How to exercise upon awakening??

[Hoggirl]

Okay. I need some help. I have gotten into a pretty good habit of exercising three to four times a week. However, this is usually not happening until 2:30 or 3:00 in the afternoon which is really not working too well...at least not every day. Plus, I am not showering until after that, which is just kind of yucky. I really want to make a switch to exercising first thing in the morning before my ds gets up. I am not keen on the idea, b/c I am not a morning person by nature anyway, but I think if I can just get into the habit of doing this my days will go better, and I won't be so frustrated. So. If I do this, do I need to drink water before I start? How much? I hate the sloshy water thing going on while exercising, but it doesn't seem prudent to awake and not even drink anything before exercising. I only exercise 30 minutes, but still. Do I need to wait after I drink? This is part of the reason I can't get my exercising in when I want to b/c I have to wait for my breakfast to settle and then there isn't enough time before we start school, etc.

 

So, if you exercise upon awakening, how do you do this?

 

TIA.

[Snickerdoodle]

Roll out of bed and put your exercise clothes on. Take a small swish of water to rinse out mouth. Exercise.

 

You're welcome. ;)

[nono]

I take it one further. I often sleep in my running clothes. (running shoes right next to my bed in place of my slippers)

[Twigs]

I know if I don't exercise 1st thing, it's not going to happen!

 

I keep water with me at night, and drink whenever I'm thirsty, so that's no problem. If I'm thirsty when I start to exercise, I drink; if I'm not thirsty, I don't.

 

I also am in the habit of not eating before I exercise - I eat after, unless I'm really hungry, then I eat something small, a piece of fruit or some yogurt.

 

The BIG motivation for me to exercise 1st thing is knowledge I got from Bob Green and Oprah Winfrey's book Make the Connection. Bob Green says that your metabolism decreases at night (to help you sleep) and then rises in the morning. Exercise gets your metabolism rising more, so when you exercise 1st thing in the morning your metabolism gets a bigger boost, which can help in weight loss. Read the book for a better explanation! I exercisered 1st thing in the morning for a year and a half and lost 65 pounds (I paid attention to calories, too). I still exercise 1st thing in the morning to help maintain my loss. I also exercise 30 minutes a day, 6-7 days a week.

 

Hope this helps you. Best Wishes.

[JudoMom]

I wake up, make coffee, drink a bit, take my thyroid med, and hit the treadmill with a water bottle.

[kewb]

I wake up, brush my teeth, put on my exercise clothes, take a few sips of water, and go. If I don't exercise when I first get up it just doesn't happen.

[Xuzi]

I lay my exercise clothes out before going to bed, then get up, get dressed, fill a water bottle with some Crystal Light, drink some of it, eat a banana, then go. I drink more Crystal Light as I go along, then usually fill the water bottle up again when I'm done and drink it all. By then my kids are up, so I get them dressed, make them breakfast, then make breakfast for myself.

[MBM]

It took a while for me to switch to mornings, but I'm really glad I did. A cup of coffee is the fuel that gets me going.

 

I prefer to do intervals on the dreadmill first thing in the morning. Three minutes normal pace, two minutes fast pace -- for about 20 minutes. Then I'll sometimes do a few sets of weights while watching the morning news or listening to my iPod.

[mama2cntrykids]

Hmmm...interesting! Maybe I should switch to exercising first thing in the AM too. I didn't realize that it gives your metabolism (sp?) a boost. Why is that? I usually don't exercise until after the kids have done school at about 10:30am or so. Not only am I doing Jillian Michael's Fat Burner (or something like that) but I plan on running in the afternoons after my step-son get's home from school, so he can watch the other kids. Not that I'm gone for long, but I feel better if he's here to keep an eye on things.

[lynn]

The biggest thing for me is having everything set to go the night before so you don't waste time looking for socks, proper bra, hair stuff or whatever. I also had water, banana, a handful of raisens or cliff bar before I head out.