Morning vs. Night Workouts
Digging deeper into what your preferred time of workout says about you.
It’s true. According to new data, the time of day you work out reveals something unique about your personality and exercise routine. To gain more insight, we conducted a survey of 2,000 people across America who exercise regularly about the time of day they prefer working out. The results? An even split between those that work out in the morning and those that prefer an evening workout. Now it’s your turn: are you an early bird or a night owl? Find out what it says about you.
Exercise Habits
If you typically work in a gym or a fitness studio, take selfies while exercising, and tend to focus on strength training, chances are you prefer to work out in the morning. New data from our Dymatize survey revealed that early birds (35%) prefer to exercise in the gym or a fitness studio and like to do so alone (48%). When working out, these morning grinders (58%) are spending between 30 to 60 minutes per session either listening to music (48%) or podcasts (23%). They are also more likely to take selfies while exercising (46%), typically taking anywhere between 3-4 selfies (53%), and sharing them on Instagram (73%). Their gym bag must-haves include headphones (44%), a sweat towel (44%), and hand sanitizer (39%).
Prefer a PM sweat sesh? You’re more likely to work out at home, enjoy exercising with other people, and focus on endurance training like running, swimming, or cycling. Our Dymatize survey showed that night owls (67%) workout between 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. for approximately 30 to 60 minutes (63%) and listen to music (48%) and podcasts (17%) each session. While exercising, they don’t make time to take gym selfies (60%), but if they do, they’re taking between 1-2 (42%) and sharing them on Facebook (71%). These folks can’t go without their headphones (42%), a shaker bottle (42%), and a protein shake (38%) in their gym bags.
Personality Traits
Morning exercisers like to stick to a set schedule (44%), are introverted (31%) and define themselves as patient (36%), ambitious (32%), and busy (27%). On the other hand, those that workout at night like to do things when they feel like it (32%) and are notorious for procrastinating (59%). These night exercisers reported that they are a mix between introverted and extroverted (51%) and define themselves as confident (37%), social (34%), and curious (32%).
Regardless of when you choose to exercise, fitness is more than just achieving a nutrition or weight gain/loss goal – it’s about pursuing a lifetime of good habits and personal bests.
Methodology - This random double-opt-in survey of 2,000 Americans who exercise regularly — split evenly by those who exercise in the morning and in the evening/at night — was commissioned by Dymatize between Dec. 23 and Dec. 24, 2021. It was conducted by market research company OnePoll, whose team members are members of the Market Research Society and have corporate membership to the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) and the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research (ESOMAR).
