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9/28/12 11:10 A

This topic is filled with great suggestions. I'm going to try and give it a try this week. I have such a hard time not hitting the snooze button in the morning.

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Posts: 123
9/14/12 1:33 P

Waking up early is rough, you just have to commit to going to bed earlier. If friends/roommates/significant others judge, just remember that this is for YOU to feel better. Then, it depends on your body if you can handle or need a small amount of food/water or can just run on empty. I find that morning runs are best on an empty stomach or maybe a banana, that's it. Stretching doesn't help me much, but a quick warm-up like jumping jacks loosens things up. Then be sure to have a healthy breakfast with protein, like eggs, right after. You should have improved energy all through the day!

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8/16/12 8:20 P

I am trying soooo hard to get myself to the gym in the morning. I am just looking to get around 30 minutes of exercise in before I head off to work. They gym is way to packed when I get off work and my evening are spent doing studying for my master's program. I guess I will take it one day at a time - I will get there tomorrow morning!

Hope everyone else has luck getting up early too!

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8/12/12 4:26 P

I've been getting up between 5 and 6 to go for a run or bike ride in the morning and it's been going good so far. I have to get up early because my 10 month old usually wakes up around 7:30 so I need to be back before she wakes up. (Her dad's home with her while she's sleeping, he's just going through cancer treatment right now so he's weak, he could get up with her if he HAD to, I'd just rather do it). But some days I work a 6 am shift so I'd have to get up at 4 to be able to get in a quick run and shower before I went to work. Working out when I get home is almost definitely out, it almost never happens because I've tried to squeeze them in. But I don't think getting up at 4 is gonna happen. I suppose I could give it a try though.

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7/23/12 2:44 P

Thanks for the advice, everyone! I would like to become a morning exerciser but it's just so hard to get up any earlier.

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7/2/12 12:49 P

I love to workout first thing when I wake up. It gives me SO much more energy for the rest of the day! Here's my problem, though...when I have to go somewhere say, by 8 am, I absolutely cannot get out of bed to workout before I go. No matter how much I know it will help or feel good or whatever. Any advice/tips?

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6/28/12 7:41 A

Great advice, thank you. I've been stretching, but doing something more dynamic should get the blood flowing better like you said

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6/27/12 5:27 P

Hey, I've been a morning runner for as long as I can remember. What I've found is that if I spend maybe just five minutes doing leg exercises like squats, wall-sits, etc right before I run my legs are much more loose and ready to go. It's the same with arms, too. If you do maybe 10-20 push ups that really helps open up your chest. Plus, it's a great way to get the blood pumping for a little warm up. Hope this helps!

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6/26/12 3:05 P

Just a quick question. I've been doing great, managing to go on three mile runs before work twice a week. But with the early morning, the first mile sucks. My knees feel stiff and my quads feel cold and slow to repond. I can't push the pace at all and then the 2nd and 3rd miles are fine. Is this something I'll just have to accept since the muscles are cold from not walking around all day like usual? I do a thorough stretch before hand and I let my body force a slower pace to start since that's what it seems to want.

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6/24/12 9:15 P

This sounds like a good idea. You get some of your exercise out of the way so you don't have to worry about it during the day.
It will definetly encourage me to keep to my calorie count.

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6/14/12 10:44 A

http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/fitness_articles.asp?id=468

I found this article today and thought it may be of some use to those of use who want to be morning exercisers!

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6/11/12 9:44 A

I would love to be a morning runner, but it's the getting out of bed part that kills me! I'll definitely try going to bed earlier and see if that helps. I sometimes wake up before my alarm, but not with enough time to get a run in before I leave.

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6/8/12 9:20 A

I love my Camelpack. It is great for morning workouts and when it is sweltering out. At times just swirling some water around my mouth keeps me going a lot longer. Keeps my hands free (of everything, since it is a backpack) and adds a little bit of weight too!

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6/1/12 7:49 A

Thanks for the suggestions. I went for a run this morning again and it went well. I was in bed at 10, which I'm sure my roommate laughed at, and then up at 5. I had a bowl of frosted mini-wheats which had a bunch of whole grains in it and then just added a little milk. That felt much better on the run. Also drank about 24 oz of water before I left at 5:30. Had the greek yogurt again after which was great because it was nice and cool out of the fridge. :) We'll see how this goes. I'll probably try running with only water in the morning next to see how I like that. Didn't have any problem in the afternoon last time and I'm hoping it stays that way. Extra calories eaten in the morning may be helping that.

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5/30/12 2:58 P

I have to run in the mornings too because I CANNOT STAND to run when it's super hot and humid. I think the most important thing is to make sure you hydrate really well the day before. I don't like to drink much or eat anything right before I run, but I find I'm fine running on an empty stomach so long as I'm thoroughly hydrated. If you have to eat something beforehand, complex carbs, like fresh fruit, are usually best, or some people go with oatmeal.

Posts: 33
5/29/12 2:33 P

Hey Kylar. Good to hear about the internship. I can tell you what I know about working out in the morning. Firstly, it won't make you tired at work. Working out in the morning always makes me much more energetic by the time I get to work because I have already shaken out the cobwebs of sleep. Secondly, you will have the endorphins from the run in your body so you will be a happy morning person in the office, which will help your performance. My third suggestion is the most difficult. What you should aim for is to sleep until you wake up naturally. What this involves is going to bed earlier every night until you wake up before your alarm. Naturally if you go running in the morning you will be rising earlier so you will need to go to bed earlier than you do now. If you have such a lifestyle that waking without an alarm is not an option, at least try for 9 hours of sleep. Getting up in the morning is so much harder than going to the gym after work in my experience.

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5/29/12 8:29 A

Hey all, so I was gone from spark for a couple weeks because I relocated across the country for a summer/fall internship. I gained a few pounds in that time but now I'm trying to get back into the sucessful habits I was in. I used to run 3 days a week after I got off work, but I moved south and its 90-100 by the time 4:30 rolls around... I'd love to be able to get up and run 3-5 miles before work (have to leave by 7:00am). I was wondering if anyone who has done this before has suggestions for someone who is going to try that. What to eat and when, how to stay awake at work after, etc. Thanks!

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