Reshaping it All - Day 27

Reshaping it All - Day 27

Guest contributor, Olivia from Her Noble Character

7 Reasons Why I Exercise in the Morning:

Since I am not a personal trainer, there could be much more said on this topic than I am able to share. But here are 7 reasons why I like to fit workouts in early on in the day.

1. I get it over with. I don't particularly like to exercise while I'm doing it. I like that it helps me to feel and look my best. I like knowing that I'm taking care of my body in ways that might not even be obvious for years. I like persevering through a good but hard thing, because it allows me to practice the discipline of self-control. But the hard work of exercise itself? Truthfully, I want to be done and enjoy the rest of my day without it.
   
   
2. It helps my mood and energy, keeping me in a "This is going to be a productive day" mentality. Unless I really over-exert myself working out (and then want to just lie around like I'm dying), I'm ready to move on to the next task of the day.
   
   
3. For me, I'm more motivated to be healthy at the beginning of the day. Unhealthy options are less attractive then, because the day is young, and I'm optimistic about being healthy that day. I'm much more likely to follow through with a workout scheduled in the morning than with one that I hope to get to in the afternoon or evening.
   
   
4. Things come up. Life happens. It's never guaranteed that I'll get to my exercise at all on any given day, but generally there are fewer things competing for my time and attention early on. My schedule is still probably going to be on track as of my morning workout.
   
   
5. I get a better grasp on how I should eat for the rest of the day. Sometimes, as I eat, I factor in the exercise I assume will happen eventually. "I can eat a few cookies because I am going to exercise later." First of all, something might come up keeping that exercise from ever happening, which breaks down my excuse for eating too much. Secondly, if I eat the cookies, my body is probably going to feel LESS likely to exercise, even if I have the chance. I'm probably just going to want more cookies! When I think this way, I kind of assume the same risks as a person getting into credit card debt for some new shoes. I hope I'm able to pay for them in time once I've taken care of the rest of my necessary expenses, and I hope I didn't just fuel any shopaholic tendencies that will quickly make the problem even worse.
   
   
6. I am more likely to actually follow through with how I should eat for the rest of the day! Why would I want to ruin the hard work I went through earlier? It's easier to remember that 300 empty calories are hard to undo when you've just burned off 300 calories earlier that day.
   
   
7. It's easier! I find that if I've had a nutritious breakfast that's going to help me as I exercise, I am able to do the work if I can just get started. One of my favorites is to have oatmeal with peanut butter about an hour before my workout, a wonderful idea I got from Comfy in the Kitchen. Then, wanting to quit the exercise I'm doing is primarily a mental thing. Sometimes by the time an afternoon or evening workout rolls along, I've already eaten things that have not prepared my body well to exert itself, and I don't feel well during my workout. Generally my body's "fuel" is better when I'm prepared to exercise in the morning.

Since self-control is one of the qualities young women need to be developing (Titus 2:4-5), I am always up for new ways to improve mine. Exercising is one of the ways I practice saying no to my flesh in a very basic way, and yes to something that God considers to be of some value (1 Timothy 4:8). Thankfully, self-control is a fruit that will be produced in my life with the Holy Spirit's power, not my own (Galatians 5:22-23). I'm thankful that He is always working.

Visit Olivia at her blog, Her Noble Character:

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