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The Best Time to Exercise, Eat Your Meals, and More

Heather Dale — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 03:06:39 PDT

Between work, friends, family, and social commitments, we're lucky if we can manage to get enough sleep, eat balanced meals, and squeeze in enough time for exercise. But did you know that there's a right time to do some of these things? And by right, I mean that there's actually an optimal time to eat, exercise, go grocery shopping, and more to benefit our overall well-being? Get your pencils and pads of paper ready because you may be shocked at some of these results!

The best time to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner: You should always eat breakfast within an hour of waking up. About 4.5 hours after that, you should have lunch, and a couple hours after that, dinner. If you delay these times, you're going to be hungry, and the hungrier you are, the more likely you are going to cheat and eat fatty junk food. According to Dr. Oz, the big rule of thumb is that you need to have dinner more than three hours before you go to bed, so that you aren't going to bed with a full stomach.

To find out best times for other daily duties, keep reading

The Pros and Cons of Exercising Mornings, Afternoons, or Evenings

Leta Shy — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 01:03:13 PDT

When's the best time to exercise? Of course, it depends on your individual energy levels and habits, but as long as you get in a good work out when you need to, when it happens is not important. But there are some pros and cons for working out in the morning or at night.

Morning
Pros: Often touted as the best time to work out, a dawn exercise session is great for so many reasons. By exercising early you leave your schedule open for other plans, feel energized the rest of the day, and are more likely to keep an exercise habit.
Cons: If you're not a morning person, staying motivated to wake up in time to work out can be hard (and lead to slacking off).

Afternoon
Pros: It can combat an afternoon slump, and not only that, exercising in the afternoon may be the best time to do so, energy level wise: your body will have a faster reaction time, muscle strength, and cardio efficiency around late afternoon.
Cons: If you work all day, getting in a midday workout can be a little harder to do, and you may have to cut your workouts short to factor in changing and shower time into your lunch break.

Evening
Pros: You can spend longer on your actual exercise time since you won't have work hanging over your head. You can also fuel up and hydrate well before your workout (which may be harder to do if you exercise early in the morning).
Cons: No spontaneous social plans for you if you want to stick to your gym routine, and you also may be finding yourself combating the feeling of wanting to skip a workout in favor of an evening on the couch.

What's your favorite time to work out?

Your Natural Body Clock and Your Exercise Routine

Leta Shy — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 08:00:54 PST

If you're having trouble sticking to an exercise routine, it may be time to pay attention to your circadian rhythm. Everyone's clock differs, and although getting in a run in the morning can improve your body's performance and fat-burning capabilities, if you can't get yourself to get out of bed in time, then all that benefit, of course, is lost.

Determining your internal body clock will help you be more aware of when you are most productive, which you can use to your advantage for exercising as well as in other areas of your life. If your energy levels peak in the afternoon, try going for a brisk walk or hit the gym on your lunch break. If you are an evening person, change into your gym clothes at work, so you can be sure to take advantage of your unspent energy.

Sticking to a set time to exercise every day is beneficial; it'll help you to start making exercise a habit. This questionnaire can help you be aware of your natural circadian rhythm, although when I took it I was not surprised to find that I am a borderline evening person! With the end of Daylight Saving Time already making us more tired than usual, figuring out when you'll be most motivated for fitness can help you maintain a fitness habit.

When is your best time to exercise?

Source: Flickr User lululemon athletica

You Asked: When Is the Best Time to Exercise?

FitSugar — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 03:00:00 PDT

You're asking and I'm answering . . .

"Fit, I usually work out in the afternoon, but recently I worked out in the morning and it was tough but my boyfriend says it's better to work out in the morning. I am thinking about changing it up, but do you know when the best time is to exercise?"
- Morning Molly

People always seem to want to know when the best time is to exercise, so to see my answer just

read more. My first inclination is to always say, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." If you're happy with your current routine, and you're doing it, then there is no reason why you shouldn't keep working out in the afternoon. Now here's the good news: For optimal performance, you want your body temperature to be warm when you exercise (hence why I always stress "warming up") and body temperature is actually at its lowest in the morning, in contrast to late afternoon when body temperature reaches its peak. In fact it's been shown that exercise during these late-in-the-day hours produces better performance and more power - your boyfriend may want to check his facts. That is not to say that if you currently work out in the morning that you should switch it up; you may just want to be sure to have an adequate warmup. Plus morning exercisers have been found to be more consistent in the long run. So unless you're training for an event that is going to take place at a certain time of the day, the best time to work out, in my opinion, is the time that you'll actually do it. Source

5 Ways to Make Moving a Habit

Leta Shy — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 12:52:25 PST

We all should take time to relax, but sometimes we don't realize just exactly how sedentary our lives can be. Even if you devote an hour to exercise most days, if you're not moving a lot the rest of the time, you can be doing more harm than good. So start making moving a habit with these five tips.

Keep track: One of the best ways to encourage yourself to move is to get a fitness monitor that tracks your steps. You don't have to invest a lot - while more sophisticated trackers (like these five fitness monitors) track your steps as well as your exercise (some can also distinguish between walking on flat ground and when you're going up steps), you can buy a basic pedometer for just a few dollars.
Try a one-minute move: Whether you're folding laundry or watching TV, multitask by building muscle while you work. Take a one-minute break to dance around or do squats, lunges, or planks, and you'll raise your heartbeat as well as your energy levels.

Read on for three more ways to making moving a habit.

Don't Let These Exercise Worries Put a Damper on Your Workout

Jenny Sugar — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 09:41:36 PST

One of the best reasons to slip on a sports bra and lace up a pair of sneaks is because working out makes us feel good. But worrying about common exercise concerns - many of them specific to women - can turn a sweat session into a stress session. Or even worse, allow these issues to completely prevent a workout. Well, we've got you covered. Here are some common exercise worries women share, and ways to move past them so you can enjoy your gym time.

Source: Thinkstock

Foods That Can Make You Look Pregnant

Shape — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 04:29:06 PST

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from Shape here on FitSugar.

Over the weekend, I saw a photo of a female celebrity (who is in a relationship with a male celeb) leaving a café with the caption, "Baby bump?" and I had to refrain myself from shouting out loud, "Come on, can't a girl eat without the world thinking she's having a baby?!"

The truth is having a perfectly flat stomach all the time just isn't normal. After you eat or drink, food and liquids naturally expand your stomach and intestines, so at least a little "bump" is inevitable every single day. So if you regularly get stalked by paparazzi or you have family members who are anxiously awaiting news of a new addition, here's the lowdown on when you might get mistaken for being pregnant:

See which foods may make you look pregnant after the break!

Weight Loss Rules You're Allowed to Break

Jenny Sugar — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:58:49 PST

If you love to eat, losing weight can seem so structured, you immediately get frustrated and grab the first decadent food you can find. Even though there are some very specific guidelines that can help you reach your goal faster, there's no one-size-fits-all weight-loss plan for everyone. Here are five rules you can bend and still drop pounds from the scale.

No Cheesecake, Wine, or French Fries
While dessert, alcohol, and fried foods tend to be high in calories, just because you want to lose weight doesn't mean you have to live without the foods you adore. Actually, denying yourself the bites you crave can backfire, causing you to feel deprived, resulting in bingeing. You can't eat these foods all the time, but it's perfectly healthy to enjoy a few spoonfuls of ice cream or a small glass of chardonnay every once in a while. Just limit your portion sizes and only indulge about once a week.

Salad, Every Day
Salads aren't for everyone, and the dissatisfied feeling you get afterward could cause you to head to the nearest pizza joint. Plus salad toppings can really add up. When a bowl of greens is covered in candied walnuts, cheese, dried cranberries, avocado, and creamy dressing, a seemingly healthy salad can run higher in calories than a burger. If you're not into a bowl of raw veggies, choose other low-calorie meals that incorporate veggies such as sandwiches, broth-based soups, grilled veggies, and whole-grain salads. You have to enjoy the foods you're eating in order to stick with a healthy meal plan.

Keep reading to find out three more diet rules you can break and still lose weight.

4 Reasons to Try TRX Suspension Training

Leta Shy — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 01:45:17 PST

It may have been developed for the Navy SEALs, but you don't have to be in secret-weapon shape to work out with TRX. The concept of the TRX suspension training is pretty basic: you use two cables on your feet or hands to partially suspend your body and use your own body weight as resistance. The muscle groups you work as well as how hard you work them all depend on the positioning of your body on the cables.

To find out more about the benefits of the workout, I spoke with Randy Hetrick, former Navy SEAL and current CEO and founder of TRX, at the unveiling of the newly expanded TRX Training Center in San Francisco, CA. If you've ever wondered about all those odd-looking straps hanging in your gym, read on to find out more about working out with TRX.

It's for anyone: So, who should do TRX? Everyone, Randy says. "People who like yoga and Pilates tend to like TRX because there are some crossovers. But it's also great for runners, cyclists, or anyone who is an endurance athlete and wants to have more strength training." Even reluctant "power lifters" are usually swayed by the workout once they see how effective it can be at building muscle, he says.
It's beginner-friendly: Another reason to try a TRX class - it's easy to tweak exercises to your own level of difficulty and ramp up when necessary. "It's all user-defined," Randy says. "You determine how hard or how easy you really want to go. So really advanced or really beginners can work out in the same class and get what's right for them."

Read on for more reasons to try TRX.

5 Surprising Health Benefits of Being a Sports Fan

Prevention — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:19:15 PST

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from Prevention here on FitSugar!

By Cristina Goyanes, Prevention

It’s no wonder your friends aren’t available to hang out on Sundays in the Fall and Winter - according to a 2005 Gallup Poll, 64 percent of Americans claim to be professional football fans, and as of 2010, women make up 44 percent of the NFL fan base.

Being a sports fan doesn’t mean you’re expected to know all the players and stats of your hometown teams and destined for a beer gut - it’s about coming together in the name of good times as part of a community.

“Bonding over sports - the highs and lows of the game - strengthens ties, helps us feel supported, and makes it easier for you to open up about personal things,” says Renee Clauselle, PsyD, who runs a private psychology practice in Long Island, NY.

Seventeen Unexpected Side Effects of Exercise

Rooting for the same team creates an immediate sense of family, says Daniel Wann, PhD, a Murray State University professor who has been studying the psychology of sports fans for over 20 years. “If you identify with a local team, you build an instant connection to others around you,” he says.

Beyond the bonding aspects, watching sports can motivate you to pump up your own workouts - and even burn a few extra calories when you jump, cheer, and clap during the highlights of the game. Find out more ways being a sports fan is a winning situation for your health.

Keep reading to learn how being a sports fan benefits your health.