What is the ideal time for exercise? Morning? Evening? This has long been debated. While some people prefer to work out in the early hours of the day, others lean toward evening sessions that better fit their schedules and energy levels. A new study presented at the American College of Cardiology’s Annual Scientific Session (ACC. 26) may offer some valuable insight into this heated debate.
While the study confirms that any exercise is better than none, working out early in the morning is associated with lower cardiometabolic risk.
How early morning workouts improve heart health
Based on data from more than 14,000 participants, the researchers found that people who exercised early in the morning were significantly less likely to have coronary artery disease, high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, or obesity compared with those who exercised later in the day.
To understand how timing plays a role in cardiometabolic health, the researchers collected health records and Fitbit-derived heart rate data from over 14,000 people. They found that early morning exercise was linked to better heart health.
“Any exercise is going to be better than no exercise, but we tried to identify an additional dimension relating to the timing of exercise,” Prem Patel, a medical student at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School and the study’s lead author, said in a release.
“If you can exercise in the morning, it seems to be linked with better rates of cardiometabolic disease. ”
Early morning exercise linked to better cardiometabolic markers
High blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity are markers of cardiometabolic disease. These markers increase the risk of heart disease, which is the leading cause of death worldwide. Regular physical activity is linked to a reduced risk of these markers, as well as serious cardiac events.
The researchers analyzed data from 14,489 individuals collected from a large national study. They analyzed minute-level heart rate data from Fitbit devices over the course of a year. They also tracked bursts of physical activity based on elevated heart rate for 15 consecutive minutes or more. Drawing on health records, the researchers analyzed associations between exercise timing and high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, and hyperlipidemia (elevated LDL-C cholesterol or triglycerides).
They also looked at rates of heart conditions like coronary artery disease and atrial fibrillation while considering other factors that affect heart health, such as age, sex, income, overall physical activity, sleep, alcohol use, and smoking.
Their findings were striking. Compared with evening exercisers, those who exercised early in the day (morning) were 31% less likely to have coronary artery disease, 18% less likely to have high blood pressure, 21% less likely to have hyperlipidemia, 30% less likely to have Type 2 diabetes, and 35% less likely to have obesity. Interestingly, these associations were independent of the total daily amount of physical activity. They also noted that exercise between 7:00 and 8:00 a.m. was linked to the lowest odds of coronary artery disease.
“In the past, researchers have mainly looked at how much physical activity to do—the number of minutes or the intensity of physical activity. Now, with 1 in 3 Americans having a wearable device, we’re gaining the ability to look at exercise at the minute-by-minute level, and that opens a lot of doors in terms of new analyses,” Patel said.
So, what are you waiting for? Put on your walking shoes early in the morning and hit the road!
