stop torturing yourself.
I was never a morning person and like most adults I don’t have energy in the evening. I injured myself during a 6am class for not being awake enough to pay attention to the small things.

I think the key for evening workout is not being too intensive, a zoom floor barre class or zoom mat Pilates class worked for me, I take them at 7:30pm.

^my spouse and I both work FT, and my career is demanding/in office. We limit activities for this reason. One of us would have to work PT if we added anything more to the portfolio.

Anonymous wrote:To the folks who are in bed by 8:30 -- how exactly does this work? On my in-office days, there are times I'm not even home before 6-7. Between getting kids fed, getting them to/from any afternoon/evening activities, any other chores/errands - an 8:30 bedtime is impossible. I'm 30 years into my career and have never worked in an environment where people wrap the day at 4.

I work in healthcare administration, and healthcare skews early: I have my share of 8 am meetings. I am a PP who works out at 5 am. So a typical workday (I am in office four days a week):

4:15-up, quickly dress, make an iced coffee and drink it on the way to Orangetheory

5-6 workout

6-7 get ready, get kids ready (bags and lunches are packed the night before)

7:30-4 work

4-7 dinner, bath, books, TV, kids bedtime

7-9 clean up, hang out, go to bed

You just do it. I am in my basement working out by 5 am - when I went to the gym or workout classes I would leave by 4:45 for the 5 am slot. You don’t want to. Your body wants to sit and rest. You literally just force yourself and don’t make it an option. Eventually it becomes habit. You still don’t always want to do it but it becomes easier to just push through

To the folks who are in bed by 8:30 -- how exactly does this work? On my in-office days, there are times I'm not even home before 6-7. Between getting kids fed, getting them to/from any afternoon/evening activities, any other chores/errands - an 8:30 bedtime is impossible. I'm 30 years into my career and have never worked in an environment where people wrap the day at 4.

Anonymous wrote:I want to go to bed at 830/9 but I have teens and it's impossible. It's not consistent for me but what works is working out when they are working out. So if I drop for practice, I go for a run rather than go home. Or go to the gym etc.

💩

I want to go to bed at 830/9 but I have teens and it's impossible. It's not consistent for me but what works is working out when they are working out. So if I drop for practice, I go for a run rather than go home. Or go to the gym etc.

Anonymous wrote:In bed by 8:30, lights out by 9. Join a program that charges you a no show fee. Orangetheory, Solidcore, BurnBoot, F45, etc. Just do what you’re told so you don’t have to think that early. My friend says the 5am class is the best because it’s 5:45 before you’re actually awake and then by then it’s just about over.

This. Financial consequence for not showing up.

It will suck for a few weeks. There’s no way around that. I’m a morning person and there are still some days I really don’t want to get up but I just do. Everything ready the night before. Coffee set to automatically go off, clothes ready. Alarm goes off I get a cup of coffee get dressed and am out the door to run or class without thinking about it.

I needed to be up by 6 to get my workout in. I would much prefer to get up at 7. So I would get up at 6:45 for a week and do 15 minutes of stretches and calisthenics. I would incrementally set clock back 5 minutes every few days until I was getting up at 6 and doing the full routine.

Anonymous wrote:In bed by 8:30, lights out by 9. Join a program that charges you a no show fee. Orangetheory, Solidcore, BurnBoot, F45, etc. Just do what you’re told so you don’t have to think that early. My friend says the 5am class is the best because it’s 5:45 before you’re actually awake and then by then it’s just about over.

This is how I converted myself to a consistent AM exerciser. It took a couple years for it to stick, but I don't even go to any of those classes anymore.

In bed by 8:30, lights out by 9. Join a program that charges you a no show fee. Orangetheory, Solidcore, BurnBoot, F45, etc. Just do what you’re told so you don’t have to think that early. My friend says the 5am class is the best because it’s 5:45 before you’re actually awake and then by then it’s just about over.

You just do it. I work out at 5 am two days a week because I have a mostly in-office job and three kids. It’s my only option. Once you’ve done it for a few weeks it won’t be a big deal and it will give you more energy, so long as you plan accordingly (lay out clothes the night before, go to bed at 8:30/9 rather than 10:30/11).

Might not be helpful because I’m naturally a morning person, though not THIS much of one. When I had young kids and worked in an office and had a commute (the 10 years leading up to Covid) I would set my alarm for 5 am, set the coffee maker, and put out my workout clothes. I’d have a single cup of coffee, go to the bathroom, put on my clothes, and leave for a run. I’d get in 2-3 miles and then come home and start my day. I also went to bed by 9 back then.

Now I have teens and WFH 4/5 days, so I run at 7:30 instead. What keeps me going is how good I feel after the run.

I’ve tried all the tips and still can’t make it work. I WFH so I prefer 830am or late afternoon workouts

Tips:

- lay out workout clothes next to bed

- wake up, drink water and get dressed right away. Don’t get distracted by scrolling on phone or other time suck activities

- plan your routine ahead of time so you know exactly what to do whether that’s working out at home or going to the gym

- prep your accessories (water bottle, headphones, towel, etc) and have them ready to go

- try to stick with it for at least 2 weeks but ideally 6 to establish a routine

Help me become a morning exercise person at least on M/T/W, which are the days I have to go into the office and have less motivation in the evenings. From my college days through when I had kids, I was an after work exercise person, then once I had kids I stopped taking care of myself, then got back into my after work exercise routine and I now I don’t know if it’s age or what, I just cannot squeeze it in. I’m either too tired or too distracted by other things that have to get done. On the days I WFH, I’m able to get it in more like middday. Same on the weekends or I’ll do mornings on the weekends like around 9, but on those in-office days, I just can’t get myself up to do it before work and by the time 5/5:30 rolls around, I’m dealing with kid stuff etc and cannot get the workout in. So my only choice is the AM. I would need to do it between 6:00-7. Ugh it just is not my thing to be up and working out then, but I need to force myself. Any tips??