The perfect
Workout Timing

Have you ever wondered if the way you schedule your workout impacts your performance? Finding the perfect time to exercise is as much about physiology as it is personal preference. So how exactly do you figure out what is the best time of day to hit the gym? Well, it depends on what you are focusing on…

Improve your sleep? Try: just after waking up

Interestingly, sweating it up in the morning can lead to a more restful evening. This is because exposure to daylight soon after waking helps to establish the body clock, essentially ‘clocking in’ for waking hours, which makes ‘clocking out’ at night a bit easier. Additionally, research shows that morning exercise can reduce blood pressure throughout the day, which supports better sleep.

Weight loss? Try: early morning

Exercising soon after waking up can make you more likely to keep moving and burning calories throughout the day, kickstarting your metabolism so to say. It can also help you burn fat, because if you’re exercising before eating breakfast, your body starts to convert fat storages into workout fuel.

It can also be easier to keep a morning workout routine consistent, as it may conflict with fewer responsibilities, and regularity equals results.  Finally, research also suggests that moderate morning exercise may curb the appetite directly after working out, making healthier food choices just a tad bit easier.

Just make sure to warm up slowly and ease into the exercise if you are jumping into a workout right after waking up.

Strength? Try: late afternoon or early evening

Most of us hit a peak of energy from about 2pm to 6pm, in part due to the responsiveness of your body’s testosterone to exercise at this time of day. Testosterone is important for muscle growth and strength gains and is shown to be produced more in the late afternoon compared to the morning.

Also, your body’s core temperature typically increases throughout the day, hitting its height at this time. This means your flexibility is up, and your endurance and strength may peak in correlation. Plus, in the late afternoon your lungs are at optimum capacity which allows you to dive deeper into that tough workout.

Prepping for a competition? Try: always at the same time

Consistently training at the same time can help rule out other factors that may affect performance, helping you to figure out what is impacting your competition outcome. This extra analysis can help you tweak your results. Also, research suggests that sticking to a specific time can result in lower perceived exhaustion, which can make a significant difference in a competitive setting.

Bottom Line:

In the end it is most important to stick to a consistent, steady workout schedule. Depending on your preferences and what you are currently focused on within your exercise regime, you can add some basic knowledge about physiology to ‘hack’ your workouts.