Traditionally, experts have recommended not exercising at night as part of good sleep hygiene. However, a small study, published in Sports Medicine suggests that some people can exercise in the evening as long as they avoid vigorous activity for at least one hour before bedtime.
There is nothing wrong with working out in the evening. Everybody has a different response to how their body adapts to exercise. Some people prefer to exercise in the morning , while others can only exercise in the evening due to time constrains (eg, work, school, etc.).
The benefits of evening workouts
A separate study, published earlier in 2024 in Diabetes Care, found heart-pumping exercise in the evening — between 6 p.m. and midnight — was associated with the lowest risk of mortality and cardiovascular disease for people with obesity.
While there's no right or wrong time to run, running in the dark gets a bad rap. Critics cite a lack of visibility and increased chances of dangers lurking beyond the shadows as reasons to avoid lacing up at night, but there are many reasons to hit the road after sunset.
After 6 years, 2,911 study participants developed coronary artery disease (CAD), and 796 participants had had a stroke. Overall, people who exercised at 11 a.m. were 16% less likely to develop CAD, and 17% less likely to have a first stroke of any kind.
If you run too hard too close to bedtime, you'll raise your heart rate, body temperature, and make it hard to fall asleep, Harris says. “Try to finish up a couple of hours before bedtime to give your body time to cool down and relax for better sleep,” she suggests.
Traditionally, experts have recommended not exercising at night as part of good sleep hygiene. However, a small study, published in Sports Medicine suggests that some people can exercise in the evening as long as they avoid vigorous activity for at least one hour before bedtime.
Super-Late at Night
“Rigorous exercise naturally wakes your body up by boosting your heart rate,” Backe explains. “This can take several hours to wind down from.” Although everyone is different—some may be able to fall asleep peacefully post-workout—he recommends avoiding exercise two to three hours before bed.
If you're wondering about weight gain from sleeping post-exercise, rest assured that sleep is a crucial part of recovery and does not directly lead to weight gain. Getting adequate sleep is essential to a healthy lifestyle and can contribute to overall well-being, including weight management.
The appropriate age for the initiation of formal weightlifting training can be as young as 10 to 11 years, provided that the biological age of the child and the emotional maturity of the child are reasonable.
However, you must allow time lag between exercise and bathing. The most important thing you can do after a workout is to cool down to get your heart rate and body temperature back to normal. After cooling down for at least 20 minutes, then you can decide to take a shower.
Start working out at the gym between the ages of 12–16. The minimum age may vary on the location. Children need permission from a parent or guardian to sign up for a gym membership. Some gyms may require supervision for children under 18 to use gym equipment.
As mentioned, you should drink your pre-workout 20-30 minutes before training and make sure you don't consume your pre-session energy boost within 4 hours of bedtime, as this could affect your ability to sleep.
Keeping all those factors in mind, Samuel says you should be able to work up to three sets of 20 to 25 pushups a day, if you really want to. Sure, you might hear from guys who double or even triple that number—but their reps aren't going to be as effective as yours in the long run.
You may be thinking that a late-night workout will have you so energized you won't be able to slow down when it's time to go to sleep — but the opposite is actually true! According to The Washington Post, exercise helps you sleep deeper and longer, no matter what time of day you exercise.
A new study offers clues that could help maximize your efforts. Exercising between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. has been associated with having a lower waist circumference and body mass index than people who work out during midday or evening, according to a study published Tuesday in the journal Obesity.
The final verdict? Exercising in a fasted state may burn some quick body fat, but it's not the best option for your body in the long-run. Eat a small snack or meal before and after your workout to ensure that you're properly fueled to perform your best in the gym and recover quickly when you get home.
Quietest days of the week to go to the gym: On all weekday mornings it is not as busy as the highest point in the evening, but still a peak time is between 9am and 10am. Quietest hours to use the gym on any day of the week: Between 9pm and 5am. Quietest times during the weekday daytime to visit: Between 1pm and 4pm.
According to a research review, strenuous exercise performed at least 2 hours before bed won't disrupt sleep in healthy people. In general, the best time to exercise depends largely on your fitness goals and personal preferences. Some people might have a hard time getting up early for morning workouts.
On a physiological level, for one, workouts raise your heart rate and body temperature, while solid sleep requires a lower heart rate and lower body temperature. “In order for our body to produce melatonin, which is known as the sleep hormone, our body temperature has to drop before we go to bed,” Roban says.
Based on available studies, “We have solid evidence that exercise does, in fact, help you fall asleep more quickly and improves sleep quality,” says Charlene Gamaldo, M.D. , medical director of Johns Hopkins Center for Sleep at Howard County General Hospital.