PAST EXPERIENCE 

It’s my first time back as a morning gym go getter in years but it’s not a first in my life by any means; it’s just been a good long while. I remember how it feels though, and getting it done before work is it!! Feels like a morning miracle every single time. Energy rush!

I did CrossFit at 5AM for a stint when I was a new teacher lady with a gym crush. I’ve done a 6AM rugby captains meetup to workout at Best Fitness during season. And for a few months, I made it to Planet Fitness before work once in a while (which just happened to be at Planet Fitness for the summer)

Fitness by the sunrise, morning miracles of the past

I also ran at 6:30AM every morning during the weird COVID teach from home time. That felt damn good! But that was a hell of a lot easier to plan for than leaving the house for the gym. 

There is nothing like a workout in the morning and there is nothing like a gym workout in the morning. 

That’s just the thing– nothing IS like a gym workout in the morning so there was a huge adjustment period with the packing part. 

POOR PLANNING 

There were days I had no towel. There were sockless days and days I had to go to my car commando to retrieve underwear  from another bag. There were the wake up 20 minutes late days. The forgot my lunch days. Phone’s dead days. No headphones day. There were days I forgot my body wash and had to fill the top of a makeup bottle with hand soap! 

Here’s 10 tips to NOT have any of that happen and to have a great morning gym experience. 

  1. First off, list list list. Make a list. Pack the list. Check it every day! 

Here’s my example list: 

THE SHOWER BEFORE WORK AT THE GYM LIST!! 

In order of importance: 

Lock for Locker

Work outfit (bra, underwear, socks, dress, work shoes) 

Towels (one body towel, one floor towel, and a wash cloth) 

Flip flops

Body Wash

Scrunchie/Hair tie (should be one in hair leaving so this is an extra making it lower on the list– you can always use a wet scrunchie for work or leave hair down)  

Shampoo 

Conditioner 

Makeup and face lotion

Bag to put laundry in

Charged headphones and phone

  1. Pack your bag with all of those things the night before! Leave it by the door. When it’s by the door, it says, “Michie, I’m here for you; go smash smash at the gym!” And as horrible as it could feel, you can do without your headphones or even phone for a half hour– do it anyway.  
  1.  It always feels like a nightmare to pick an outfit in the morning so pick the morning gym outfit too and leave it in a nice pile in your get ready area. The entire thing from bra to socks to sneakers. Make it as easy as possible to leave the house. 

Not gonna lie, I often sleep in a T-shirt and that’s the tshirt I wear to the morning gym. I take a good look down when I wake up like ‘okay, what can stay and what can go?’ It took everything in me not to wear my “Caffeine Queen” night shirt this morning.

Whatever it takes to get out the door, you do it! It doesn’t matter how you look if you’re going to spend time and shower there! Get the hell out the door. Make yourself pretty after that shower. 

  1. Pack what you can for the week!! Obviously, you can’t do that for everything but some things you can. For example, I use wash clothes daily and they’re tiny, so I put a fresh set of 8 in the bag at the beginning of the week. I still check every night to try to keep the bag stocked but then if I am rushing the next day, they’re already set up.
  1. Speaking of towels, pack a towel in the car. Emergency towels saved me today! Pack one small bag with the absolute essentials which can save you in a pinch. Mine has a big towel, underwear, and socks. In my head, those are the big three that would be the most uncomfortable.

And RESTOCK THE EMERGENCY SET ONCE YOU USE IT. I repeat RESTOCK THE EMERGENCY TOWELS!

  1. Do not buy the expensive travel sized bottles for the gym. They go quickly. Instead pack your shampoo and conditioner bottles when they have about half left. They’ll be light enough 

I buy the ones with the pump tops so I just twist them closed before I throw them in the bag. And I throw them in with my towel so they get dry enough before I take them out. I’ve found trying to keep up with refilling the travel size bottles I have still takes too long and with hair as long as mine, it feels silly to pack down a tiny conditioner. 

  1. If all else fails, the ladies in the locker room at 6AM are the nicest people on earth. They’ll help you when you panic because you forgot something. They’ll tell you, the Crocs with no socks look fine under the pants. They’ll praise you for still doing it even when you came late because you’re here– and they are. So you praise them back. There’s an unspoken (and sometimes spoken) bond with your fellow morning crew. 
  1. Go when you’re late! A few days I ran late and instead of skipping, I shortened my workout. Not only did that feel superior to skipping, but kept me on the same path and routine so the next day wasn’t hard. 
10 minutes is better than nothing any day of the week. And I’m going to get the most of this membership using that shower every day!
  1. Speaking of late, go when you’re not packed!! Pack in the morning and still go even if it makes you a little late. *note rule 1: go get the list!!* And if you’re rushing, prioritize and make sure you pack that towel and work outfit first. I mean how many times do you really need to wash your hair? 
  1. Be proud of the workout no matter how small! Every time you step foot in the gym, you’re closer to wellness. 

Now, let’s get after it and then get to work!!