Training & Nutrition - What time of day do you ride for fitness.

I try to ride in the mornings on the weekends. I have noticed that I don't perform nearly as well in the mornings (7:00 A.M. - 10:00 A.M.) compaired to the evening.

So, the question is...

When do you ride. Evening, morning, or some other time? Also, why do you ride at that time of day?

Peak energy levels for most people do not occur during the day until close to or after lunchtime. This is also affected by your eating habits.

I have always found my ideal ride time to take advantage of this peak energy time is around 1:00pm.

I always ride terribly in the morning... think about it... your body slows down its metabolism during sleep... so it takes a while for your gears to get up to speed after you wake up. also, your muscles are definitely not warmed up in the morning.

I choo-choo-choose to ride during the middle of the day, only because my finger is stuck in my no.... oops, i meant because i am currently unemployed and i can ride whenever i want, pretty much :D

I generally have to work it all in around everything else I have to do, so it's evenings on week-days, although I do ride some mornings for a month or so after and before daylight savings... because it's light. Week-ends, same scheduling issues, but I prefer starting in the morning because there's less traffic. The week-end rides are generally longer and at a lower pace, so I don't really notice performance issues, if there are any.

I spent most of the year commuting to work, about 11 miles. It wasn't a long ride , but the 4 a.m. launch time was tough. I found that the earlier I got up, the better the ride was. The ride home started at 5 p.m., I was tired but felt stronger.

On the days off, late morning and early afternoon made for fantastic rides.

I have always been a morning person. I wake up instantly and regularly at about 5:00 am, and my body is ready to go. My preference, given sufficient warmth, is to ride in the early am - I even do 20-30 miles without breakfast before 7 am in the summer time. Or sometimes I will go out for a ride and have breakfast along the way.

My body says "nap time" around 1:00 pm or so.

However, I ride whenever I can,

Today, I rode about 2:30 pm (after my nap, of course!), as it hadn't warmed up much before then and I had chores to do.

At 2:30, the temp was up to 55F, and I had a great 20 mile ride.

I think it is hard to generalize about what "everybody's" bodies are like. We are all so different!

I ride to work every day, 21 kms each way. A glorious way to begin a day.
Hockey

ride early morning to as not to disrupt the family.

hey deleriou5- laughing lots at choo-choo-choose ...(from the valentines episode, right?)
have you seen ms creboble lately?

Tuesday,Wed,Thru,get on bike by 2:30 because thats when i get home from work.Sat and Sun between 6:30 and 7am to avoid all the walkers,joggers,dogs and all the rest of the non-cycling people that need to do that on the 2 lane BIKE PATH and have to use both sides.Also its a non windy ride as all my 2:30 rides are half into the wind,every ride.

Mondays and Thursdays: 5:15am to 7am, shower, then head to work. Saturdays: 6am to 9am. Really like riding early mornings; not much traffic, and there's something really cool about watching the sun come up as you're cruising around a lake or some other nice road. Great way to start the day. By the time I get home the rest of the family's usually just getting up so don't miss much family time.

In the winter I ride to maintain so I can get going more quickly in the spring. Last two winters it has helped a great deal. One thing I did read and have adopted is to ride one's trainer first thing upon getting up. Blood sugar is lowest at this point and one burns fat more readily. Thus, I jump on the ole' trainer at 5:30 for 45-60 minutes before jumping in the shower. The recommended regime was that period of time at about 60% MHR. Some days it is a real struggle at 5:30. TV news is good for something.

That said, I don't like to do any hard riding before about 9-9:30 a.m. And the later the better. We do an evening ride at 5 p.m. twice a week when there is enough light and I really like it. Especially in the dead of summer when it is 90+ degrees. Allows these creaky old bones and muscles to move more easily, I guess. 50 miles at 20 mph in the paceline goes pretty quickly when its warm out. Not nearly so quick when its cold. Funny, though. They both take the same amount of time.

i guess if you are trying to loose weight, biking in the morning would help. i used to work out in the mornings, but since its winter season, i find myself to be MUCH more lazier. I tend to work out in the afternoon when i have 2-3 hr breaks btw classes. Sometimes its whenever my friends grab me. sometimes they wont work out unless i do, so they wear something skimpy to get me out..it usually works. ;)

In the winter I ride to maintain so I can get going more quickly in the spring. Last two winters it has helped a great deal. One thing I did read and have adopted is to ride one's trainer first thing upon getting up. Blood sugar is lowest at this point and one burns fat more readily. Thus, I jump on the ole' trainer at 5:30 for 45-60 minutes before jumping in the shower. The recommended regime was that period of time at about 60% MHR. Some days it is a real struggle at 5:30. TV news is good for something.

That said, I don't like to do any hard riding before about 9-9:30 a.m. And the later the better. We do an evening ride at 5 p.m. twice a week when there is enough light and I really like it. Especially in the dead of summer when it is 90+ degrees. Allows these creaky old bones and muscles to move more easily, I guess. 50 miles at 20 mph in the paceline goes pretty quickly when its warm out. Not nearly so quick when its cold. Funny, though. They both take the same amount of time.
I did'nt think fat was a very good fuel?

On weekdays, I lift weights or ride the stationary bike after work/before dinner. I come home around 5pm, rest a little, then exercise.

To make dinner preparation easy and quick, I'll have planned what to eat the night before and maybe even preps some veggies. Or eat the previous night's leftovers. I don't keep convenience foods on hand so I need to plan that stuff.

Even on weekends, I need to workout mid-afternoon. Mornings don't work.