What Is the Best Time to Do Workouts?

Time is a significant factor in any task we wish to accomplish. Specifically, finding the optimal time for physical programs, including workouts, seem like an arduous task. But you can choose your optimal time by comparing the benefits of the morning, evening, and night workouts. There is also an increase in research on the topic.

Whenever you have time, you can engage in any physical program. Since everyone has a unique lifestyle, consistency, work schedule, exercise plan, and body type, the time may differ from one person to another person.

This is the primary reason why you should avoid adopting someone’s schedule without finding out whether it is suitable for you or not. In addition, you have to note that consistency matters a lot.

If you follow it for a single day, it won’t give you the desired results. With that being said, we shall dive into a recent, well-known study on the optimal time to exercise conducted by scientists from Skidmore College.

Is Optimal Time Different for Men and Women?

While a majority of physical programs are designed to suit both men and women, we assume the optimal time to be similar for both genders. But a study revealed that optimal time is different for men and women. A US-based research team organized a 12-week training program that included resistance exercise, endurance training, and stretching.

For this study, the scientists from Skidmore College observed 30 men and 26 women within the age limit of 25 and 55. They had been engaging in structured physical activity four days per week for at least three years. They were split into groups and allotted a time schedule to be adopted regularly. Men and women, who were involved in the program, did four workouts per week regularly.

The results demonstrated that morning workouts benefited women in reducing their belly fat and blood pressure, while evening workouts helped them gain muscular strength.

When they saw the results in men, they found that both morning and evening exercises gave men strength, but evening exercises offered additional benefits, such as stimulating fat oxidation and reducing fatigue and systolic blood pressure.

The research found that both morning and evening workouts had considerable benefits. In women, morning exercises reduced fat and blood pressure and increased muscle power in the lower body, but evening exercises enhanced mood, upper-body muscle strength, and endurance.

In contrast to that, evening exercises in men stimulated fat oxidation and lowered blood pressure, while there was an increase in strength in both morning and evening exercises.

The study’s findings also suggested that exercising at different times of the day may have a significant impact on how well physically active people perform and maintain their health, possibly irrespective of their intake of macronutrients.

Morning Workouts Benefits

Morning workouts are said to have a balance over your hormonal composition that promotes weight loss. In the early morning hours, your hormones stimulating metabolism will be active, thereby burning accumulated fat for energy.

If you do workouts in the morning on an empty stomach, you can burn more fat for energy. The efficiency of your workouts remains higher in the morning hours due to your hormonal profile.

A study published in the Journal of Physiology reveals that morning workouts may fix your body clock earlier to regulate your sleeping hours.

Another piece of evidence suggests that exercising in the mornings may have control over your hunger, which prevents excess calorie intake. Morning exercise programs also support your mental health and productivity in a day.

Evening and Night Workouts Benefits

There is a considerable amount of people at present who only have a little time for workouts or any weight-loss programs in the morning. They are often worried about skipping one or two-morning workout sessions.

You can relieve the stress you had in the morning by doing evening or night workouts. Additionally, evening and night workouts do offer a range of health benefits. When you do evening workouts, they help release muscle tension and relax your body.

Both evening and night workouts improve your sleep quality, which is crucial for weight loss. Though night workouts may improve your sleep, you must leave enough time between your workouts and bedtime to avoid disrupting your sleep cycle.

Night workouts will help with your schedule and relieve the stress of the day. There are people who prefer evening workouts for engaging in rigorous workouts or strenuous training. They feel that the workouts enhance muscle strength and improve their focus.

How Do Sleep and Hormones Affect Your Physical Performance?

Your sleep quality is vital for your body’s metabolism. When you lack proper sleep, you will have a slower metabolism, which affects your physical performance. You can find it hard to do any exercise when you are tired or feeling restless.

In addition, the levels of cortisol hormones are high in the morning, so you will have more energy to burn fat. People, who spend more time in deep sleep, tend to be more energetic comparatively.

Your sleep duration has a positive impact on your performance endurance and athletic performance.

A balance in hormones is essential for any physical activity, as the imbalance could cause inflammation. Hormones play an indispensable role in enhancing muscle growth and energy.

Six major hormones are found to support your athletic performance. They are the growth hormone, estrogen, thyroxine, testosterone, cortisol, and triiodothyronine. They enhance your physical performance along with improving your bone health.

Bottom Line

The ideal time depends on your health condition, goals, lifestyle, and much more. Doing workouts during the time that you want to do them improves your physical performance rather than forcing yourself to fit into any schedule. You are recommended to do cardio exercises in the morning to strengthen your heart health and physical performance, as there is an increase in muscle stamina and endurance in the morning.

You can also consult your personal trainer in choosing the right physical program. Workouts during the morning, evening, and night have similar and distinctive benefits, which we have discussed before. Hence, you can choose your exercise routine depending on the kind of outcomes you want to see.

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