This is the best time to workout as per a study

Are day workouts better than evening workouts? We all have been there – wondering and engaging in perpetual debates about what ‘the

best time to workout

’ is.
Physical activity, regardless of the time of the day is beneficial for our overall well-being. However, the time of the workout does have an impact on our fitness goals and health markers, suggests a study.
The study, ‘Timing of Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity, Mortality, Cardiovascular Disease, and Microvascular Disease in Adults With Obesity,’ led by researchers from the University’s Charles Perkins Centre, and published in the journal Diabetes Care in April 2024, points out certain key aspects about the timing of your workout.

The researchers from the University of Sydney, Australia studied 30,000 people over almost 8 years, and tracked the data of their physical activity in the morning, afternoon, or evening using a wearable device. The participants were adults aged over 40 years of age living with obesity. Among them, 2,995 participants were also diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes.
The researchers found that the people who exercised between 6 p.m. and midnight, particularly with moderate to vigorous aerobic activities that raised their heart rate and induced breathlessness, had the lowest risk of premature death and death from cardiovascular disease.

“Exercise is by no means the only solution to the obesity crisis, but this research does suggest that people who can plan their activity into certain times of the day may best offset some of these health risks,” Dr Angelo Sabag, Lecturer in Exercise Physiology at the University of Sydney said in a statement.

Evening exercise, between 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. is often linked with an increase in upper body muscle strength, power and endurance in women, according to a study published in Frontiers in Physiology. The study points out that morning exercise are also beneficial for women, as it reduces overall and belly fat and blood pressure. Morning workouts increase lower body muscle power.
On the other hand, evening workouts for lower systolic blood pressure and fatigue, and stimulate fat oxidation compared to early morning exercise in men.

If you are on a weight loss journey, morning exercise between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. are beneficial. According to a 2023 study, researchers found that morning exercise is linked with a lower body mass index compared to midday or afternoon workouts. The study was based on the data collected from 5,200 people 20 years old and over. Some other factors that played a role in the findings are that the individuals who exercised in the morning were more likely to have never consumed tobacco or alcohol, they were consistently exercising at the same time every day, and also consumed fewer calories than midday or afternoon people.

So what time you should workout really depends on your fitness goals.
(Pic courtesy: iStock)