Apr 16, 2021

The Magic of A Morning Workout

I don’t know about you, but I’ve always felt like a morning workout is the only way to start the day. There’s just something about getting up and getting the blood moving that sets my day off in the right direction. It doesn’t even have to be a great workout! I don’t need to absolutely crush it. As long as I can get on my tread and sweat at least a little, I know that the day is just going to be better.

It’s a personal preference, I know, but it turns out that a growing body of research suggests a morning workout – particularly moderate intensity steady state cardio – may actually be ideal for weight loss. Here’s why:

1. Morning Workouts Prime Your Metabolism to Burn More Throughout the Day

Ever heard of Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption? Some trainers call it the “afterburn effect” and it basically means the calories you end up burning after your run or ride. We all know you burn through a bunch of calories during your work out, but getting onto your bike or treadmill in the morning pumps up your metabolism for a whole 14 hours afterward. One study by San Diego State University found that people who worked out in the morning burned an extra 190 calories throughout the day without doing any additional exercise. For those of you who prefer things illustrated in terms of food, that means an extra handful of potato chips. Not that I’m saying you ought to cram chips in after your run, but it’s good to know a morning session on your OVICX bike or tread is enough to earn a little treat.

2.Higher Happiness Hormones Mean Less Stress and Less Fat Storage

Getting up and getting into your fitness routine is easy when you’ve got the right equipment at home, and it’s going to make you happier and – thanks to lower levels of stress – thinner, too! You’ve probably all heard of a runners’ high. Well, it’s a real thing. It’s not just for runners, but for bikers, too, and it’s due to a class of hormones called endorphins. Your body produces these chemicals naturally to make you feel less pain and depression, and feel more calmness and positivity. In addition to making your brain pump out these feel-good hormones, your morning run or ride reduces levels of the stress hormone, cortisol, as well. This hormone usually makes you feel down and irritable, and can often lead to additional fat storage as well as a host of other negative health outcomes. So work out and chill out to get happier and live better for longer.

3. More Bang for Your Fat-Burning Buck

If you can get yourself onto your bike or tread before breakfast, you stand to burn up to 20% more fat than otherwise. Usually, your body would use calories you ate earlier in the day or energy stored in your muscles and organs, called glycogen. Only after using all that up would your body start to break down and burn your stores of fat. But if you jump onto your OVICX treadmill right after waking up, your body doesn’t have enough energy to fuel you and so goes straight to burning fat.

To see how reality stacks up against the research (and my own experience), the OVICX team is issuing a challenge to all our readers: try doing a morning workout 3 times a week for the next 3 weeks, and share your progress on social media to be featured. Who knows? Maybe this will be the start of a beautiful habit for you!