Morning jog just not good enough?

Putting in long hours at the office is not as bright as you may think.

Putting in long hours at the office is not as bright as you may think.

Published Feb 2, 2015

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London – Going for a run at the crack of dawn would appear to be the ideal way to fit exercise in around all the demands of work, domestic chores, family and friends.

But it may not be the answer after all, because exercise is apparently less effective then – even if you’re a morning person.

Whether someone is a lark, who is alert early, or an owl, who rises late and stays up at night, their performance will not peak until several hours after they wake.

University of Birmingham researchers put 20 athletes, including England hockey players, through a fitness test at six times between 7am and 10pm. They also asked them questions to determine if they were larks, night owls or somewhere in between.

Larks did best at noon, owls peaked just before 8pm and the intermediates excelled at 4pm.

Timing was particularly important for owls, whose scores were 26 per cent worse when they exercised early, the journal Cell said.

Researcher Roland Brandstaetter said: ‘Virtually every cell in the body has a clock, and your physiology is controlled by these.’

Daily Mail

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