Early morning workouts can be very tough sometimes.

Here are 6 tips for successful morning workouts:

1) Set your alarm early enough that you cannot cop out. My alarm goes off 1 hour before I want to start my workout. This gives me enough time to get dressed, get my gear, have some coffee, unload the dishwasher, start a load of laundry, and drive to the gym. I’m a mom, I have to do a little bit of work before I leave the house.

2) Set a second alarm (this is my just in case alarm). I usually get up with the first alarm but there have been times when I set it for pm instead of am or had a rough night and hit snooze.

3) I highly encourage attending a morning class or having a specific program to follow. This helps you be prepared and take the brain work out of planning the workout. When you go with a plan of action, you are going to get a better workout.

4) Program your coffee pot to start when your alarm goes off. If you are not a coffee person,  have your pre-workout set out and ready! Also prepare any water or pre-workout snack/breakfast you may need to fuel your workout. I personally just workout with a cup of coffee as pre-workout is too much on an empty stomach and I love doing my workout in a fasted state. Breakfast is so much better when I can sit down and enjoy it after a great workout.

5) Lay out your clothes and shoes. I found I was waking up everyone in my house trying to gather clothes. I actually hang up my outfits with shirt, pants, and sports bra so each outfit is ready to go!

6) Go to bed with a healthy mindset of intentionally getting up and doing your workout. Make the promise to yourself, visualize yourself doing the workout, and say a positive affirmation. Repeat after me,  “My workout is important. My workout energizes me. My workout will help me be more productive today.”

Yes, it’s hard to get into a routine if you are not used to it but preparing yourself will make it so much easier! Your workouts will set a great intention for the day, they will energize you, and your day will absolutely be more successful because you took care of your health first thing in the morning.

Be the kind of woman that when your feet hit the floor each morning the devil says, “oh crap, she’s up!” – Anonymous