If you are a treadmill owner (or are thinking about becoming one), there are many benefits to using your treadmill in the morning. The hardest part is over – you have reviewed the best treadmills to get the most for your money, you have purchased it, and you have installed it in your home gym space. The only thing that’s left is getting on it! Below are some commonly asked questions about using your treadmill in the morning.
Is It Better To Eat Before Or After Using Your Treadmill?
Some people are intrigued by the concept of fasted cardio, which is doing cardio right away in the morning before eating anything. The benefits of fasted cardio, which can be accomplished easily on a treadmill by doing a longer run or sprint intervals, may include increased body fat loss. However, remember that the body will have a more difficult time training at a high intensity without any food in the system. The decision to eat before a workout also may be impacted by time, as some may not have time to let their pre-workout meal digest.
Whether you decide to eat before or after your workout is dependent on many factors: your fitness goals, the way your body feels, and your preferences, and how you feel with or without breakfast when doing a morning workout. Testing a morning treadmill workout with and without pre-workout fuel will help you determine what is best for you. If you do decide to test a pre-workout meal, be sure to incorporate healthy carbohydrates to energize the body (such as a whole-grain English muffin, oatmeal, or a piece of fruit) and protein (such as eggs/egg whites, protein powder) to help the body recover.
Is It Good To Run Every Morning?
Much like the above information, the decision to run each morning depends on your personal preferences. However, when pondering this decision, there are a few important factors to keep in mind. Here are a few questions you can ask yourself when deciding whether or not to run each morning:
Can my body handle this?
Doing a treadmill workout each morning may be hard on joints and bones, depending on your individual body structure. It may be smart to mix in walking with running to reduce the impact or add in strength training.
Do I like to do this?
Many people may find that jogging on the treadmill each morning gets redundant. To avoid this, use your allotted morning treadmill time to try new things – perhaps an interval workout with walking and running, an incline walk, or incorporating light dumbbells would help your workout feel more varied.
Do I have a treadmill to match my goals?
Different treadmills may help you accomplish different goals, so be sure to do your research before you make a purchase.
What is recommended for health and wellbeing?
Review the American Heart Association cardiovascular recommendations here, and decide how you can meet those recommendations.
Is It Ok To Workout As Soon As You Wake Up?
The decision to engage in a morning treadmill workout is completely up to the user. As discussed above, some people may wake up and feel ready to jump into it, whereas others may feel more inclined to enjoy a cup of coffee and small breakfast before embarking on a treadmill workout. In reality, there is no wrong way to use your treadmill in the morning!
Regardless of whether you eat before or after the workout, it is of utmost importance to warm up the body before jumping on the treadmill. Engaging in dynamic stretching and light movement (such as marches or low-impact jumping jacks) will help you ease into movement, making your morning treadmill workout seem more manageable and less likely to cause you injury.
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