"Unveiling My 7-Day Morning Workout Journey: 4 Vital Lessons from My Mistakes"

I undertook the challenge of engaging in daily exercise before commencing work for a week. While I experienced an increase in productivity and morning energy levels, I encountered a few errors. To ensure success, I should have selected my attire the night before and consumed a meal before exercising.

Through this challenge, I acquired valuable insights. I discovered that the most effective way to achieve a restful night's sleep is to exert myself every morning. Additionally, I observed that my productivity in the morning is enhanced after engaging in physical activity. Although it was challenging, I found it worthwhile to motivate myself to rise early and complete my workout before commencing my day.

However, I made four significant errors throughout the week that I intend to rectify as I continue my fitness journey. These errors include both omissions and actions that I would approach differently in the future.

One of the mistakes I made was neglecting to select my attire the night before. I learned this technique during my middle school years, but I discontinued the practice at the onset of the pandemic in 2020. Like many others, I spent most of my time indoors and developed a habit of wearing loungewear throughout the day, which resulted in me not putting together fashionable outfits.

During this exercise challenge, I woke up 90 minutes earlier than usual, making it easier to select my attire the night before. This allowed me to roll out of bed the next day, put on my clothes, and leave the house. However, on one occasion, I was so exhausted from my extended day that I neglected to lay out my clothes for the following day. Consequently, I spent valuable time selecting my outfit, causing me to leave my apartment 15 minutes later than intended. This resulted in me rushing back to my apartment after my workout, leaving me stressed before commencing work.

I refrained from consuming any food prior to engaging in physical exercise. Generally, I do not have a substantial appetite for breakfast. However, after completing my workout, I experienced extreme hunger at best, and occasionally felt slightly dizzy.

According to the Mayo Clinic, consuming a nutritious breakfast rich in carbohydrates before engaging in physical activity can enhance performance during the workout by enabling one to exercise for a longer duration and/or with greater intensity. If I had consumed at least a breakfast bar or a protein shake, I may have had more energy prior to my workout and potentially would not have felt as exhausted afterwards.

Consequently, I found myself rushing to the nearest coffee shop to obtain an egg sandwich.

Regrettably, I did not bring a change of clothes with me to my classes, thus preventing me from utilizing the shower facilities available.

Typically, I avoid locker rooms at the gym. However, I was pleasantly surprised by the shower facilities at Rumble Boxing, one of the exercise classes I attended during the week. Although I had visited this establishment previously, I had never required the use of the locker room and had not witnessed the quality of the showers.

Therefore, when I decided to explore the amenities before my 8 a.m. class and discovered that the showers were clean, equipped with high-end products, and relatively unoccupied, I immediately regretted not bringing flip-flops and a change of clothes. This would have allowed me to conveniently shower on-site. After the boxing and mixed cardio class, I was perspiring profusely, and it would have been advantageous to directly access the shower to prepare myself for the day.

Instead, I returned to my apartment and had to wait until I had a break in my morning routine to finally shower, resulting in a considerable amount of discomfort for a significant portion of the morning.

Furthermore, I learned that I should not be overly critical of myself for occasionally missing a day of exercise.

On the final day of the challenge, I struggled to motivate myself to get out of bed. The reason being that it was the first morning where I had social commitments the previous night, which kept me out until nearly midnight.

In general, there are several measures that could have been taken to optimize time, finances, and energy expenditure. These include opting for more affordable breakfast bars instead of costly sandwiches from cafes, pre-selecting outfits in advance, and bringing spare clothing and flip-flops for showering at the gym. Implementing these strategies would have effectively streamlined my morning routine. Additionally, I have come to realize the importance of being kind to oneself and avoiding excessive self-imposed pressure.

Despite these aforementioned oversights, I have discovered that engaging in morning exercise is highly advantageous due to the numerous health benefits it offers and the subsequent increase in productivity experienced throughout the week.

Moving forward, I intend to allocate more time in the evenings to facilitate a smoother morning routine and enhance overall ease of life.