It's All About the Timing!

We should all know by now that regular exercise is a crucial component of keeping us healthy...right? But when should we exercise can be a much more difficult question to answer.

I see a lot of information that says that exercising in the late afternoon or early evening is the best time physiologically for your body. Your body temperature is higher, muscles and joints may be more flexible, it helps you unwind after a stressful day, etc. But, there can be some downsides to trying to exercise later in the day. I want to share my recent, personal experience on the subject.

If you are like me (I am by no stretch of the imagination a morning person...yet), then the thought of getting out of bed a little earlier to exercise seems to be out of the question. So, I always PLANNED to exercise when I got home from the office. Unfortunately, things don't always go as planned! I would get home a little late, or it took longer to get the kids to bed, or I was just a bit too tired to get myself to my basement where I exercise. Before I knew it, my exercise was becoming less consistent and the effects where starting to take a toll on my body. Stress levels increased, I put on a few pounds and had to loosen up the belt a little bit. So the theory that the evening is a better time for my body to exercise became irrelevant when I was barely doing it at all.

So, I decided to "suck it up" and drag my grumpy morning self out a bed earlier, get my workout clothes on and crawl to the basement to exercise. And guess what is happening...

I am exercising consistently over the last 4 weeks. I find my energy level is better throughout the day even without my previous overindulgence of and addiction to coffee (but that's another story). I am losing the weight that crept back on me when I was barely exercising as PLANNED in the evening. I even got to tighten the belt back up a notch. So for me exercising first thing in the morning has been a good thing. There are much fewer distractions and excuses to keep me from doing it!

I guess I really can't answer the original question of "When is the best time to exercise?"  because the answer is different for all of us. The important thing is to find the time that is right for YOU and maybe my personal experience will help you get on track with regular exercise. Of course to be really healthy, it is going to take more than just exercise. It is also important to eat a healthy diet, get proper rest and stay well hydrated. And, of course, as a chiropractor, I know that proper spinal care is a vital component in reaching optimal health!

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