Post: #1

Hey guys,

I want to stop being a lazy ass and choose a couple days in the week to workout really early in the morning, around 6 am, meaning that the first thing I will do during the day is exercising and then continue to take care of business during the day.

Doing this three or four days a week would be impossible at the moment, but challenging myself to rise early once or twice a week seems within reach. In fact, I will wake up at 6 am tomorrow morning and workout.

The challenge consists of waking up early and get a good, solid workout first thing in the morning, regardless of how much exercise you are doing at any other time. Any one day counts as a +1.

So, for what's left of April (22 days starting tomorrow), I will attempt and complete the challenge seven times.

Right now sitting at 0/7.

Post: #2

What's the point of this?

Is it for any specific purpose?

Post: #3

Building discipline and a better physique.

Post: #4

If doing squats or dead lifts, you need 45minutes for your spinal column to decompress before exercise first thing in the morning. So leave time for that.

Post: #5

(04-08-2015 02:01 PM)MMM Wrote:  If doing squats or dead lifts, you need 45minutes for your spinal column to decompress before exercise first thing in the morning. So leave time for that.

Can you elaborate on this or post your sources?

I workout first thing in the morning, before 6am.

Post: #6

Good luck on your challenge. I have the same reaction as others, but I'll give a little more feedback for you.

I have a little bit of "don't tell me about the labor, show me the baby" reaction for the simple reason that I did this at the beginning of the year. I didn't tell anybody. I just started getting up and going to the gym 3-4x per week before work.

For about 6 weeks. Then, gradually my brain figured out, without my conscious thought, that I didn't have a purpose. Don't get me wrong, I had a purpose in working out, and I continued going to the gym and lifting consistently (have been for well over a year).

But, as a single guy, without kids, in the dead of winter with highs in the single digits, the *only* reason I had was to *maybe* play basketball in the evening. My brain decided getting up at 6, working out, work 8-5, then basketball later...just wasn't worth it...especially when, with 7 days a week, I could split up workout days and basketball days, *and* I was getting tired of basketball at the time.

My brain, especially my still asleep brain at 6am, said:

"heavy, why the fuck would I wake up now...so you can have even more free time in the evening...screw that I'm going back to sleep and we'll lift after work"

A very logical choice when you think about it. Don't underestimate your brain's unconscious rationality.

All that said, I'm all for you doing it, for a few reasons:
1. It might work for you long-term.
2. I'm all for challenging yourself.
3. This actually did kick me back into a healthier mode. For instance, since I did that 6 weeks, I haven't stayed out really late boozin with friends on worknights.
4. I never used to go lift at lunch. Now I do. (might be bc of those 6 wks, idk)
5. Now, I do go lift at lunch then plan bball later (today for instance).

Good luck. TLDR I sorta second what CrashBangWallop asked.

Post: #7

I hope it works for you and you stick with it.

The hardest thing I do on a daily basis is find the willpower to get out of bed.

How come the bed is sooo much more comfortable when you wake up, compared to when you lay down at night?

Post: #8

I have done what you are proposing. I have found mixed results. I am kind of with heavy on this one, however I will say that the discipline really improved my life at the time. I cut out drinking, in bed by around 10 every night, asleep by somehwere around 10:30 or 11. wake up at 6, working at by 6:30, breakfast and ready for the day by 8:30.

first of all, by the time I got the gym at 6:30, I would have a good 45 minute workout and be out by 7:15. Traveling/breakfast/changing takes time. I found I needed 2 hours from the day I walked in the gym until the time I was supposed to walk into work. Adjust your workout as needed, but a no bullshit 30-45 minute long workout is enough to do what you need to do for the day.

The main thing I found is that I was normally rushing once I got home. Breakfast cooking and unwinding a bit, getting changed for work, checking some financial shit etc. You can cut the time down by having extremely simple but filling meals and organizing yourself the night before (knowing what your gonna wear to work, showering before bed so you can skip a morning shower if needed, lunch and protein shake prepared so you can just grab and run on your way out the door, etc).

What worked best for me:

Pre-workout powder in a container and a glass of water by my bed. Gym clothes laid out by dresser. I would wake up, mix the water and pre-workout, drink, dress, and be out the door in less than 10 minutes. Pre-workout starts to kick in around the time I get to the gym 10 minutes later. Work out 30-45 minutes as needed. Come back and shower as needed or throw the usual simple meal on the stove. Get dressed into work clothes while its cooking. Pack a day bag with lunch, and protein power in shakes. out the door. That's maximum efficiency.

If you can store your powder and a shaker at work, you eliminate the need to prepare those beforehand, which cuts down time. If your work has a kitchen area, with a relatively safe fridge you can store what you need for lunch at work and again save more time.

but really you run into a tradeoff, is working out in the morning more effective than working out post work?

I prefer the morning, because you get the get the workout out the way, and you already wide awake and alert by the time you get into work. Sticking to that schedule requires a lot of discipline and preparation, that is really the biggest advantage of a solid morning workout routine.

Also, a music playlist in the worked well. Wake up, press play, take pre-workout. gets you pumped and out of bed.

Post: #9

As to loading back first thing in the morning :

The good news as Dr Stuart McGill explained in his book “Low Back Disorders” is that after the first hour of being up, your spine dehydrates by about 90% of what it will for that day (this is why you’re taller in the morning). So the risk of lower back injuries plummets after that first hour.

http://stronglifts.com/lower-back-injury...g-workout/

Post: #10

I could never understand these sort of ''challenges''. Getting up at 6am to go for a jog or whatever, at 8pm you decide that as you actually did the workout you should treat yourself with a pizza and eat the calories you burned straight back. Good use of time. Instead of pointless challenges, set yourself an actual reasonable goal of fat loss or building muscle, get on a solid routine you can follow and most of all, count your calories.

Post: #11

(04-08-2015 02:01 PM)MMM Wrote:  If doing squats or dead lifts, you need 45minutes for your spinal column to decompress before exercise first thing in the morning. So leave time for that.

I will keep this in mind and leave these two for last.

Thank you guys for your advice and support. I did the first day of the challenge today, and my energy levels skyrocketed this morning. 1/7.

I am glad some of you guys had positive results. I may not stay with this challenge forever but it ultimately is an exercise in discipline that is testing myself in different ways.

Will keep everyone posted to be held accountable and perhaps to motivate some RVFers.

Post: #12

I get up at 6/6:30 during the week to get to the gym before work. I do better in the AM and early afternoon. I can't lift at all after work. My performance is mediocre at best.

If anything, it just makes me an early to bed early to rise type of fellow. I lead a really boring life where I cook healthy meals for myself, go to bed by 10, go to the gym, work, and go home to repeat.

There's nothing special about it other than that I tend to make better and more consistent gains at the gym following my life routine.

Post: #13

Early AM workouts are king.
Not because you will smash a lot of records, but because you will get your workout in.
If you save it for the evening sometimes "life" steps in and you don't have time for it, or you get tired and just say "fuck it, I'll go tomorrow instead"

I wake up at 4:30-5:30am every morning and I have prepared everything for the next day.
When I wake up I put my coffee to brew and splash some cold water into my face.
10min later I'm grabbing my coffee and I'm off to the gym. (20min driving)
Then about 45min workout and at 6:30-7am I'm ready to take care of whatever business I have to deal with.

Switching over to a early morning person has been very successful for me personally and I can recommend it to everyone else.

I have never woken up at 5am and thought "what the hell should I do?
I'm off to the gym like on auto pilot.

Good luck.

Post: #14

The most important thing will be getting in bed at a decent time. IF you cannot do that, then you'll fail.

I typically follow this: "The best time to work out is the time that you'll actually go to the gym." My schedule right now allows for midday work outs. In the past I could only work out at 9:45pm, so I had to make due with that. MOst important thing is actually getting to the gym, not what time you go to the gym.

Post: #15

It's hilarious, as a kid and teenager I would get to bed by 9-10pm. As a college student, 1am-2am was all the rage, skipping meals, etc . As an adult, I find myself reverting back to a "high school" routine, undoing all of the BS I thought I could do in college.

The gym has made me more responsible than anything else combined.

Post: #16

(04-08-2015 02:01 PM)MMM Wrote:  If doing squats or dead lifts, you need 45minutes for your spinal column to decompress before exercise first thing in the morning. So leave time for that.

Hadnt heard of that before, Ill have to keep it in mind since I start working out 30 mins after I wake up.



Also, I heard somewhere that working out in the morning with a small meal before and after (for breakfast) improves the workout... cause of... gravity idk

Most likely bro science- but Im way more awake and motivated when I bike to the gym at 5 am every morning.

Post: #17

any one has resources on how long does it take for the spine to "rehidrate"?

I have a home gym, so I would wake up and 10 minutes later I would be starting my workout. which means that in 15-20 mins after waking up I would start to squat / deadlift.

Post: #18

What do you eat for break fast?

Post: #19

During sleep, the spine decompresses somewhat, which is why you're a centimeter or two taller in the morning than late at night.

The claim that you shouldn't deadlift right away in the morning might be broscience but that doesn't mean it's bullshit.

Post: #20

(04-21-2015 02:05 AM)Hades Wrote:  During sleep, the spine decompresses somewhat, which is why you're a centimeter or two taller in the morning than late at night.

The claim that you shouldn't deadlift right away in the morning might be broscience but that doesn't mean it's bullshit.

The other day I tried to DL in the morning. I was supposed to do 6*2 with 130kg
I managed the first set and ran out of gas in the middle of the 2nd set, first lift.

For me, lifting heavy (for me that's heavy) in the morning is very difficult. Probably due to lower sugar in blood.


I've been reading/researching and apparently it is not broscience.

Post: #21

(04-21-2015 12:30 AM)se7en Wrote:  What do you eat for break fast?

Stay savory. Try bacon, eggs, sausage, and oats. I particularly like turkey sausage since it is all protein, no fat, and very little carbs.

Post: #22

(04-23-2015 12:42 PM)The Beast1 Wrote:  

(04-21-2015 12:30 AM)se7en Wrote:  What do you eat for break fast?

Stay savory. Try bacon, eggs, sausage, and oats. I particularly like turkey sausage since it is all protein, no fat, and very little carbs.

Ah that sounds so tasty right now..

Post: #23

I do my workout in the morning right after drinking my BCAA mix and brushing my teeth.

Post: #24

One of the best benefits of working out in the morning is the second shot opportunity. If, for whatever reason, you can't do the morning workout, you have the whole day ahead of you to fit in your workout. This keeps you consistent, which is KEY.

Post: #25

Nice thread.

After some weeks of feildtesting

Going up 04.40 to train in my garage. ~45-50min workout; Upperbody / Lowerbody separete.

Go inside eat, 45min drive and work at 07.00

From this I have noticed that:
1.Im more awake earlier and ready to smash the day.
2. Im more focused on my diet because I know that if I f*ck it up im screwed.
3. I drop all electronics after 9 and read.
4. Im exausted after the day (in a good way)
Bonus: Listen to Jocko Wllinks album Disipline equals Freedom to get out of bed.

Obviously this is not for everyone but it can be a good thing