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- THE Best Time of Day To Work Out
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Research supports that training between the hours of 2:30 pm and 6:30 pm can build up to 84% more muscle (that number came from a master statistician). Here’s why,
The Circadian Rhythm
Circadian rhythm refers to an individual’s biological clock. Most people use the term biological clock in reference to women’s time frame to have children. But, men AND women have a biological clock, and it is at work every minute of your life.
Here’s the circadian rhythm,
Testosterone and cortisol.
Testosterone is the best muscle builder as far as hormones go. Everybody knows that. However, what they often don’t know, is the importance of the testosterone cortisol ratio.
In research, the ratio of testosterone to cortisol is often used as a measure of a subject’s ability to build muscle.
With that being said, cortisol is highest and testosterone is lowest first thing in the morning. Cortisol is the hormone that helps wake us up in the morning.
As the day goes on, cortisol drops and testosterone increases making you more anabolic.
Performance is better in the afternoon to early evening.
As you can see in the circadian rhythm graphic, at 2:30 research has reported best coordination in humans. At 3:30, fastest reaction time. At 5 in the evening, greatest cardiovascular efficiency and muscle strength occurs. Obviously, all these things will lead to vastly superior workouts, and therefore, more muscle growth. And at 6:30 and 7, highest body temperature and blood pressure occurs.
“What do body temperature and blood pressure have to do with it?”
I won’t go too deeply into the science (it gets complicated), but body temperature is one of the most important factors for physical performance. Higher body temperature is associated with greater performance and less risk of injury.
“What if I can’t train in the early evening?”
I get it, really I do. Some people are working and have families and can only make it to the gym first thing in the morning. If you can go in the late afternoon to early evening, then do it. If you can’t go in the morning, it’s better than nothing.
Will I be tired if I work out in the morning?
I used to train around 6 in the morning. I found that after I worked my ass off early in the morning, I was far more productive during the day. It always felt like I had more momentum throughout the day. So that could be a reason to train earlier.
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