I have heard this question many times, “What’s the best time to workout? My answer will always be “whatever time works for you.” I often hear people recommending working out early in the morning on an empty stomach, at noon or after dinner. There is actually no evidence that one time works best than the other as far as results are involved. I will however, provide a few recommendations:
If you’re going to workout in the morning, I don’t recommend you doing it on an empty stomach especially if you suffer from blood sugar spikes. The reason being is that your sugar levels will be the lowest in the morning because you’ve been in “fasting mode” during rest. If you workout, your body will use the remaining sugar from your blood for energy, causing your blood sugars to drop even more… which is extremely dangerous for people who are diabetic or borderline diabetic. So if you’re going to workout early in the morning, make sure you have a little something to eat. I usually will have a half banana about 15 minutes before my workout for energy purposes, because I feel more energetic once I eat something.
If you’re going to workout at noon, wear a good sunscreen and make sure that you hydrate properly… oh and don’t make the mistake of thinking that if it’s cloudy or overcast that you don’t need sunscreen, you will. UV Rays can still cause a pretty bad sunburn. Click here for some interesting information on clouds and UV Rays.
If you have difficulty speaking, then I would recommend working out at least 2 – 3 hours before bed so you don’t have difficulty sleeping. You want to be able to wind down before bed, especially if you have a history of poor sleep.
My best recommendation is to create a routine that works for you. I work from home, so it’s easy for me to workout in the afternoon while my daughter is in school. The important thing will always be consistency and you can’t be consistent if you don’t have a routine that works for your particular case. Having a support system works wonders too. You are always welcome to contact me if you need support, just comment below and I’ll be happy to get in touch with you.