We all know exercise is good for us. Resistance training assists with the health of your bones, joints, muscles, and metabolism. Cardiorespiratory exercise benefits your cardiovascular and cardiorespiratory system and can also improve the metabolic health of your muscle cells. Exercise can also increase longevity; decrease the risk of developing a chronic disease; help with mood, energy, and mental illness; increase cognitive ability and memory; maintain or increase functional capacity for activities of daily living. Regardless of the type, duration, and timing of exercise, its regular completion will elicit some type of positive outcome. However, a recent study has shed light on the relationship between the positive effects of exercise and the time of day it is completed.

The Study

The study consisted of males and females who were weight stable, had no known health issues, and exercised regularly. They were split into either a morning or evening exercise group. The exercise intervention consisted of four workouts each week: strength, steady-state cardio, high intensity interval training (HIIT), and flexibility. The study ran over 12 weeks and assessed timing of exercise on health outcomes such as strength, blood pressure, and changes in abdominal fat. All of the participants showed improvements in most measures; however, there were differences between male and female participants when looking at exercise time of day and strength of the health outcomes.

The male participants did not see much difference in outcomes between the morning and evening exercise groups apart from the evening exercisers having slightly better improvements in blood pressure, fat oxidation, and reported fatigue.

Females, on the other hand, saw differences in several measure between the intervention groups. Women who exercised in the evening showed greater improvement in their upper body strength, muscle power, endurance, mood, and food cravings. Whereas women who exercised in the morning showed a greater increase in lower limb strength along with greater reductions in blood pressure and abdominal fat.

It must be noted that the total sample size was 47 – 27 females and 20 males. How much these findings translate to a large-scale population is not yet known.

Apart from the findings mentioned above, what are some of the other reasons you might choose to exercise in the morning or evening?

Morning Exercise

Pros:

• Many people prefer to exercise during the morning because there’s been less time for barriers to occur e.g., stuck at work; tired; child has to be picked up early. Additionally, exercising in the morning can help you establish a consistent routine, making it easier to stick to your exercise goals
• Exercise can improve mood and concentration. This is a good way to set up for the rest of the day
• Exercising in the morning can have a positive effect on sleep quality and assist in getting to bed earlier
• Research shows that females who exercise in the morning may have greater improvements in lower limb strength, blood pressure, and abdominal fat

Cons:

• It can be harder to achieve appropriate meal timing to fuel your exercise. If you don’t have adequate “fuel in the tank”, this can impact your ability to complete exercise that is complex or high effort. However, it should be noted that meal timing is less consequential when completing light to moderate intensity exercise
• If you are sacrificing getting adequate sleep to get up early and exercise then this will hinder some of the positive benefits, especially if you are chronically under sleeping
• It can take longer to get going when exercising in the morning because your body is not warmed up which can affect performance and effort

Evening Exercise

Pros:

• Research has shown that for most people, physical performance is greater in the evening compared to the morning. It also takes longer to reach a state of exhaustion
• Your body and core temperature are already warmed up by the afternoon/evening and it might not take as long to build to exertions of high effort
• Exercise can relieve symptoms of anxiety and stress. This can be a useful tool at the end of the day
• People often report that habits they would like to change occur during the evening e.g., over eating; drinking; watching too much TV. Evening exercise can be used as a tool to take time away from less healthy habits
• Females who exercise in the evening may have greater improvements in upper body strength, muscle power, endurance, mood, and food cravings
• Males who exercise in the evening may have greater improvements in insulin sensitivity, fat oxidation, and fatigue

Cons:

• People who plan to exercise in the evening can be less consistent in their routines compared to morning exercisers. This can be due to the fact that they are too tired by the end of the day or something has come up which might prevent them from exercising, such as a work meeting running longer than expected

Exercising REGULARLY is the best time for exercise
The best time to exercise is when it’s going to work for you! Consistency is king when it comes to reaping the benefits of exercise. Exercising regularly is the most important thing, so don’t throw up extra barriers to exercise by thinking you have to complete it at a certain time of day. However, if you have a solid foundation of habitual exercise and flexibility with your schedule, then you might consider your individual goals when deciding what time of day to exercise.