How to Become a Morning Runner
In an ideal world, I would always run in the morning. In the summer, it is the coolest time of the day and frees up my evenings to do whatever I want. In the winter, it is the only time of day when I can run in daylight. But the struggle is real to wake up early and get out there. Read on for 5 tricks I use to get myself in the habit of running in the morning.
1. Refuse to Snooze
I will not lie: adjusting to an earlier sleep schedule is not easy. If you have decided to make this commitment, the first thing you need to accept is that you are going to be tired when your alarm goes off. Hitting the snooze button will just delay the inevitable, or may cause you to miss your workout entirely. This is the most crucial part of the process that you have to push through.
I have started sleeping with my alarm on my dresser instead of my bedside table. In order to turn my alarm off I have to physically get out of bed. This not only prevents me from hitting snooze (I’m already out of bed, anyway!), but it keeps me from wasting time laying in bed scrolling on my phone before I get up.
2. Plan It Out
Every minute is precious in the morning, and having everything planned out will save valuable time. Before I go to bed, I plan my distance, duration, and what route I am going to run the next morning.
For the first week or two when I’m transitioning to morning runs, I tend to plan relatively short and easy runs to help ease myself into the new routine. You can expect to run a bit slower than usual to while your body is getting used to moving in the morning, so give yourself a bit of extra time for your run.
Bonus tip: Plan a route where you have access to a washroom around 10-15 minutes in. If you don’t need it, great. But if you do… you will be grateful.
When I set my alarm, I work backwards from any commitment I have. I start work at 9:00 AM, and I need to give myself 20 minutes to shower and get dressed. Before I shower, I need 20 minutes to stretch and have breakfast when I get in from my run. This means that the latest I can get in from my run is 8:20 AM. If I want to go for a 1 hour run, I need to be out the door by 7:20 AM. Accounting for a 10-minute warm up and realistically 15 minutes to brush my teeth and get dressed, this means I need to be out of bed at 6:55 AM if I want to run for 1 hour.
3. Set Out Your Clothes
This is probably the most repeated tip out there, but I am telling you it works.
Check the weather for the morning, and choose a top, bottom, and grab a pair of socks. I leave my gear in a little pile in the bathroom so that I can change right away and get out the door. This simple task takes no more than 1 minute, but will make your morning run that much smoother.
4. Go to Bed Earlier
Your body will adjust to the new routine, but it will not happen right away. The good news is that feeling tired during the day means that you are more likely to actually go bed earlier at night! Going to bed earlier is crucial to having the energy for your morning workout.
Because sleep is probably the most important part of recovery, it is vital that you are not always sacrificing sleep in order to train in the morning. Adjusting on both ends of the day – waking up earlier and going to bed earlier – will keep you from injury or burnout.
5. Fuel Appropriately
There is no question that the way your body feels is going to be impacted by what you put in it.
I am a runner who has a sensitive stomach, which means that if I eat more than a few bites within 2 hours of a run I get very nauseous. What works best for me is to do my shorter morning runs in a fasted state. I have a big dinner the evening and ensure that I have breakfast ready for me to eat as soon as I get in from my run. I save my more intense workouts for the evening when I have time to fuel up a few hours in advance.
This does not work for everyone, though, and getting to know your body will help you learn what works for you. If you wake up hungry or know that you will feel sluggish without some fuel, go for something easy to digest like a banana or some toast. If I am running more than an hour, I prepare a half peanut butter sandwich for myself the night before which I eat while I am getting dressed. I also pack an energy gel in my pocket in the event that I need a little boost during the run.
If you want to become a morning runner, the first step is to accept it is going to kind of suck the first few times. The good news is it gets easier, and you are going to love all the extra time you have in the evenings.
Remember to ease into your new routine, maybe starting with just a couple short morning runs a week and going from there. Be kind to yourself if you decide to prioritize sleep one morning – recovery is important!