Avoid Evening Workouts

[JOKER]

by Christian Thibaudeau

Avoid Evening Workouts

People often ask why training in the evening is such a bad thing. Wait, is it? Yep. It has to do with cortisol production. Training spikes cortisol. So let's look at what cortisol does.

Its main function is putting your body in the best possible state to face danger or stress. It mobilizes stored energy, increases wakefulness, and shuts down the immune system momentarily so you have more energy for the muscles and organs, which are needed to face the stress. It also amps up the brain, mostly by increasing the conversion of noradrenaline to adrenaline.

The ideal cortisol cycle is high in the morning and low in the evening. The cortisol spike in the morning is what makes you wake up (when you wake up on your own). The cortisol spike also increases adrenaline levels, which assist in waking you up too.

Cortisol Then, as your cortisol decreases in the evening, it puts your autonomous nervous system in parasympathetic mode – also known as rest-and-recover mode. That allows you to fall asleep more easily, recover better, get more time in deep sleep, and have a higher production of growth hormone.

If your cortisol stays elevated in the evening, it'll be much harder to fall asleep and get quality deep sleep. That's why training in the evening isn't the best choice.

Let's say you do train at night regularly and have restless sleep as a result. This may lead to chronically elevated cortisol, which is bad for your gainz, bro. First because cortisol increases protein breakdown. The amount of muscle you build is a function of the difference between protein synthesis (anabolism) and protein breakdown (catabolism). If you break down more it'll be harder to add muscle tissue, especially if you're a natural lifter.

Then there's the impact on myostatin. Cortisol can increase myostatin and inhibit muscle growth. It also decreases the rate of muscle glycogen resynthesis – storing glycogen in the muscles after you used it up during training – delaying recovery.

For these reasons, the more you can spike cortisol from training in the earlier part of your day, the more you can respect the natural cycle of your body and the better you'll recover.

Enhanced lifters have fewer problems because steroids decrease the action of cortisol significantly. But natural lifters need every advantage they can get.

Who Can Get Away With It?

Now, some people can actually pull evening training off: those who fall asleep easily even if they've had a killer workout two hours prior. Normally these guys have either a high level of GABA or a high level of serotonin, allowing them to shut their CNS down as soon as the workout is over, putting them in parasympathetic mode.

 

[Ashop]

I must be one of the odd ones because some of my very best training sessions have definitely been in the evenings. It helps remove my daily stress, I feel great after. I grab a meal a shower and then I sleep like a baby.

 

[hawkmoon]

I have trained in the evening for most of my 35 years in the gym. I get home after 8, in bed by 10:30, and am usually asleep by 11:00 after some reading.

 

[Elvia1023]

I used to train anywhere from 9pm-3am. It's a horrible feeling training about 3am though especially just as you leave the empty gym Regarding evening workouts as in normal times so 7-10pm I love them and I feel better training at that time for a variety of reasons (meals in me, energy etc).

 

[maldorf]

I must be one of the odd ones because some of my very best training sessions have definitely been in the evenings. It helps remove my daily stress, I feel great after. I grab a meal a shower and then I sleep like a baby.

That's me too. There are times now that if I train in the afternoon I end up going into my bedroom and passing out on the bed, end up taking a 3 hour nap. THen I cant get to bed at night!

 

[Stewie]

It comes down to intra-individual circadian typology, essentially the expression metrics of your specific growth factors.

Plus, this citation says hypertrophic response of morning vs evening was more prominent in the evening group.

Effects of morning versus evening combined strength and endurance training on physical performance, muscle hypertrophy, and serum hormone concentrations
This study investigated the effects of 24 weeks of morning versus evening same-session combined strength (S) and endurance (E) training on physical performance, muscle hypertrophy, and resting serum testosterone and cortisol diurnal concentrations. Forty-two young men were matched and assigned to a morning (m) or evening (e) E + S or S + E group (mE + S, n = 9; mS + E, n = 9; eE + S, n = 12; and eS + E, n = 12). Participants were tested for dynamic leg press 1-repetition maximum (1RM) and time to exhaustion (Texh) during an incremental cycle ergometer test both in the morning and evening, cross-sectional area (CSA) of vastus lateralis and diurnal serum testosterone and cortisol concentrations (0730 h; 0930 h; 1630 h; 1830 h). All groups similarly increased 1RM in the morning (14%–19%; p < 0.001) and evening (18%–24%; p < 0.001). CSA increased in all groups by week 24 (12%–20%, p < 0.01); however, during the training weeks 13–24 the evening groups gained more muscle mass (time-of-day main effect; p < 0.05). Texh increased in all groups in the morning (16%–28%; p < 0.01) and evening (18%–27%; p < 0.001), however, a main effect for the exercise order, in favor of E + S, was observed on both testing times (p < 0.051). Diurnal rhythms in testosterone and cortisol remained statistically unaltered by the training order or time. The present results indicate that combined strength and endurance training in the evening may lead to larger gains in muscle mass, while the E + S training order might be more beneficial for endurance performance development. However, training order and time seem to influence the magnitude of adaptations only when the training period exceeded 12 weeks.

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[McSwickles]

I work out after work around 10pm, I have for years. Unfortunately it’s the only time I have to work out, but I’ve gotten used to it over the years and don’t have much trouble with rest.

 

[Reload]

Get it while you can. Can be applied to many things in life.
Adapt & overcome!

 

[thethinker48]

Steroids (and GH + Insulin) > Differences in cortisol from training late

Jay Cutler won many sandows training at 1-2 am

Might be worth noting if you're natural. Half this board is comprised of captain americas lol

 

[beverast]

I dislike articles like this. While the whole reasoning around cortisol levels might have some merit, it 1. both over-simplified and over-generalised, as Stewie pointed out there is a individual component to it, and 2. some people just don't have a choice. My main peeve with that sort of writing, however, is that they are often stating things very matter-of-factly. Some more guarded language here and there would help sometimes.

 

[madg]

I work 8 am to 10 pm everyday ...

Always train at 10.30 pm after 14 hours shift and never problem for me

Cant train in morning cause of my work

 

[Flex500]

It's an interesting read and data but it also feels like in the grand scheme of things this would be around number 91 on the list of top 100 most important workout considerations. That's not meant any offense a whole lot of research is like that. What I don't love is when reading or working on research like this when people add there snazzy spin to make a beginner feel like they may as well just not workout if they can't do this random (somewhat obscure ie train in morning) thing.

People often ask why training in the evening is such a bad thing. Wait, is it? Yep.

I like christian so this post isn't meant to come off asshole-ish like it may sound. If you don't write something catchy like that few would read it so it's a necessity.

 

[b-boy]

I have trained for 30+ years and always thought I preferred evening workouts, but since switching to early morning for the last 3 years, my body feels so much better when I train in the morning, and I personally sleep a lot better as in quality sleep

 

[beverast]

I think I remember reading somewhere that the average person has their peak potential for physical activity in the afternoon, something like 3-5pm and that's where I personally find myself. I can do morning workouts when I have to, but it's not my time of choice. If I ever find that paper again, I will link it.

In the end, I think it comes down to personal preference - and especially what's possible for you in the context of your life.

The one thing I'm certain about is that this is not a major thing to worry about.

 

[alfresco]

I think the article, while perhaps entirely accurate in the particular details, to me it is a
bunch of pseudoscience, extrapolation and 'broscience' which excludes individuality
. . . with a weak disclaimer.

Experiment and find what works best for you. Screw the science in this regard. Over
many many years of working out with weights I have tried, been forced to, work
out at all hours and I have found that working out immediately after work, say 3pm
(with one exception, but I had a great workout partner and did make my best progress
ever . . . so there) or in one case 11pm after work, which was the hardest. I have
tried the middle of the day during lunch, between classes when I was in collage and
it was okay because only because I had a limited amount of time which is good for me.

What works best for me now is early mornings, say 6-7am. I am at the strongest
and freshest, me head is the clearest, not to mention it gets it out of the way so I
can get on with my day without a workout hanging over my head like a heavy cloud.

 

[mytreefiddy]

I must be one of the odd ones because some of my very best training sessions have definitely been in the evenings. It helps remove my daily stress, I feel great after. I grab a meal a shower and then I sleep like a baby.

Med too.... Shit, I turned Pro doing all my training after work in the evenings.... Trained 15+ years in the eve... So "avoiding training in the evenings" is a crock IMO

 

[Creation]

My only problem with switching to AM workouts before work is that time crunch feeling/workout feeling rushed

 

[TheOtherOne55]

I think this article is as nit-picky as you can get.

I'm a morning lifter and have been for awhile. I enjoy just getting something DONE in the morning and feel like its a great start to the day. Basically, a great kickstart.

But I've also read studies that say heavy lifting in the morning is actually more dangerous. They stated that after a full day, you're body is so fully warmed up that a risk of injury is much less. Once again, nit picky as hell.

It more depends on WHAT YOU ENJOY.

 

[maldorf]

But I've also read studies that say heavy lifting in the morning is actually more dangerous. They stated that after a full day, you're body is so fully warmed up that a risk of injury is much less. Once again, nit picky as hell.

That was my experience. My chances of pulling a muscle or some other kind of injury was always a lot higher if I lifted in the morning, or even in the early afternoon. I was used to doing it at night. Maybe if I was used to the mornings the story would have been different, I dont know. All I know is that when I wake up in the morning I am really stiff and it takes me a few hours to become more flexible and feel right.

 

[lestatgear]

Steroids (and GH + Insulin) > Differences in cortisol from training late

Jay Cutler won many sandows training at 1-2 am

Might be worth noting if you're natural. Half this board is comprised of captain americas lol

Jay’s training schedule during his Olympia run popped in my mind too. I don’t think the man slept very much during that time period.