Get It Done: Morning Workouts

1. Ease into it: Just sit up… and take 5 – 10 deep, cleansing breaths.

It’s have to jump up and change your clothes right after a jarring morning alarm. Sitting up helps you wake up more peacefully so that it doesn’t become something you dread. It takes 2 minutes max. And it gets you halfway there – in a postive, oxygen-rich mindset that feels great.

2. Run in place for 4 minutes.
Don’t change your clothes or make this a production: just get out of bed and DO IT… run in place (or march, or do high knee lifts) for 4 minutes.

3. Drop and do 25 knee tuck push-ups.
Again, no fuss, don’t change your clothes, just do it before you change your mind. Get down into a plank on your hands and toes, abs tight and glutes contracted. Then tuck your right knee to your left elbow, then your left knee to your right elbow, then do a push up. If this move is too advanced, you can just do 25 push-ups from your knees… and work up to the harder option.

4. Change to your workout clothes at go workout!
Okay, so now you are warm and ready to go – and with oxygen and nutrients pumping throughout your body, you will be feeling better about doing to do a full workout. Spend 20 – 60 minutes doing your favorite workout. This is also great time to invite a workout buddy over to help you give your 100% best to a complete workout.

If you sincerely do not have time to do a morning workout at this point, then commit to an exact time to finish your workout and don’t let anything get in your way.

5. Repeat steps 1 – 4 every morning for the next 4 mornings, for a 5-workout test.
If you pass 5 workouts, you can make it happen consistently as well. If you haven’t been doing morning workouts, then passing the 5-workout test is a huge accomplishment! You’ve made it through the toughest part – now you just have to keep it up! If you don’t make it through 5 workouts, scale back to 3 or 4 workouts per week and try again. And keep trying for at least a month.

IF you are not a morning person, and you try and fail, every single day – for over a month – then face it: you are not a morning person and should be working out night (or during lunch). Some people are just not morning people – and if you are one of those people, telling yourself to make it happen in the morning can make you feel like a failure – and that can zap your motivation and eventually lead you to just flat-out give up on exercise. If this sounds like you, it’s time to step back, look at your entire day and say: “claiming I have NO time is not an option here. I can find a few minutes to fight for my health… so when can I fit in a 30 minute workout?” Scour your schedule and find the time – 10, 20, or 60 minutes. If that ends up being 5am, 9am, noon or 8pm or midnight, fine. Schedule it and do it.

A couple tips:

– To keep it interesting, schedule your workout plan: whatever you will do this week to keep your workout exciting. Select at least 3 different activities such as: walking, running, swimming, cycling, workout DVDs with a buddy, Zumba or weight training. Write it down on paper, or put a reminder on your phone – noting the planned activity and exact time you will work out.

– Hire a trainer, recruit a friend, or call in a family member (or try all three if you need serious reinforcements!) to meet you for your morning workout session.

– This article is about morning workouts because statistics show (and my 20 years working in a health club) that people are more consistent – and therefore successful – when they work out in the morning, before the day gets crazy. So give this “morning thing” a try – even if you think you aren’t a morning exercise-type person. Just try. If it doesn’t work with your life, then make lunch or nighttime workouts a part of your regular schedule.