
Ask HN: When do you exercise? - mcantor
<i>(Inspired by the "Fitness for Geeks" thread.)</i><p>Hi HN!<p>I am out of shape.<p>I am <i>less</i> out of shape than I was 3 years ago, because I have dabbled in everything from fencing to P90x.  Consistency is my most formidable bugbear, and I am trying to figure out what is stopping me from achieving it.<p>When I plan my days or weeks, scheduling has been very difficult, and I'm interested to see how the fit hackers out there have handled it, particularly those of you who have 9-to-5's (or similar) like me.<p>I have tried exercising before work, immediately after work, and in the evenings.  Each has had its own roadblocks:<p>Getting up early worked well, but I am a night person.  Trust me, I have tried it all: consistent wake-up times, quitting caffeine, UV light bulbs, redundant alarm systems.  If you can suggest a way to make it stick, please do.<p>Exercising immediately after my day job is tough.  I get home anywhere between 5:30 and 7:30PM; when I get home, I often feel like drawing/painting or coding, and it feels counterproductive to sacrifice creative productivity (a goal that is just as important to me), even in the name of fitness.  Also, if I want to do <i>anything</i> social and still get to bed at a reasonable time, then exercising for a significant duration is tough to sneak in before I go, and impossible if I get home from work too late.<p>Finally, nights are a problem because I sometimes have trouble sleeping too soon after I exercise, and it's much more difficult to muster the energy when winding down after a long day.<p>When do you work out?  How is your free time structured, and how much of it do you have?  Is there anything you did, or read, or saw, that worked extremely well or very poorly for you?<p>P.S. - I am aware that the best solution is to "just do it".  However, I have been attempting to "just do it" for the last 3 years.  I am also aware that there is no try, only do.  However, I currently appear to be <i>unable</i> to "just do it", and my intention in posting this question is to see how other people curated their environments and daily routines in such a way that they were more likely to be consistent.  Balancing a day job, ambitious personal projects, personal fitness and a social life is very difficult; we need all the information we can get.
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atgm
I walk absolutely everywhere I can to make up for not exercising; if I find
myself with an empty evening, I force myself to walk an hour down the mountain
to the grocery store instead of taking my bike or sitting around at home in
front of my computer. It's terrible and I hate it, but about 10 minutes into
my walk, I realize it's actually giving me time to think and literally
appreciate the scenery.

I also do the 100 push-ups program after work; it's literally 5-8 minutes, so
even if I feel like skipping it, I just tell myself "Hey, it's just five
minutes of your time. Skip hitting F5 on all of those sites and just do it."

The best tip I can offer is to find something that suits your personality. It
sounds like you feel stretched for time, so maybe you should find a quick
workout, or even a quick stretching routine. Start small] five minutes three
times a week, then expand once you're in the habit.

As far as sleeping... it's a lot like jet lag, in my experience -- it takes at
least a month, if not more for your body to not only switch to begin
tired/awake at all of those times, but also to switch a lot of other things
over (for example, bowel movements?) so that you feel more comfortable waking
up at those times. All I can suggest is to try it for at least two months
without breaking your habit for any reason. Go to bed early, wake up early...
give yourself something nice to look forward to every morning.

Best of luck!

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dstik
I think of exercising as a necessity in my life and make time for it as such;
similar to how you're able to brush your teeth everyday - make time for it.
Prioritize it and don't compromise - I promise as you get into the routine it
gets easier.

I also can't wake up early (I've tried morning workouts too), I used to work
out immediately after work. Find a gym close to work, it will help avoid the
traffic from your commute home. I now work out at lunch, typically it takes
about an hour and fifteen minutes (don't forget to shower or your coworkers
will hate you).

You might also be able to motivate yourself with Jerry Seinfeld's "Don't Break
the Chain" method: [http://lifehacker.com/281626/jerry-seinfelds-productivity-
se...](http://lifehacker.com/281626/jerry-seinfelds-productivity-secret)

Strive for 5 days a week (this makes it easy to workout on work days and frees
up your weekends), I like to do them in order but balance them as you choose.
If you miss a day don't stress, just don't let it break your stride. Also,
ease into it, don't try to "hulk-out" your first week and go crazy.. you don't
have to prove anything to anyone, remember: you're doing this for yourself.
(It's also okay to ask people in the gym for suggestions, advice, and for help
- most people don't mind).

Hope this helps!

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psg
When do you work out? Like yourself, I have had phases where I worked out in
the morning, afternoon, and evening. Each has their pros and cons, depending
on your other activities.

I get to the gym most often when the rest of my life is "structured". You seem
to be looking for the same qualities. Here is what worked for me.

1\. Set a specific goal, with an end date. If you have a goal, then you are
more likely to work hard to accomplish it. Working out without a goal means
it's easier to quit, as you're not working to accomplish anything. Your goal
should be specific. Just don't say "I want to be in better shape." Specific
goals could be losing a certain amount of weight, completing a set of workout
routines (such as P90X), or lifting more weight after a set amount of time.

Also, make sure you time bound the goal.

2\. Don't let your job get in the way. My best time to workout has always been
the early morning. However, like yourself, I'm also very productive in the
morning, so I switched my workout to after work during the winter. To make
this work, I have to force myself to leave work by a certain time. Getting
home too late leaves me tired and gives me an excuse to not workout.

3\. Think about the other 23 hours. I've read that while the 1 hour you
workout is tough, you feel better the other 23. This is true.

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olegious
The truth is health is in large part determined by your diet, as for fitness-
you don't need to spend hours in the gym. Intensity is more important than
time spent- a program like the one mentioned at simplefit.org combined with a
paleo like diet (google it) will get you fit and healthy in a minimum amount
of time (about 30 minutes per workout, 3 days a week).

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djb_hackernews
Don't go home after work. That's a killer right there.

Ideally for me I work out during working hours, sometime between 2-330, when
the gym isn't as busy. If not then, then late at night, like after 8-830, for
the same reason. I don't go to bed till midnight anyway so I have plenty of
time to unwind. And if all else fails I battle the crowds directly after work.

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dsawler
If you cannot wake up before work to work out, you cannot motivate yourself to
work out after work, you cannot find time to set aside time during the day to
work out -- then your goals aren't important to you. Let me explain. If you
genuinely like what you're doing, your routine, then you'll do it.

For example, I absolutely love my new gymnastics routine. I want to do it on
my rest days because I find it so much fun. I even love setting up my
schedule. However, I dread the days when I have to do Plyo X from P90X or a
workout form the Insanity set. So, what happens? I slack off, I don't do them,
I make excuses.

In short, find a goal and a routine to reach that goal, and you'll have the
motivation and make the time.

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limedaring
Lunch break — gives you a break from the job and you can be active for
(hopefully) around an hour. I would eat lunch at my desk around 11:30 or would
eat after the gym (again, at my desk) in order to fit in some exercise.

If I couldn't hit the gym, I'd take 10 minute breaks from work and walk around
outside, taking a break halfway through for pushups/squats/lunges/etc. I also
experimented with running outside the gym but it was hard working afterwards
when I was sweaty without a shower :)

If that doesn't work for you, if I always carved out a time in the evenings to
work out and stuck with it, it worked pretty well. Doesn't have to be huge —
do a crossfit like uber workout for 30 minutes.

Good luck!

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briandoll
5:15 AM. I have never been a morning person, but I have two kids and a job I
commute an hour to and from, so this is the only time that works for me.

As to your problem of not being able to get up: try doing something in a group
setting, no solo. My Crossfit gym has a 5:15 AM class, so I know that when my
alarm goes off, there are a dozen or more people also waking up to head to
that same class. I'm closer with my Crossfit community than many of my
friends. Not showing up feels terrible and I've never regretted a single
workout.

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NZ_Matt
Your first step should be to get your diet and gym routine right. In the past
you have probably been doing some halfhearted gym routine and not seeing any
results. When you start seeing real results the motivation will come easy.

Check out these two links: <http://www.liamrosen.com/fitness.html>
[http://www.mensjournal.com/everything-you-know-about-
fitness...](http://www.mensjournal.com/everything-you-know-about-fitness-is-a-
lie/print)

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imp
The morning works out best for me. I consider myself a "night person," but
that can easily be changed. Have you read this:
[http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2005/05/how-to-become-an-
ea...](http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2005/05/how-to-become-an-early-riser/)
?

Also, the fitness subreddit is a great place to talk about this stuff too:
<http://www.reddit.com/r/fitness>

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maxdemarzi
I bought (but haven't received) an exercise bike with a small desk big enough
for a laptop, so I could theoretically work and work out at the same time.

Now I haven't received it, much less tried it out or battle tested it for a
few months... and it was more of a desperation move. But it's here
<http://www.fitdeskbike.com> . If anyone has this and has used it, please
chime in.

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ulisesrmzroche
I've struggled with the same thing, and I found that the best way to handle
this is to find a wingman.

The guilt of flaking on a friend is heavier than that of procrastination, so
you're bound to show up to the gym ten minutes late, but hey, at least you
showed up.

And you have someone to work out the details with, so there's that as well.

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mbesto
At lunch. 12:30-1:30. Tell your boss that it's necessary for you to work and
if he refuses just do it anyway...trust me it will help both you and him/her
in the long run.

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ZeroGravitas
Cycle commute.

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avstraliitski
Cycle to/from work, preferably with some mountains in between.

Swim laps (it's faster than you think, and meditative too).

Use your weekends to socially exercise (kayak, rock climb, ski, whatever!)

Work one less day a week (I just had this approved, I am over the top about
it!) and use that extra time to improve your health, lifestyle and happiness
in ways that money cannot.

