I'm not a morning person at all and the only time I can really work out is later at night. I was working out right after dinner and then getting a shower and going to bed. I recently read an article saying you should wait at least 2 hours after you eat until you exercise. Is this true, and if so, why? What will happen if I don't wait? Since I've read it I've been paranoid and haven't worked out at all I lost five pounds and want to keep going but am I doing this all wrong?

Thanks so much,
Becky

Hi becky!!

I believe the reason for waiting is that if you exercise say first thing in the morning on an empty stomach, I read somewhere that your calorie burn is optomized and carries throughout the day. But I'm of the school of mind that any exercise is better than none and if you were comfortable exercising when you were than do it! Girl one thing to remember about "dieting" (I prefer to call it living, sounds less harsh) is that its all about you!! What you want, what you can live with, what you can commit to!! I think a lot of people over thing the whole thing and then don't do anything at all because they are afraid they'll do it wrong, but hey exercise is exercise. I could be totally wrong in my thoughts but I would love to hear what others think!

Good Luck Becky!! BTW I love your quote in your signature!!

I prefer to exercise at night, too. Nothing feels better to me than getting into bed, clean from my post workout shower and feeling completely relaxed from lots of post workout stretching.

I know some people that cannot eat right before they run/swim/bike/whatever, but I've never been one of those people. Even when I was younger and used to swim competitively, I could eat right up until race time and not feel any ill effects. I know the reason that some of my friends do not eat for an hour or so before exercising is that they feel sick to their stomachs if they run too soon after eating.

If you find what works for your body, just keep doing it. Don't stop exercising because you think you are doing something wrong, your body will tell you if you are doing something that it doesn't like, that's what you need to listen to.

Amen to that Katia!

Hello!
I feel so proud of myself! This is my first RESPONSE to a post! Hah I been so busy asking for answers. Anyway - I myself exercise in morning, but not on empty stomach, I do it whenever I feel like it. However, it is proven that if you do just at least 5 minutes of exercise when you get up out of bed ( 5 minutes of jump rope per say ) you can burn as much as twice the fat in a day. I read this in Men's Health Magazine somewhere, a recent edition. Hope that helps!

Ok good now I know that I'm not making up these things lol

One of the things that always stood in my way was perfectionistic thinking. This is a common booby trap for people who tend to have weight problems, that all-or-nothing mentality. If I heard there was a "best" way to do something, I would only do it that way, and if I couldn't do it that way, I wouldn't do it at all.

So yes, I've heard the theories about exercising first thing in the morning, and doing it on an empty stomach. But, you know what? I'm not a morning person, either, and even if I were, there is NO WAY I could do a full workout without having had some food. So, that may be the "ideal" way to go about it in terms of calorie burning, but my body will not cooperate. In the old days I would have said, "Well, I can't do it the 'right' way, so I might as well not do it at all."

Luckily, at the age of 39, I finally realized how dumb that was. I now exercise when it fits into my schedule, and if it's been more than 3 or 4 hours since I've eaten, I'll have a little snack beforehand so that I can workout longer and harder.

If your body tells you it's OK to workout right after dinner, and that's the best time for you, then do it. You might try other schedules just for comparison (right after you get home from work, for example), but in the end, you gotta do what works for YOU. Any exercise, done imperfectly, is 10,000 times better than no exercise at all.

EXACTLY!!!! That is exactly how I feel funnie!! I think any exercise done at anytime during the day on and empty or full stomach is a million times more beneficial than no exercise at all.

I think that no one should dictate when we work out or what we do to workout, as long as we are doing it!

Keep up the great work girls!!
Michelle

Hi all, I totally agree with funniegrrl. You need to exercise at the time that works best for you. I myself do my best workout at around 10am having a light breakfast at about 9am. Just like funnie I can not get a good workout on an empty stomach. I whimp out way before I want to. It's taken a long time to determin what works best for me. Probably because I read too much. Or over thought things, like Michelle said for too many years. So, Beckboo if you've found what works for you ( and obviosly you have, you dropped 5# WTG ) go with it. God made us all different. Do what works for you!

Kristi

I just gotta say, " Jack I enjoy reading your posts, knowledgable, and straite forward, and easy to understand."

Kristi

I found this story, and it is similar to the one I read about exercising in the morning on an empty stomach, now me personally, I HAVE to workout on an empty stomach otherwise I end up with stomach cramps and vomitting but like we said before, do what is right for you!! Ok so the story (just remember, all studies say different things, and I'm not one to judge which is rubbish and which isn't )


Cardio: The best time of the day to do cardio for maximum fat loss, and why.

When is the best time of day to do cardio, and why? Well, I bet most people do cardio "whenever they get a chance." Sometimes during the middle of the day, sometimes before bed, sometimes directly after your weightlifting workout, sometimes directly before the weightlifting workout and sometimes first thing in the morning. The truth is, all of those times will get results. It doesn't matter what time of day you do your cardio workout, you will be burning calories every time. BUT, the real question is, which of those times is the most effective? And the answer is (drum roll please).... first thing in the morning!

Doing cardio first thing in the morning, on an empty stomach, before you eat anything, is by far, the most effective. Whether you run, jog, walk, swim, jump rope, take an aerobics class, ride a bike, etc., doing it first thing in the morning is the best time to do it for maximum fat loss. Why? Its simple. When you do your cardio workout, you are burning calories. Lets say you wake up, eat breakfast, eat lunch later in the day, and then a few hours after lunch, you do your cardio. All you will be doing during that cardio is burning the calories and carbs of the food you just ate. When you do cardio first thing in the morning, you haven't eaten anything for the last 8 or so hours because you were sleeping. So, when your body sees that there are no carbs to burn, it goes directly to stored bodyfat. And stored bodyfat is the fat that is on your body, which is the fat that you want to lose!

Understand how it works? When you do your cardio sometime during the day other then first thing in the morning, you spend most of that time burning off carbs that you already ate that day. When you do it first thing in the morning, there are no carbs to burn, so all your body can burn is body fat!

Some people have e-mailed me asking what type of cardio I do and I tell them I jog on my treadmill first thing in the morning. Even though I do all of my weightlifting at a gym, I do my cardio in my house on my own treadmill so I can do it first thing in the morning without having to take a shower, get dressed and do whatever else I'd do if I went to the gym to do cardio.

this article was found at www.intense-workout.com

As I stated above, I'm not a professional, I can't say that this article is 100% accurate, and I take all info found on the internet with a grain of salt. Summing up, find what works for your body!!

Keep Moving!
Michelle

Hey everyone! Thanks so much for all the help. I am going to try and drag myself out of bed in the morning if I can, but if not I'll just keep goin whenever I can!! I must say I actually look forward to working out now

Thanks again!!!
Becky

YGG

Kristi