This is what it looks like in our back yard at 6 am. The sun isn’t quite up yet, but it’s on its way. How do I know this? Because I’ve finally decided that there is hardly ever going to be a time when I feel like exercising after I get home from work at night. I tried fooling myself into thinking that after work was the best time for me to do it (since I am so not a morning person), but it just meant that I’d come home, not exercise, and feel slightly guilty the rest of the evening.
So, I heard about the Fitbit and thought maybe that would help. If someone says I’m supposed to walk 10,000 steps a day and do 10 flights of stairs, then those are the numbers I try to hit. And since I started getting up early in the morning to walk for an hour, it has been working. I do like getting it out of the way before work. And I get to see pretty scenes like this (finally – the sun is up above the horizon.):
And this (I love seeing mountains first thing every morning.):
These things have helped me stick to this routine for a couple of months now:
1. Personally, I need to do it every single day of the week. I do take Saturdays and Sundays off, but I’m just about ready to throw at least Saturday into the mix, too. Mondays are a bugger when 6 am rolls around again.
2. I listen to audiobooks. It makes the hour of walking pass by really quickly.
3. I fool my brain. I tell myself that I’m going to walk for 30 minutes (in one direction, away from my house) and then I’ll just walk home. That equals an hour, but the last part of it is just “walking home”. 🙂
The downside? I am tired too early in the evening. It’s affecting my knitting, FPS. Somehow I need to learn to be a morning person AND a night person. Is that possible?? I need to finish my Camp Loopy Project Three this weekend. (I’m making a Derecho out of the Loopy Solid Series. So many fun colors to choose from.)
Today’s blog contest question: Are you a night person or a morning person? (And while we’re at it, do you have any tips about sticking to an exercise routine?) Leave a comment below and I’ll draw names for two more skeins of Wollmeise Lace next week.
We do have winners from last week’s blog contest! I’m sending a skein of Wollmeise Lace to Linda in IL and Amber in IN. Congratulations to you two!
Sheri 9162stepssofarfortoday.
Mustwalkbackandforthintheshopafewmoretimes….
I am a morning person and exercise – what is that??????
Age has changed me. In my younger days, I accomplished all kinds of things in the evenings. At 60, I am tired by evening. During hot weather, I get up and walk early in the a.m. and then get ready for my teaching work day. I don’t always like getting up in the dark but am glad to have the exercise in before that tired, end of the work day feeling.
i am a night person who would love to be a morning person, but my body clock just won’t switch over permanently. I love the quiet and freshness of the early mornings and the possibilities of the day ahead.
Definitely more of a morning person – as long as I go to bed early the night before!
Morning person here, although my inner clock is off right now. I just tell myself that I have to do this (swimming) or I will be at the doctor’s office way more than I want to be.
I think I’m a natural night person. At least I was once upon a time, before kids and work got in the way.
I work an early shift, starting at 6:30 a.m. so I became a morning person. After years of the early schedule I function pretty well in the morning. I wish I could still stay up late but the body won’t cooperate.
You’re the 2nd person to mention Fitbit to me in 24 hours. Wow. I think the universe is telling me I need this gadget.
I’m definitely a night owl. 2 a.m. is my sleepy time. I would love to be a morning person, but it just isn’t me. I would probably be a lot more productive.
No tips for staying on a routine. I take it a day at a time. It’s great that you schedule exercise as a regular part of your day. Good luck, Sheri.
I would categorize myself as an afternoon-and-evening person. That is the time when I am most awake, creative, and productive. I do love mornings, once I’m awake and if I’ve gotten enough sleep, but it’s the waking up bit tht is so hard for me. I would be a morning person of I could eliminate the waking up bit. Mornings are so peaceful and full of potential, so still and so new (when not preceded by a bout of insomnia).
Definitely a morning person but then a nap in the afternoon and I am good to go late into the evening….working full time really messes this schedule up but oh well. Finally found an exercise thing I am going to stick to. Deep water walking. We use bells in the water for upper body work and different “walking” in the deep water to tone everything else….I love it and don’t mind going 3 times a week. Hard sometimes when I go after work then get home at 7:30 in the evening. DH is very understanding and usually gets his own supper and I eat healthy. Love the water and its fun.
I am not a morning person, despite my best attempts to be one. Working in health care the hours are early, and I still struggle after all these years. I can fake it for a few days, but I really am better suited for staying up until midnight and getting up around 7 am. So, needless to say, it is often not pretty when the alarm goes off at 5:30 am.
I am a morning person once i actually wake up, but in the last few years i have been more of a night person. The best way for me to stay on an exercise routine is to have a partner who is expecting me. i do better with accountability to another person, but i am working on having accountability to myself.
I am soooooooooooo NOT a morning person..only up in the morning for my youngster..been a night owl for many years
I am a morning person who likes to stay up too late!
I wish I had a way to stick to an exercise program…
I’m definitely a night person. The tip to keeping on exercising? Do something you love to do and pick something that you can continue to do. For me, I love bike riding so I’ve been biking to work. And I love taking walks with my family, so me and my hubby and my daughter will go on walks together. If you enjoy doing it, you’re more likely to keep doing it!
I am a night owl-hands down! I can really get wound up late into the night if it weren’t for early AM rising 🙂 I like to ease into my day with multiple cups of coffee whenever possible. As far as exercise; I’m not sure what that word means….(: lol
A morning person for sure. The house is quiet, the dogs are quiet, and I can have a slow start to my morning.
Night person, definitely. As to exercise, I have never really liked it, but have found that Zumba is quite tolerable. It just feels like dancing, even though I’m getting a huge cardio workout, so it isn’t as dreadful as making myself pedal a stationary bike.
I am definitely a morning person. I am also trying to exercise consistently in the morning. It is tough to get motivated sometimes.
I’m absolutely a morning person. I fade very quickly once the sun goes down…
Everyone has a prime spot in the day that they best exercise in. It can take a while to figure it out though.
Routine is key. Once you get used to doing something at a certain time each day, it will become a habit, making it much easier to stick with it.
College taught me to be a night owl. I loved being up late. This has been a hard pattern to break, now that I have a job. Ugh!
I am a night person!! I am the worst morning person in the world, and am very crabby when I wake up. I like routine to my mornings, and it doesn’t consist of exercising! My favorite thing is to curl up on the couch with my tea and book and read for an hour. Exercising when I come home from work is hard, I agree. I did it for about a month, but stopped. I was just too wiped out from the day and just want to relax. I’ve started walking during my lunch hour and it’s amazing!! It gives me so much more energy to face the afternoon. My co-worker and I walk 2-3 times a week. It’s good to have someone to do it with otherwise I wouldn’t have the motivation to do it on my own.
I am definitely a morning person. Although I stay up later than I should way too often. My best period of exercise consistency was when I met someone else every morning. Sadly that period ended when my partner broke her ankle.
Definitely a morning person. Now that we moved into town I will hit the gym for cardio in the morning and then an hour of weights after work. A personal trainer is my key to staying on track.
I am a morning person, the quiet alone in the morning keeps me motivated.
I am definitely a night person! I too find it difficult to work out after work, but I just cannot roll my body out of bed earlier than I need to get ready for the day. I’m hoping I’ll be able to figure something out soon!
I am definitely a morning person. I love getting up early on my days off just to have my coffee and some quiet knitting time while my husband and son are still asleep.
I am definitely a night person trying to be a morning person. I get up early and try to do my working out first thing, or else it just doesn’t get done.
I am a night person, have always been a night person. Truthfully I see no need to be a morning person after all of this time. :0
I am a morning person, getting more done then. Except I like to sleep so getting up to get those things done is often a struggle!
I used to be a night person, but I find myself tending to get up earlier lately so now I’m not sure.
I really have no problem getting up in the morning, and most of my friends will claim that I’m a morning person, as I tend to get up earlier than they do. ( OK for me 7:15 is sleeping in rather than my usual 6:30 alarm wake up.) But the reality is that I’m at my most creative/personally productive late in the evening and typically don’t go to bed before midnight. So from my perspective, I’m a night owl. The main reason I go to bed is because the alarm goes off at 6:30 so I can make it into work at 8.
I am definitely a night person and have been known to question why I’m required to wake before 10 on any given day. Unfortunately, I am a single parent and have to get children off to school. I rarely sleep in until 10. I do not have any exercise tips because I have been unable to maintain an exercise regimen. I try hard, but find myself rushing from one appointment to another while working, getting children to sports and volunteering gigs, and maintaining the household stuff. Whew!
I am a night person with a job that requires me to leave my house at 5:20am! I subsist on about 5 hours of sleep a night because I have to get some knitting and spinning done.
I am just like you- not a morning person but then after work I find excuses. I live 4 miles from work, so last week I started waking up 15 minutes early and walking 2 miles and then getting a bike for the other 2 miles to work. I’m going to slowly add running and eventually get to the point where I run the whole way to work. This will start paying off next week when traffic gets really bad and walking is faster than the bus.
For years and years I was a night person, with my best and brightest ideas coming to me around 11:30 at night. Now no matter how I try I can’t sleep in. I’m up everyday at 6. I’ve learned I can get a lot done and I enjoy the silence of being up when most everyone else is still asleep. At least in my household.
As for keeping up with excerise, you got me, I’m still trying to figure that one out. I find it much easier to control what I eat than to walk or do yoga. I’ll keep reading in case you discover the secret.
I guess I am both a morning person and a night person but excel at neither. I find I am the most productive and mentally alert in the morning but nowdays I can never seem to get up early enough. I love nighttime but I have no motivation in the evening for anything productive. Nighttime is for reading, knitting, watching movies. Some people would say I’m complicated. LOL
So very much a night person!
I am definitely a night person.
Before I was self-employed I exercised during my lunch break.
Night person all the way. The best I ever did on being in an exercise rhythm was sleeping late-ish (9-10am), having breakfast, reading a bit, exercising around 1 pm, shower, then start in on my work. (working from home has so many benefits)
Trying to exercise too soon after waking up or after the day gets underway just never works for me.
Night! Most of the times that I’ve seen a sunrise have been because I failed to see a bed.
Definitely a night person! Though that doesn’t help me much when I have to get up for classes in the morning. O.o
I tend to be a night person but I do my best to be a day person as I get to enjoy more sunlight and social interaction by sticking to the “normal” schedule. I cannot comment on exercise tips as 8 months of back pain has definitely decreased my ability to do more than enjoy daily walks with the dog.
Definitely a night owl!! I am a regular walker and I love listening to audiobooks too!
I am so a night person!! I love to sit up late at night once the kids (and sometimes even hubby) have gone to bed and just enjoy the quiet – then I can knit without interuptions too. Unfortunately I still have to get up early to get kids ready for school but it is worth it!
Used to be a morning person but now I work til 3 or 4 three nights a week, so those mornings after tend to be pretty lazy!
I am a total night owl! I can’t stand early mornings. I find that if I get up early to exercise I am in need of a quick nap early in the afternoon. If I take a 30 minute nap it makes such a difference. Try giving yourself rewards after every so many days of not skipping a morning workout. Start small with a week and build up to a month straight, then two and so on. Good luck’
I am totally NOT a morning person!!! I am an OWL, but my children were all Larks! But some of my Larks now have Larks of their own and they aren’t too keen about that – seems my Larks have taken on Owlish habits! My youngest Lark birthed an Owl, and that was quite a challenge for quite a long time. The little Owl struggles to sleep at night, hates getting up in the morning – she’s GrandMa’s girl, alright! All my Larks like exercise, and so does my little Owl, but GrandMa Owl thinks exercise should be a 4 letter word!!! But it has 8 letters, so it is twice as bad!!! ; )
I am a night person . . . who gets up at 3:47 a.m. and is at her desk at work by 5:45 a.m. Most of my best creative thinking occurs between 1:00 and 3:00 a.m. This does not leave much time for sleep. 😉
I have no clue how to stick to an exercise routine, I’m afraid.
I am unquestionably a night person. My preference would be – up until 2:00 am and sleep until 9:00 — however I have this thing called work which means I need to be up and thinking clearly by 6:00. Oh, well….
I’m a morning person, but when I do workouts I do them in the evening. I do walk to work and back (45 minutes each way) so that gets me going in the morning. For me being consistent with exercise is all about having a routine, and doing it at a time when there won’t be conflicts with other activities.