If you’re someone who really doesn’t like exercise or struggles to make it to the gym after work, I have to tell you that morning exercise is the answer to all of your problems. You get it out of the way before you’re even conscious, you don’t have to spend all day at work dreading your evening workout and you can go straight home at the end of the day and do something better like sitting down. It’s the morning part that we all find a struggle so here are a few tips to help you get out of the bed and into your runners!

Prepare The Night Before

You need to have everything in a little Nanna pile right by the door. I’m talking socks, shoes, keys, towel, water bottle – everything. Don’t let a lost sports bra or not being able to find your favourite water bottle be a lame excuse to not go. Have your clothes in a pile ready to step into and your keys and wallet ready to go. No excuses.

Don’t Do It Every Morning

If it’s difficult for you to get out of bed in the morning, don’t punish yourself every day. Try two or three times a week. There’s nothing worse than looking at a week full of 6am training sessions. Start slow. 

A Bad Night’s Sleep Is A Terrible Excuse

So you didn’t sleep well. Cry me a freaking river. Exercise is one of the greatest things you can do when you haven’t slept well. It will make what could have been an awful day into an amazing one. Don’t take my word for it, try it yourself. Note how you feel on a bad sleep + no exercise day and compare it to a day when you slept badly but dragged yourself to the gym in the morning. It hurts a lot for the first five minutes but that beats a whole day of feeling cranky and sore. It’s worth it. I promise.

Dish Out The Dosh

There’s nothing like money as a motivator. If you pre-pay for a specialty class or a bootcamp there’s far more incentive to get out of bed, particularly if it’s a bit on the expensive side. For instance a trip to my gym costs about $2 per session at a pro rata rate from my monthly membership fee and if I skip a morning session I can always lie to myself and say I’ll go later. However my bootcamp costs about $18 per session and if I miss a session, I can’t make it up later. That $18 is goneski. It’s much harder to stay in bed knowing you’re actively wasting money.

Meet A Friend

It’s an oldie but a goody. You’ll feel like a right a-hole if your friend gets up at 6am in the freezing cold to meet you for a jog and you don’t show up plus it’s fantastic to have a person who will hold you accountable.

Make Sure Your Alarm Is Far Away From Where You Sleep

Try setting your alarm clock or phone and putting it with your clothes on the other side of your room. That way you’ll have to get up to turn it off and the first thing you see is your exercise gear. It’s all about tricking your brain, people. 

Are you an early morning exerciser? What tricks do you employ to get your butt out the door?

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