What Is The Best Time Of Day To Exercise?

Regular physical activity is one of the healthiest practices out there, but depending on individual goals, you should know how to choose the best time of day to exercise.

Those who want to lose weight, for example, cannot exercise at the same time as those who want to gain muscle mass or increase endurance. The results will never be the same.

Although many people organize their training schedule according to their time availability, this is not always correct. There are several parameters that allow us to identify when we should or should not subject the body to certain exercises. Just as there are cycles of rest and hormones, there are also cycles of physical activity.

According to experts, it is the biological rhythm of sleep and wakefulness (internal clock), determined by the sun, that controls the functions that affect the practice of sport. Therefore, athletes don’t take a step without first evaluating the behavior of the internal clock and the impact it has on their performance, speed, and effort.

What is the best time of day to exercise?

People who generally engage in light to moderate intensity activities can do so at any time, as long as they are in good health and avoid overeating. However, the following factors should be taken into account:

• In the morning, body temperature is at its lowest level, so energy and blood flow are lower. The cold, along with the stiffness of the muscles, increases the risk of fractures or injuries.
• Recent studies indicate that morning exercise sessions compromise the immune system, increasing the chances of getting infections from bacteria or viruses.

• Body temperature and hormones peak at 6 pm. Therefore, the body responds better to sporting demands.
• Between 4:00 pm and 5:00 pm, the lungs function more properly. Muscles become more flexible, intensity is higher, performance improves, and stress is more easily released.
• Exercising between 3pm and 7pm helps to regulate food intake.
• Training early in the day helps develop a sense of discipline and perseverance and contributes to healthy, timely rest. However, it requires more extensive warm-up due to the number of hours of inactivity during sleep.
• Exercise generates adrenaline. Exercising at night can lead to insomnia and make it difficult to control your heart rate. Ideally, exercise at least two hours before going to bed.

Why choose a time of day to exercise?

To reach your goals, you must know what is the best time of day to exercise for you. Depending on what you want to achieve, this can be done as follows:

• Burn calories. Anyone trying to lose weight can train in the afternoon, when the metabolism starts to slow down. The colder the environment, the more calories can be burned.
• Increase aerobic endurance. This is the biological ability to exert great effort at medium or low intensity. Performance will be the same no matter what time you train.

• Get anaerobic endurance. In order to obtain flexibility, strength, power and speed, that is, to perform short duration and high intensity efforts, it is advisable to exercise from 6 pm until night. Athletes tend to train at the same time as the competition, to ensure and monitor their performance.
• Develop muscle mass. Hormones will be the best allies for this purpose whether you train in the early morning or late afternoon.

Remember that every organism is different

Although there are general suggestions, it is important to remember that each organism is different and that responses to stimuli are not the same in all cases. Calculating body temperature according to circadian cycles is one way to determine the best time of day to exercise in each case.

For this, it is necessary to keep a control for five or six consecutive days (with measurements every two hours) to establish an average. You can train three hours before or three hours after this amount.

If you find these measurements complicated, and if you’re just looking to exercise for health, there are other options. There’s no need to stick to rigid schedules and routines: a relaxed 30-minute workout a day can work. Plus, by exercising outdoors, you’ll still relieve stress and improve your emotional and mental health. But it’s good to avoid the peak hours of the sun, between 10am and 4pm.