Who else is NOT a morning person?!

Last night I looked at my Monday schedule and knew I wouldn’t be able to fit in an evening workout. A few of us had planned on going out after work for a Happy Hour farewell drink for a friend’s last day before she moves (good luck, Sonal!). So, what to do?!

I have been trying to get to the gym more lately, and in the whirlpool after my exercise on Friday afternoon, I chatted with someone who said they hit the gym around 6 times a week. I astonishingly asked, “How the heck do you have time to get there nearly every day of the week?!”

They replied that they get up at 5:30am and get it done right away! Suffering at even the thought of that, I told them that I’m definitely not a morning person and could never do that and just dismissed that crazy idea. But then they added, “Oh, but I also go to bed at 8 at night.”

Wow. That’s sure opposite of me. But last night, I said to myself, “Self… you can do it one morning so that you can get a workout in and start the week off right. Plus, so many people say they get up early and do it. Also, there’s so much talk out there that the morning is the best time to work out because it ramps up your metabolism to burn fat all day.

So, always up for trying something new (so that you don’t have to go through the pain!), I went to bed a little early last night (by 10:30) and set my alarm about 45 minutes earlier than normal.

Well, that alarm went off really soon and I said heck with it and reset it for 1/2 hour later. But as I looked at my dog, who is ALWAYS ready to go outside or go for a walk, I turned the 2nd alarm off and got my tired butt out of bed instead of getting that extra snooze time.

I did 25 minutes of a workout video – old school Billy Blanks Tae Bo Advanced (check it out here. Look around for many other workouts of his on YouTube or go to Greatist.com for other free workout video ideas.) It was perfect…a decent warm up and some good cardio. Billy can hold his own against today’s workout guru’s!

Afterwards, I took Chewie for a walk to cool myself down before getting in the shower. It was really cool this morning, so it was perfect. After a homemade blueberry protein smoothie for breakfast and a shower, I headed to work. As I drove I felt like I had already gone through half my day. Yes, this whole morning thing took up about 45 minutes more than normal, but it didn’t set me back too much since I woke up early.

By the time I sat down at my desk, I already had 4,363 steps according to my Fitbit…almost halfway to my 10,000 daily step goal!

RESULTS:

Did I feel all pumped full of energy all morning? Actually, I still felt a little tired haze around me in the morning, however, I’m doing OK. But no, I’m not all hopped up on energy. (But I also can’t expect that with only doing this one day!)

Was it worth it to wake up early to do it? If I hadn’t woken up early, I wouldn’t have gotten a workout in today. Period. So, yes, it was worth it.

Will this be the turning point of me becoming a morning person and continuing it every day? I highly doubt it, but it would be nice! I can’t seem to get to bed early even when I try… but I’m willing to give it a chance. So I will try it again tomorrow morning (and hope I don’t reset my alarm then!). My want to do it just needs to outweigh my want for sleep.

What is my overall feeling about doing this after just one day? I’d love to be able to wake up early every day to work out. I could get it done and out of the way and still get home right after work to let my dog out. That way, I would know I’d get a workout in for sure. Plus, there’s a positive feeling of accomplishment that goes with it.

What advice can I give someone who is too busy to fit a workout in? We are ALL busy. As I’ve said in posts before, it comes down to how bad you want to do something – you always seem to find the time to fit in whatever is a priority to you. In my case, does my priority of sleep outweigh my priority of exercise? We will see!

Give it a try and let me know any experiences you have with morning (or any other time) exercising – or advice that might make it easier or smoother for all of us to fit a workout in.

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NOTE: I wrote this post at lunch today, but did not post it until now, and when I went out, I ended up sampling fried objects that were, but did not remotely resemble vegetables nor cheese, as well as sampling tastes of a couple cupcakes. I blame myself. So, I definitely WILL be working out tomorrow morning again!