Skip to main content

Pros and Cons of Morning, Midday, Afternoon Runs

Happy first day of Spring! Thankfully, it feels like spring today. And at least for a few more days anyway. Spring makes me happy. Not just for the warmer weather, but the buds of color. I always feel like winter is so stark and drab. So those first bursts of color seem all the more vibrant and exciting.


The one thing I am not loving right now is that it's pitch dark again in the morning. The sun isn't rising until around 7-ish, while I'm sitting in my office. Thankfully I have an east-ward facing window.


I've moved my morning runs to midday or after work for a couple of reasons. One, the time change kicked my rear. Two, I really don't feel super comfortable running alone in the total dark. Third, it's warmer when the sun finally comes up.

While I am enjoying the warmer temps of a midday or afternoon run, I am very much missing my morning runs too. I feel rather torn between the change of time for my running.

I think there are pros and cons to the various times of day for running.

Morning Run

Pros: 
  • It's quite simply peaceful
  • The run is done for the day
  • Fewer tummy probs (for me at least)
  • The sunrises (when it's farther from the time changes at least)
  • It's cooler, which is a must during the summer months
  • It's a great way to start the day, sets the tone
  • Little traffic
Cons:
  • It can be hard to peel yourself out of bed
  • Depending on the time of year, it's so dark you can't see the road
  • Running solo can feel a little iffy

Midday Run

Pros:
  • It's warmer, which is nice in the cooler months
  • It's a great way to change your mindset and take a break from work
  • It's a good energy boosters (and mood booster)
  • Vitamin D
Cons:
  • Sometimes things come up and you have to cancel the run
  • Gotta time the run around a snack and lunch so you don't eat your arm off
  • Usually time-constrained 
  • During the summer, it can be too hot
  • More homeless tend to be out and about
  • Heavier vehicular traffic

Afternoon Run

Pros:
  • Same as Midday in that it's warmer, so a plus in cooler months
  • Energy booster for the end of the day
  • It can be a great stress reliever after a long, hard day
  • Usually you can sleep sounder
  • Sometimes you can get a pretty sunset
Cons:
  • Heavy traffic
  • More prone to tummy issues
  • Fatigued from the day
  • Easier to talk yourself out of, especially if you have other plans
  • It can get dark on you, so back to dark morning issues
What is your preferred time to run or workout?

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Love in Photos

In honor of Valentine's Day - Love in Photos Husband Family and Furbabies Friends Even if you're not a fan of Valentine's Day - I hope you have a wonderful day and remember the loves in your life.

Workout Wednesday - Body Blaster Tabata

Happy Hump Day! I wanted to thank everyone for their comments on yesterday's post: Be Kinder to Your Body. Calories are Not the Enemy . It sounds like it resonated with many of you. Today I wanted to share a new workout with you. I've been working on interval workouts for some of my clients. I try to give them the most bang for their buck (time). I know that in an ideal world, we would all have time to do longer workouts. There would never be scheduling conflicts, sick husbands or kids, or sick us. In reality, workouts need to be effective and efficient. And they don't have to be lengthy to be effective and efficient either. There's no need to spend hours in a gym to get in a good workout. Interval workouts like HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) or tabata, or even interval running are great ways to get in a fantastic workout in a short amount of time and have many benefits. You can read more about Tabata workouts  here . The benefits of this type of work

Piriformis Update & Grilled Veggie Salad

New Piriformis Exercises Today wasn't too terrible for a Monday. Of course, I did leave a little early. That always helps huh ;-) I had another round of physical therapy today. My PT has been really researching piriformis syndrome and found an interesting article that discusses the use of McKenzie Exercises - typically used for back pain. I have started adding in low back extensions (one of the exercises) but now have a whole new list of exercises to add into my workout rotations. But, if it helps, I'll do it. I also asked her about dry needling (thanks Sarena ), which is sort of similar to acupuncture, but is more about trigger point and intramuscular stimulation. And I'm glad I asked because the timing is uncanny. One of the doctor's in the clinic happens to be going to get certified this weekend. They both believe that I am a prime candidate for the procedure. So we'll see how that goes. Kind of scared because I hate hate hate needles. Have any of you tr