If you feel like a 2.4km IPPT run in the morning is about 10km, and the same distance in the evening is about an easy 1.6km, you’re not alone! In fact from beginners to professional Olympic competitors, more people agreed that evening runs felt easier than the morning ones.
This is not purely psychological. There’s more on why evenings to night are the best time to run!
#1 Evenings are your body’s optimum time to run
First, your body temperature is higher in the evenings. It makes your muscles looser, more warmed up. In fact, mid-afternoon to evening times are when your body temperature peaks. Your lung function is also roughly 6 percent better in the evenings, according to Dr. Boris Medarov of the Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New York. If you’re looking for a PB, this would also be the best time to run.
Second, you feel psychologically more able to run in the evenings. After work, the mentality is that you’re done for the day and it’s time for some me time! It’s a lot more positive than the miserable feeling of having to wake up to the blaring alarm.
#2 Sleep better
A study conducted by the National Sleep Foundation found that those who exercise close to bedtime did not report any difficulty falling asleep. In fact, exercise at any time of the day or night is better for sleep than no exercise at all. So, no more excuses!
#3 More therapeutic
There’s something more relaxing about exercising in the evenings. Even there are numerous proven benefits to running in the morning, it takes some level of conviction and preparation. Change it to an evening run! You get to have a full breakfast with scrambled eggs and toast, instead of a grab and go granola bar. You get to take an easy ride reading on the MRT, instead of busying yourself with your gym bag and work briefs. It also helps to sweat out the day’s work of frustration and stress.
So those running groups out there with weekly evening runs – kudos to you!
