What’s Your Prime Workout Time?
Each person has a different prime workout time. There’s no right or wrong time, since it’s based on your internal clock. Do you jump out of bed in the morning, ready to face the day, or are you constantly hitting the snooze button, finally dragging yourself out of bed? The most important thing you can do is simply start a workout program, even if you have to adjust the time later for a time that works better with your schedule and your body.
Some people love working out before leaving for work, others find it better at lunchtime or after work.
There are benefits for every time of day. For those that choose the first thing in the morning, not only do they get to check it off before the day gets crazy, there are physical benefits. You’re fasting when you sleep, so if you workout when you first arise, you’ll get the benefit of working out on an empty stomach. Your body will be using stored fat for energy. It can train your body to burn fat more efficiently. To ensure you don’t break down muscle tissue, drink a protein shake or eat a small amount of protein and carbs, like peanut butter and apple, a half hour before working out.
If you want to train for aerobic events or improve your endurance, make sure you have adequate stores of glycogen.
If you’re training for a specific event, such as a marathon that requires endurance, working out at noon, the late afternoon or early evening can be your best bet. Your muscles and liver have the maximum amount of glycogen at that time. It happens after you’ve consumed a full meal with carbs, protein and fat two to three hours earlier. That store of glycogen ensures you won’t run out of energy during your exercise routine.
If you want to build strength and do power lifting, you won’t do your best when you first arise.
If you’re expecting to do your best when you’re pumping iron, don’t expect to do it when you first jump out of bed. Your body temperature is lower when you sleep and it takes a bit of activity before it rises. Also, the discs in your back are filled with fluid and that also goes back to normal after you’ve been up a while. Give your body time to wake up if you’re doing strength training, especially if you have back problems.
- No matter what time is your best, once you find it, be consistent. If you schedule your workout at the same time every day, it will become a habit. Make sure you treat your workout as you would any appointment.
- Make sure your workout time works with your schedule. If your mornings are rushed, but you always have time after work, it makes sense to exercise then.
- If you love the feeling of relaxation working out brings after a long stressful day, that’s the best time for you to workout. Some people actually find that the later they workout, the easier it is to sleep. Others find it makes sleeping difficult if they workout too late.
- Don’t forget to grab something light to eat a half hour before a strenuous morning workout to supplement depleted glycogen. You’ll still burn fat, but have the energy to maximize your effort.
For more information, contact us today at Next Level Fitness
Even if you workout three times a week at Next Level Fitness in Irvine, CA, it’s still important to keep active when you aren’t at the gym. Studies show that even if you workout regularly, you’ll lose a lot of the benefit if you regularly sit for longer than an hour. If you have a desk job or are at the computer, take five minutes out of every hour to move. It can be something as simple as just getting up and walking around the room or even doing a simple exercise, like jogging in place. You’ll feel better, do your body a favor and be more alert to finish your mental work more quickly, since the movement stimulates blood flow.
What is your healthiest version of you? If you don’t know or haven’t experienced the healthiest you for a while, it’s time to make a change. You could look better, feel better and enjoy the benefits of good health and more energy by starting today. If you take your car to the mechanic for regular oil changes and other maintenance, are you treating your body as well as you do your vehicle? If the answer is no, then you have to ask, “why not?”
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If you feel shaky after a workout, you might be concerned that something is wrong with you. In most cases, there’s no need for concern. It’s quite normal and can happen for a number of reasons. Even though most of those reasons shouldn’t alarm you needlessly, there’s no reason to ignore ones that indicate a more serious problem. Learning the common causes is important and can help you avoid the shakiness. When you feel shaky, note any other symptoms that occur at the same time.
You may notice many older people have less muscle mass. That’s because of sarcopenia, which is muscle loss due to aging and related to a reduction in hormones. You can slow the process and even reverse it in some cases and many of my senior members at Next Level Fitness in Irvine, CA, prove it all the time. At one time, it was just accepted that you had to get older and more feeble as you age, but not today. While you can’t completely stop aging, you can slow and even reverse muscle loss with exercise and a healthy diet.
You are what you eat and if you want to look younger and be the best version of yourself, there are foods that can help you do it. Foods contain not only nutrients for building healthy looking skin a more youthful appearance, but also antioxidants that protect each cell from free radicals. Free radicals cause cell damage and death and the more damage and death that occurs, the more potential for serious conditions, aging and even death.
If you want to take seconds of your running time, your natural inclination is to run more. However, there are other things you can do to improve your performance when it comes to running. There are workouts to get faster and ways to improve your overall fitness that will cut seconds to minutes off your time. Building power and improving explosive movements help you when you push off to start the run. That ultimately improves your stride, making each step more powerful and faster than you thought possible.