I hope your week is off to a great start! Have you fit in any good early morning sweat sessions yet? I teach a lot of early morning classes and have an infant who likes to wake up at 7:30 AM, so I know how hard it can be to get motivated to workout first thing in the morning. Luckily, I am a morning person, but I know not everyone is (aka my hubby the night owl).
With work, family, friends, and non-stop activities, sometimes the morning is the only time we have to workout. Even if you are not a natural morning person, there are a lot of things you can do to help make working out in the morning easier.
source
Wake Up and Workout Tips:
- Set out your workout clothes the night before. If you won't be going home after the gym, pack your work clothes, breakfast, lunch and whatever else you need so you are ready to go in the morning.
- Plan your activity ahead of time. Make sure you have a plan for your AM workouts. If you wake up with the intention to workout, but no firm plan, you are much more likely to fall back to sleep. So write out your strength workout, have a training plan for your next race, or print out a fun cardio interval workout.
- Even better, workout with a friend! You don't want to let your friend down by hitting the snooze button when they are at the gym waiting for you.
- No crazy buddy to meet you at 6 AM? Head to a great group exercise class! It will hold you accountable and provide you with a great workout without you having to think about what to do. Find a class you really enjoy so that you look forward to going no matter what time it is.
- Set your coffee pot to turn on right when your alarm goes off so your coffee is ready when you get to the kitchen. Every morning I wake up, want to hit snooze, and then tell myself "to just get to the coffee pot and it will all be ok." By the time I have my first few sips of coffee, I am awake and ready to go. I think part of it is mental, but hey, who cares it works!
- Fuel your workouts. Be sure to have a light snack of healthy carbohydrates and protein before you workout. You've been fasting all night, so you will be able to workout longer and harder if you have a little something in your stomach. Everyone is different, but I usually go with half a protein bar, a Bama with a touch of peanut butter, or a homemade energy bite.
- Spice up your playlist! Nothing gets me more excited for a class or a run like a new playlist! I have included my Barre and Pilates Mat Class playlist below for some ideas. What are your favorite songs to workout to?
Pilates Remix
Hopefully, these tips will help you tackle your next early morning workout and start your day out on top! What are some tips you use to wake up early and sweat?
In health,
