I'm thinking about riding in the morning before work, say for an hour. The only hesitation that I have is that I'm not sure if this will negatively affect my energy level through the day or will it be a refreshing way to start the day?

Great idea. Mrs. O and I started doing it last week in lieu of riding after work. Definitely a better way to start the day. I'm much more on top of the game at work after a morning workout than without it.

Who cares about affecting work. Live to ride, work to pay the bills to ride. But seriously it will give you more energy for the day as long as your eating properly.

Yeah, I'd say as long as you don't do gruelingly athletic work, you'd be fine.

Did exactly that for years . . . feel invigorated!

I tried to do that. I rode really hard for about 2 hours. Then I went to work (I throw freight) and let me tell you yessireeebob that after the 10th 70lb bag, I was starting to see stars. I went and had to eat something -I was going to pass out. That helped for about 15 minutes. Then my mind went asunder. Boy was I dust. If you're gonna do it, don't gung-ho it like me. Do a little at a time, and increase day by day. Oh, that day was hard. I should not try to be like a man sometimes, huh?

It's a refreshing way to start the day. Here's my deal:

I've got 16 month old twins and my riding time is precious. Lucky for me that the kids are champion sleepers and they'll usually sleep until after 7am. So I'm up every morning at 5:30, a little cereal and a big mug of java, and I'm out the door before 6. I'll ride a solid hour, walk in the kitchen door, warm a couple of bottles, change a couple of diapers, and hit the shower while the kids play and my wife grabs a few more Z's.

Then I'm dressed, and back on the bike by 7:50 for my super-mellow 4 mile commute to the office.

Sometimes I get a little sleepy in the mid-afternoon, but I think that pretty much applies to anybody who gets up at 5:30, whether they ride a bike or not.

If I work out early in the morning, I find I need less coffee throughout the day. ...now if I could only get myself out of bed early each morning...

Different people react differently. The same person can react very differently to different rides.

I would tend to be invigorated, unless it ment getting up early enough that I did not get enough sleep. I generally feel good after a ride, except for dehydration which should not be a problem for a reasonably short early morning ride.

My suggestion would be to try it on a saturday or sunday and see how it works out for you. If it works then go for it on work days. If it does work you might want to start out doing it 2 or 3 days a week at first and then buikd up to all 5 (if that is your goal, if 2 or 3 is the goal then that is where you want to leave it).

Mon chapeau!

I've been doing this recently. I'll get up about 4:30am throw the bike in the car and drive the 75 k to work. Then I'll do my hour long ride in the morning, shower at work and be at my station for 7:30. I do end up bonking at around 12;00-1:00pm, but I always hit the wall at that time, whether I ride or not.

Nah. I'm just a guy who loves his kids, loves his bike, and lives in superhot Sacramento. It's the only thing that makes sense.

If it makes sense for superstar4410, you should try it too.

I'm usually out on my bike at 5:30 for a 9.4 mile ride. I get back to the house a little after 6 then go about the normal morning stuff, get to work and feel energized for the whole morning. I think it does depend upon your sleep cycle, I get up early as a rule. I know for a fact my wife could never ride at 5:30. I think the earlier comment about trying it on a Sat or Sun is a good idea.
Good Luck!

I find that riding in the morning is best. Not only is it cooler but there is, for me at least, less temptation to skip the ride than after a full day at work. We are also approaching monsoon season here in AZ and there is more liklihood of rain in the afternoon. I am invigorated by a morning ride as long as it is more than 10 miles.

I ride at 6AM most mornings and just do a 15 mile, 45 min ride. Home for breakfast, a shower and off to work. No problems at all, but I do desk work. If I had to do physical work all day it might be different. I have had to equip my bike with lights and also own a good bit of cool weather gear so I can ride earlier in the spring and later in the fall. I say give it a try. For me it's the only time of the day that is all my own.

24 miles to work every morning. Took a bit to get used to it but no problems now.

I have done it. No problems with energy, but I do have a problem getting up that early, so I don't do it so much anymore.

Who eats before the ride, & who eats after??

If you do not eat before, what is the best way to have the required energy to ride? Would eating enough the day before substain me?

My BF & I are planning to start riding in the morning as well as the afternoon, I am not sure I could handle food & then a ride. I have a hard enough time eating breakfast in general, although I think I am starting to get used to it.

Normally I eat afterwards but I am only going 15 miles. When I go on longer weekend rides I definitely eat before. You can get by for short distances (less than 1 hr) with just last night's dinner and some water, but longer time on the bike needs fuel. If you figure it takes two ours to digest even simple foods, a pre-ride breakfast for a short ride isn't going to do much. It is important to eat after a ride to replace fuel used though.

If I am on my regular commute, which is about 45 minutes, I eat after I get to work. (Then the cereal and soy milk are flying, I can tell you) If I'm off on my long roundabout waterfront commute, which is about 2 hours, I eat a petite demi-bowl of cereal before I head out.