are less flexible. Then the risk of injury increases.
Intense exercise in the morning has its risks. If we don’t injure ourselves, it’s more likely that it will be difficult for us to perform routines naturally, and with the correct technique, and therefore effectiveness.
If you work out in the morning, we suggest a controlled diet that allows you to make the effort, but that is not too heavy. Having a divided diet with five or six meal times a day, and warm-up exercises will help.
Actually, it’s a myth that our body is more prepared and energized during the morning. In fact, many affirm that our best daily physical levels are in the evening.
Exercising at night has its advantages
There are researchers who say that exercising at night can have much more efficient results. The reason for this is that the body has a better temperature and flexibility after a day of mobility. The movements are more complete and the probability of injuries is less.
Our body can perform well in the evenings even if we are mentally fatigued. This schedule could be very beneficial for those people who need to gain weight. After training, a person of ectomorphic structure could consume a huge dinner.
Even so, night training also has its drawbacks. Athletes may be mentally tired and not all bodies respond equally. Also, depending on our needs we would have to design our daily diet well. At night, any ingested food can have a direct effect on our physical shape.
An exercise routine for every time of the day
Taking into account human hormonal activity, we must understand that there are exercises that are better performed in the mornings and others that are better in the evenings. The fact is, that our cortisol and testosterone levels fluctuate throughout the day.
According to our hormonal behavior, the morning is ideal for flexibility exercises and aerobic resistance. We are basically talking about aerobics, stretching and, of course, running.
During the middle of the day, our testosterone levels rise, therefore intense exercise makes more sense at that time. This also happens after 18.00 hours each day. Finally, we can leave the most intense, endurance sessions for night time.
Everything will depend on your routine and your human needs
According to this last approach, runners will train in the morning. In contrast, bodybuilders and swimmers must choose times between noon and 18.00 hours. Obviously, professional athletes have a specific dynamic, oriented to their discipline.
On the other hand, we can never leave out the human component. We live in a world full of schedules, society, work, obligations and psychological factors. At the end of the day, the important thing is, to not stop exercising.
