How to Never Miss Your Morning Workout

Your alarm goes off. Fuzzily, you go to hit snooze for the first of many times. It gradually occurs to you that you were supposed to get up and go work out this morning, but you are just so tired. You didn’t get enough sleep last night, and now, all you can think about is closing your eyes and going back to sleep. And so you do, once again, missing your morning workout.

If you can identify with this scenario, you are not alone. Every day, people all over the world wake up with the intention of making the right choice for their health, but roll over and go back to sleep instead. Motivating yourself to go work out when you first wake up is difficult, regardless of whether you are an early bird or not. However, there are many benefits to enjoy when it comes to morning workouts. Not only does it allow you to get exercise out of the way, it sets the tone for the rest of the day, making it easier to make healthy choices. When you wait to workout until the end of the day, it gets more and more difficult to maintain your motivation. In contrast, when you do it first thing, you don’t have to worry about it again for the rest of the day. If you really like the idea of working out in the morning, but can’t seem to motivate yourself out of bed, here are some tips to help you throw off the covers and get to moving with the sun.

Picture It

Anyone who has read anything about self-help is probably aware that visualization is a popular tool for motivating yourself. You may have also heard this tip from your favorite athlete, who pictured themselves winning the championship, then made it a reality. You can use this same technique to get you moving in the morning! Visualization works because your mind does not differentiate between the image you created and the truth. When you take the time to vividly picture something, it makes it a reality in your brain, which increases your commitment to making it real. Before you go to sleep, take some time to visualize yourself getting up and working out, and be as specific as possible. What time will your alarm go off? How will you respond? What will you wear? What will you be thinking about? Create an image in your head of you getting out of bed and taking on the day in full force, and it is more likely it will be a reality.

Change Your Thought Process

You may have always considered yourself to be “not a morning person.” This attitude is not helpful for getting up and working out. Yes, waking up early may not be your favorite thing right now, but if you really commit to morning workouts, it could be that you actually look forward to exercising. The issue is, your general attitude is going to prevent you from doing so if you don’t change your thinking. Telling yourself that you are “not a morning person” and that you “can’t get up that early” is a self-fulfilling prophecy. As Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t, you’re right.” Change the way you think about yourself and you will have a much greater chance for success.

Improve Your Mornings

If mornings aren’t your favorite, consider why this might be. What time of day do you really like? What is different about that time from morning? Is it that you have more energy? Is it what you are doing? Who you are spending time with? Figure out what makes this other part of the day awesome, and do what you can to make mornings as awesome as it is. Give yourself something to look forward to in the morning, whether it is a delicious breakfast, a call from a dear friend, or simply more energy from having gone to bed earlier. This will make it much easier to get up and workout because you will actually be excited for morning.

If you want to work out in the morning, one of the best ways you can ensure your success is by investing in a home gym. If getting up, getting dressed, getting out the door, and getting to the gym is the obstacle that prevents you from working out, why not have your gym right downstairs? This gives you more time to workout on your own schedule, whether it is in the morning, the afternoon, or the evening. If you are looking for fitness equipment for your home gym, we can help! Shop Fitness Specialist for the exercise equipment you need.