Now I know that it's easier said then done to do your workouts in the early morning... especially if you have long working hours and need to get into your car and on your way to your job before 8 am... (I'm blessed with my lifestyle and don't do this anymore)... I really think it's worth it to get up each day and do some type of exercise that you enjoy, here's why...
The body needs to wake up... before you have your day to day grind you need to fuel up, energize and activate your system. Doing a short and intensive workout in the morning is the perfect start of the day. You get your blood pumping, the heart rate up, your lungs opened, your mind cleared, endorphins released into your system (a chemical in your brain that triggers a positive feeling in your body and reduces pain) and most of the time you also increase your self-esteem. I say most of the time cause I definitely have been in several occasions that I tried a type of workout that really wasn't for me.. and felt quite ridiculous afterwards.
The photo above is from one of my strength and conditioning classes at the Bocas Fight Gym. We always train at 8 am from Monday trough Saturday. Sometimes I don't feel like going but I always do, and it keeps being rewarded with that happy feeling that even though you were tired, you went, and now you don't feel tired anymore. It also really motivates to train with a group of people that came there for similar reasons. And above all, we always have fun during the workouts. This is the most important factor that I like to mention... do something you really enjoy doing. Or find a group you really enjoy training with. Otherwise it's very hard to keep it up and be consistent.
Personally I don't eat breakfast before my workout. Simply because I don't like to train with food in my stomach, and I also believe it's good to give the body a chance to clean up all the sluggishness and left overs from the previous day before you start consuming foods again. The only thing I consume in the morning before going to the gym is a glass of water and my morning cup of tea, made from fresh ginger, turmeric, black pepper, a squeeze of lemon or lime and a little bit of honey.
Sometimes I like to get up extra early and paddle out in the ocean, either on my surfboard, or with my cayuco team... being in the water and see the sun rise gives that extra boost. It's so calm and serene that it has similar effects to a good meditation session. Hard to explain if you never experienced it. Definitely worth trying it!
Enjoying the sun rise at Bluff beach
Imagine waking up, immediately drinking coffee (which is acidic for the body and actually takes your energy away) and stepping in your car straight to your desk behind your computer... Your body never even woke up. If this is you, I really recommend trying to do something active before you start your working hours, I'm sure you will benefit hugely!!
Also, it keeps the metabolism up during the day so it's helps your body to digest things faster and your brain actually works better too. So that benefits whatever tasks you need to perform in the rest of the day!
Hope you got motivated by reading this!! Now go get sweaty!!
