Morning Makeover
Running is an excellent way to stay in shape, feel better, and even meet new people. It doesn’t have to be challenging to start a new running habit; all you need is a comfortable pair of shoes and the courage to move a little or a lot at your own speed. Exercise becomes more manageable if it becomes a habit, and it requires less willpower when you don’t feel like it. This is why adopting a good morning routine can help. And it’s not only running; transforming your morning routine can help you with almost anything in life as it sets you up for the day on your way to achieving what you set out to.
Many of us admire people who run first thing in the morning. We find ourselves hoping we could get inspired to complete our run before the day even begins as we wrap up the workday and reluctantly lace up our running shoes. The trick to becoming a morning runner, on the other hand, is relatively straightforward. Running in the morning will never become a habit until we put some work into building a routine, no matter how much we wish it would happen or how many times we do it on a whim. Your morning run regimen, or lack thereof, could be preventing you from getting the most out of early morning running without you even recognizing it.
What we do before, during, and after a run is essential, especially if we run first thing in the morning. Establishing a productive morning run routine will reduce the time it takes to get out the door and make it easier to get up early. So, let’s start from the top.
Eating Late
While it may be your only alternative, eating your dinner late at night almost guarantees a GI problem on an early morning run. When you know the only run you’ll get in the next day will be in the early hours, try to have a light dinner as early as possible in the evening. Please keep it simple by selecting 3 ounces of lean meat, some vegetables, and quinoa.
Plan Your Run the Night Before
Being a successful early morning runner requires having everything set out and ready to go. The first stage is to figure out the specifics of your run, such as how long you’re going, how quickly you’re going, and where you’re going. What is the significance of this? It’s all too easy to hit snooze when you wake up to an alarm, rationalizing that you didn’t need to run 6 miles. You tell yourself that you can stay in bed for another 20 minutes. And it’s only a three-mile run. However, when your brain sees the activity in action, it is more likely to carry it out.
Drink Water Before Bed
After sleeping, most of us wake up dehydrated, which can be a problem if we want to get up and out the door right away. Drink plenty of water after dinner the night before your morning run. As you unwind and settle down for the night, fill a water bottle and keep it by your side.
A Good Night’s Sleep
A good night’s sleep is the first step toward developing a morning running habit. This may be challenging if you’re used to watching TV late at night or lulling yourself to sleep. Practice good sleep hygiene to begin your journey. This is a term that refers to methods that help people have healthier sleep habits. You can train yourself to sleep better, according to the American Sleep Association. As strange as it may seem at first, practise will eventually make perfect if you stick with it.
Waking Up the Right
Your chronotype, or normal sleep-wake rhythm, is influenced by three key factors: age, genetics, and light. Exposure to natural light is one of the finest ways to wake up and gradually shift your chronotype sooner naturally. The human body was designed to sleep and wake with the sun, so letting the sunrise into your room—or utilizing a light-simulating alarm clock—will help you wake up more easily.
Warm-Up
Begin by swinging your arms in circles, turning a little side to side, and inhaling deeply to fill your lungs and begin transporting oxygen throughout your body. It doesn’t take a lot of high-intensity activity to start waking up your body. After that, take a quick active warm-up to give your muscles and brain a few minutes to wake up.
Set The Mood
Music has been demonstrated to raise work production, improve exercise performance, delay exhaustion, and, of course, improve your mood in studies. So a playlist could be the perfect remedy if getting up to exercise in the morning is tough.
Every runner has a good run and a bad run. And if you run at different times of the day, you’ll find yourself in diverse situations. We all have a body clock that influences when we want to go for a run. Some people prefer to run first thing in the morning, while others prefer to exercise later. Using this natural body clock to time your runs can be beneficial. However, mornings aren’t always the best time to go for a run. Changing up your routine a couple of times a week can also be helpful.