Biggest Mistakes I Made While Exercising Before Work

• I challenged myself to exercise before work every day for a week.
• Although my productivity and morning energy levels improved, I also made some mistakes.
• If you choose your outfit the night before and eat before your workout, you’ll be setting yourself up for success.

After trying to exercise every day before work for a week, I learned a lot. The best way to sleep through the night is to be exhausted every morning. After working up a sweat, you’ll be more productive in the morning. And while it’s hard, it’s worth dragging yourself out of bed and finishing your workout before the day begins.

But there are four mistakes I made throughout the week that I will address as I continue my fitness journey, including things I forgot and things I plan to do differently in the future.

It was a bad decision to forget to choose clothes the night before.

I learned this tip when I was in middle school, but somehow when the 2020 pandemic started, I hunkered down inside the house like everyone else and hardly went outside. As I continued to work in office options, I got into the habit of wearing loungewear all day long, and I was no longer able to put together cute clothes.

But during this exercise challenge, I woke up about 90 minutes earlier than usual, so it was much easier to choose my outfit the night before. That way, the next day you can get out of bed, get dressed, and head out the door.

But there was at least one night when I was so tired from a longer day than usual that I didn’t have time to prepare my clothes for the next day. I thought I could get it out the next morning.

In the end, I spent precious time choosing my outfit and was at least 15 minutes behind my scheduled departure. This meant rushing back to my apartment after training, which was stressful before I even started work.

I didn’t eat anything before exercising

Generally speaking, I’m not much of a breakfast eater, but after working out I find myself completely hungry at best. In the worst case scenario, I could feel a little dizzy.

by mayo cliniceating a healthy carbohydrate-rich breakfast before a workout can help you work out longer and harder, which may improve your workout performance.

If I had at least eaten a breakfast bar or protein shake, I probably would have had more energy before my workout, and I probably wouldn’t have been as exhausted after my workout.

Instead, I had to run to the nearest coffee shop to buy an egg sandwich.

I didn’t bring a change of clothes to class, so I couldn’t take a shower.

Gabi Shaw/Insider

I usually avoid gym locker rooms, but I was pleasantly surprised by the Rumble Boxing shower, one of the exercise classes I took that week. I’ve been to this location before, but I’ve never had to use the locker room, so I’ve never seen what the showers are like.

So when I decided to explore the facility before my 8 a.m. class and discovered that the showers were clean, the products were high-end, and mostly empty, I quickly realized I had to bring flip-flops and a change of clothes. I regret what I did. Maybe I could just take a shower there.I was very I was drenched in sweat after the boxing and mixed cardio class, so I probably should have just jumped straight into the shower and got ready for the day.

Instead, I had to go back to the apartment and wait until the morning had calmed down to finally take a shower, which made me pretty uncomfortable for a good portion of the morning.

I also learned that I shouldn’t be too hard on myself for being absent from time to time.

On the last day of the challenge, I was actively dragging myself out of bed. why? This was because I had plans the night before and it was the first time I stayed out until almost midnight.

I was disappointed in myself for not being able to run as much as I wanted, so I just took a walk. But after some thought, I realized that expecting a perfect workout every morning was unfair to myself. Being healthy is all about balance, and making time to see friends and have fun is a big part of living a fulfilling life.

All in all, here’s what I can do to save you time, money, and effort

Buying an inexpensive breakfast bar instead of an expensive sandwich at the cafe, choosing your outfit ahead of time, and bringing a change of clothes and flip-flops to shower at the gym are all ways to streamline your morning routine. That’s what I should have done, and I also learned that sometimes you don’t have to push yourself too hard and you have to go easy on yourself.

But even with these mistakes, I find that exercising in the morning is worth it to reap all the health benefits. and of Improved productivity I experienced it throughout the week.

In the future, I plan to increase my evening hours to make my morning life easier.