Morning workouts - prep, routine and everything else

[charlieparker]

I'm trying to switch to do my workouts in the morning instead of after work. Going into Winter, I'd like to take full advantage of the few hours after work when we may still have some sun and get out for a dog walk or a walk with a friend.

I've been watching lots of YouTube videos on people's morning/morning workout routines. But some seem very far-fetched and not realistic if you have to get to work at 8 (like getting up at 6, doing yoga, doing a 1hour workout, cooking breakfast, washing hair and drying it, journalling etc before starting to work at 9 or 10). I am planning to still get up at 6 (or earlier) as I have to start working from home at 8.

My question is for those who work out in the mornings: what does your morning routine look like? When do you get up? What/when do you eat? What sort of workout do you do? How do you plan for it and get ready for work? Is there any food, warmup routine, workout routine, clothes, accessories you would recommend to make the whole process easier?

Thank you in advance!

Edit: I'm doing Caroline Girvan's workouts at home, so I won't need to bother to get to a gym at this stage.

Edit 2: thank you all so much for your comments! I'm reading from all of them trying to take everything I can use for my new routine

 

[pete71]

@charlieparker I get up at half five, have breakfast and get ready for the gym, cycle to the gym at half six, out of the gym by eight or just after, home and showered by about half eight, protein shake and snack and then I start my working day (working from home).

On days I don't have the gym, I still get up at roughly the same time give or take half an hour and usually go for a walk on the beach or do some yoga. Consistency makes everything easier.

 

[nanab]

@charlieparker One thing that has helped me actually get up out bed is having an alarm clock in the washroom (it’s right beside my bedroom) and it’s LOUD. There is no way I’ll sleep with that going off, and since I’m in the washroom I might as well go pee, then I’m up and it helps me stay up.

With addition to that, I have a sunrise alarm clock which is the best thing. It slowly brightens the 30 mins up until the alarm time which is 10 mins before bathroom alarm. I always wake up within those 30 mins, and then lay there until the bathroom goes off. It’s been working for me for the last few weeks.

 

[charlieparker]

@nanab Oh nice, I am going back and forth between getting a sunrise alarm clock. Sounds like it could be worth the investment.

 

[dawn16]

@charlieparker I’m a little late but I have the Alexa lights that fade in and I think they make a huge difference on my ability to get up and out of bed. When the lights are fully on by the time you wake up, it really helps keep you up.

Once I got a job with consistent 7:30-4:30 hours working out in the morning was actually easier for me and I’ve never been a morning person before.

 

[echopark]

@charlieparker I'll share my morning "workout from home" routine! I work at an office 9:00 a.m. to 5:30/6:00 and always workout in the morning. Twice a week at the gym, 3x a week at home. I also walk my dog every morning.

5:00 a.m.: wake up and make coffee.

5:30 a.m.: feed the dog, finish coffee (i love my early morning coffee routine!), change into workout clothes

6:00 a.m.: walk the dog 15-30 min.

6:30 a.m. - 7:30 a.m.: workout

7:30 a.m.: make protein smoothie for work, pack up lunch from the night before (if time, prep meal for supper, chop veggies, marinate protein, etc.)

8:00-8:30 a.m.: dress for work, do hair/make up, take dog out once more, leave for work.

If I didn't love my long coffee routine, I'd be able to wake up later but honestly knowing I can have coffee for 30-45 min before I need to do anything is what gets me out of bed.

As others have said, a lot of prep work can be done the night before for a successful morning routine. Have your workout clothes laid out. Lay out your work clothes the night before, too. Shower the night before. Practice some hair styles that'll work if your hair gets a bit sweaty and you don't have time to wash it after working out. Stock up on dry shampoo.

Meal prep if you can. I meal prep and menu plan on Sunday afternoons so I don't waste time during the week wondering what to make for take for lunch or make for supper (this week is carrot ginger soup for work lunch M-W, supper is ginger garlic tofu over veg and rice noodles M-W, etc.) Breakfasts are always post-workout protein smoothies that I can take to work. I also chop up vegetables (carrots, celery, cucumber, red peppers) for easy snacks with hummus.

Most importantly, recognize that you'll have to fine tune your routine as you try it. What works for some people won't work for you. And what works for you now might not work for you in a few months. For instance, my routine will shift once the weather gets warmer - I'll have to take my dog out as soon as I wake up at 5am so it's still cool(ish) for him, so things will get shifted around. Flexibility is important! Figure out what's not working, why it's not working, then come up with solutions to try out.

 

[abby82]

@charlieparker If you already following a workout plan and you workout from home then that would be easier for you. All you have to do is show up and do the work. If you have to go to work like me I prepped all my meals on Sunday. That is my dedicated time to prep all my meals for M-F. The night before, all my meals are packed, dress are already ironed and all my my gym stuff are in my bag (water, pre workout). Work out clothes were already planned as well the night before. Gym opens at 5AM, woke up at 4am do my morning shenanigans drink, coffee then head out at 445. Between that 45mins I also do my morning journals.

 

[mms]

@charlieparker I only gym twice a week, but this approach has served me well for a few years now. I make overnight oats for breakfast and pack my bags for the office the night before so when my alarm goes I literally roll out of bed, put on my gym clothes, brush my teeth and head out.

06:00 - Wake up

06:20 - Cycle to gym

06:40 - 08:00 - Gym

08:00 - Body shower at gym (I only go to the gym for weights so my hair can handle not getting washed!), then cycle to the office

08:30 - Arrive at work, get changed into work clothes, clean city cycle commute grime off face, put on make-up.

I used to intermittent fast so I'm used to working out on an empty stomach. I eat breakfast and have coffee when I get to work. My make-up and shoes etc just stay in the office and I tend to take all my work snacks etc in on a day where I'm not at the gym so I have more space in my panniers!

 

[christianwolf]

@charlieparker I wake up at 4am, straight into workout clothes and into my home gym for about 50 minutes. Shower around 5.15am, then coffee outside. Kids wake themselves between 5.30 - 6am and join me outside. Breakfast around 7am, get myself and kids ready and out the door by 8am.

 

[sloliver]

@christianwolf Honest question, what time do you go to bed to be able to wake up at 4am without issues?

 

[christianwolf]

@sloliver Usually between 8.30 - 9.30pm

 

[christian2011]

@charlieparker Wake up 4:45am, change into workout clothes beside bed, brush teeth, fix hair, bit of water, go to gym. Gym takes 1.25hr about. Or I'll stay home and get out of bed for 5:00am. Either way, after my workout is when I'll go home and basically pretend I just woke up. I'll do a bit of light strengthing if there's time, shower, breakfast, chill, get to work for 9:00am. Breakfast is an omelette or cereal and a protein shake with added fat (I'm bulking).

I hate feeling rushed. I'm not a morning person and definitely have days where I skip or push it by a day, but I find keeping the wake time really consistent is key. Otherwise it is SO EASY for me to skip into waking up too late to workout and I feel way more exhausted. I just have to get out of bed before I start thinking.

I have to workout before I'm fully awake or I won't do it.

ETA: I use athelte's fuel for lunch (Soylent sort of thing) which is just shake and go. No kids and I like to have a lot of time to relax before work. Bedtime is 8:30pm with a goal of sleep before 9pm.

 

[charlieparker]

@christian2011 Wow, that's so impressive!!

 

[christian2011]

@charlieparker Thank you! It's been very challenging in some ways, and gratifying and easier than others. I'm a huge night owl (worked overnights for a couple years even and LOVED it) so I often have to work on letting my routine slip later

 

[sabrinagrace]

@charlieparker I work 12 hour shifts from 6am-6pm. I wake up at 3:30am, let the dogs out and back in, drink coffee with protein powder in it, and load up my meals for the day into my cooler. I leave my house at 3:55am. I take a class at my gym from 4:15-5:15am. Then I go to work, shower, and start my work day. I will do skincare and makeup while working at my desk. I am in bed by 7:15 at night to make this work.

I meal prep on weekends and lay out my workout clothes the night before. I will also set aside work outfits for the week so I can quickly empty and repack my backpack each night. I have a locker at work for things like my towel and shower sandals. I also leave my shampoo/face wash/body wash in the shower at work.

 

[charlieparker]

@sabrinagrace Omg, 3:30 is so early. Very impressive!

 

[tammiemjohnson]

@charlieparker I’m a 9-5’er. I also try to do everything i can to prep for the next morning so I’m not panicking lol i have my gym clothes set out and water ready to go. I also go to bed around 9. My mornings usually go:

5:00-5:15ish: wake up, bathroom, change into gym clothes

5:20-5:30: get water, get gym bag, grab a rice cake if I want one and drive to gym (just a few minute drive)

5:30-6:45/7 (depending on day of split): workout, go home. The workout itself is usually 50-60min not including me stretching and warming up.

7: make breakfast

7:30-8:20: shower, get ready for day.

8:30: leave for work.

 

[charlieparker]

@tammiemjohnson Thanks for sharing, also having a rice cake is a really good idea, I will put to that on my list to incorporate as well.

 

[christian2011]

@tammiemjohnson Mine is basically this too! Just shifted 30min earlier.

 

[hz13116]

@charlieparker 5a-6:45a get up and work through email
6:45a-7:40a getting a two year old and five year old ready for daycare & kindergarten
7:40a-8:20a drop offs
8:20a-8:50a dishes, tidy up from morning chaos, any other quick chores like changing the cat litter or taking out the garbage
8:50a-9:30a get changed and do a 20-30 minute workout
9:30a-10a shower & get ready
10a resume workday