Exercising first thing in the morning!!

[realtreegirl]

I've attempted exercising in the evenings before. With working full time as a teacher and raising three children at home, it doesn't work. By the time I get home from work, make supper and help kids with homework I am just exhausted and dont feel like working out! I need to wake up by 4:45 or 5am before work to get it done. EVERY morning I set my alarm. EVERY morning I hit the snooze and just cant seem to get our of bed! What is wrong with me! How can I make myself get up?!?! I'm usually asleep by around 9:30-10pm on weeknights. Will it get easier to get up after I've done it for a week or two? 

[ginger_biscuit]

I had the EXACT same problem! Then I bought this bad boy:  http://www.amazon.com/Sonic-SBB500ss-Vibrating-Alarm-Clock/dp/B000OOWZUK/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1407...

I also started taking melatonin around 9pm and went straight to bed. No phone, tablet, or anything that would shine light in my eyes. I get a solid 7.5 hours of sleep and now am in such a routine that I wake up much easier and go to sleep with no fuss, and most of the time no need for sleep aids. It is seriously all about routine, and now that I have mine down, I love it, and am way more successful. And the best part is, I have the whole evening to do whatever I want!

Good luck to you! Hope my post helps! 🙂

[Tcup]

Yes it definitely gets easier after a little bit. 

It was MUCH harder to get up in the first two weeks at 6am to go for a run- it's like second nature now. 

It DOES get easier and is sooo worth it. Getting up in the morning to workout really wakes you up and sets your healthy mentality for the whole day 

[mrolling03]

I completely empathize with the early morning attempts and then failures at getting up. It's difficult getting up that early in the mornings, but after a couple of weeks it does get easier. I used to get up no earlier than 6:30 or 7, but I wanted to start working out in the mornings otherwise I knew I would never make it to the gym.

A couple of things that helped me:

*Set your alarm in a different room (best choice being the bathroom), sometimes when you have to stand up and walk over to turn it off you feel slightly less motivated to just go back to bed

*Have your workout gear right next to your bed or in your bathroom so once you're standing just get changed- then make the decision if you want to work out or not (usually once the outfit is on you feel like you might as well go. Plus having it ready to go makes it more difficult to make an excuse to not get out of bed)

*If possible find a morning workout buddy, or at the very least someone who can wake you up.

When I first started waking up, my boyfriend would just nudge me until I got out of bed (he couldn't join me at that point because he was weeks away from surgery for a partial bowel obstruction). After his surgey and recovery period, my boyfriend then starting joining me for our morning workouts. We get up at 4:30am every morning except Wednesdays and Sundays where we sleep in until 6am (those are rest days for us). This routine has become so internalized that we even continued it when we were on vacation visiting family.

I can't imagine the toll that being a teacher and having kids of your own takes on you, but building a support network of loved ones who support your fitness goals will really help to push you. 

I wish you the best of luck with everything!

[bdaniels04]

I think part of the issue, too, is breaking yourself of the habit of hitting the snooze button. You have to hold yourself accountable and when you start doing that, you're able to make those new adjustments. I used to like to lounge around in the mornings for several minutes too, but I made the decision one day that I was going to start getting up and once I did that, and forced myself to do it no matter what, then it got easier because I was holding myself accountable.

[Trident]

Hey Realtreegirl,

     I am with you on the afternoon/evening workouts. For me, it I don't exercise in the morning then I am not likely to do it at any other part of the day. But think of this before you hit that snooze button.....You will always feel guilty about NOT working out but you will never feel guilty after you workout!  Additionally, I always lay out my workout clothes the night before so they are the first things I see in the morning.  When you make the effort to get up early in the morning it just becomes a routine like anything else. I am at the point now that if I don't get up early I feel guilty.  Of course living on a farm when I was growing up milking cows and being in the military helps a bit with the early rising issue. Best of luck

[EndOfLevelBoss]

Personally I find it easier to work out first thing in the morning. I now do it on autopilot so by the time I've really woken up my 25 minute routine is done. Alarm goes off. Immediately I get out of bed, grab some water, turn on music and lights and just start.

At first it was really hard to get up earlier specifically to work out but now I'm used to it I honestly feel pretty alert and refreshed after doing the exercise.

I'd recommend starting off with a really short routine. Use it to get in the habit of getting up immediately and working out. Once you get into the habit then you can extend the routine. Also as you get more used to the regular exercise you'll be able to increase the intensity without adding loads of extra time.

I started by doing 20 push ups and 40 sit ups daily. That was it. Then I gradually increased the numbers and added different exercises as I felt what I was doing becoming less challenging. Now I'm doing 50 - 60 push ups, 60 crunches, 40 squats, bicep and tricep stretches whilst running on the spot and finishing off with a 2 minute plank. I usually get 2000+ steps on my Fitbit by doing this and burn 150 - 200 calories. All in roughly 20 minutes. Doing that every day plus trying to hit at least 100K steps per day has made me feel much fitter and more alert. I even lost some weight along the way. No gym membership needed.

I wish you luck!

[EndOfLevelBoss]

^ Obviously I meant 10K steps, not 100K! I'm not that motivated. 😊

[Digitenor]

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@EndOfLevelBoss wrote:
Personally I find it easier to work out first thing in the morning. I now do it on autopilot so by the time I've really woken up my 25 minute routine is done. Alarm goes off. Immediately I get out of bed, grab some water, turn on music and lights and just start.

I have to do this too.  I wake up for 5.30 and I'm still very much asleep but conscious.  I have a little mind battle weighing pro's/cons of sleep vs gym before work.

It's far easier now a month on - and I follow my routine of a coffe and getting ready then walk to the gym.

Have an hour cardio and then work.  By the evening I'm shattered and asleep by 10.30. 

It's a lot easier working out in the morning though, than after a full day. It's also good for fat burning on an empty stomach first thing, as long as you eat fairly soon after workout.