Whether you have a tight schedule or you simply prefer morning exercise, working out as soon as you get out of bed sets the tone for the rest of your day. However, your morning workout might also make you feel nauseous. Exercise-induced nausea typically occurs when you're pushing your body to the max, but it can occur due to other reasons. You may be able to avoid it by taking precautions and adapting your routine.
Step 1
Arrange your morning schedule to allow for more comfortable workouts. If you know that you tend to feel sick when you roll out of bed and straight to the gym, see if you can rearrange your morning routine so you're able to take a few minutes for your body to wake up before you shock it with exercise. Or, if mid-morning exercise seems to make you sick, try switching to earlier morning workouts to see if there's a change.
Step 2
Split your breakfast calories into two halves to avoid exercising on an empty or full stomach. Eating a snack high in complex carbohydrates of about 100 to 200 calories before your workout gives you the fuel to avoid low blood sugar and even lower energy stores, while a protein-packed post-workout meal helps to fuel recovery. Try eating a piece of fruit, whole wheat crackers or a smoothie before you hit the gym.
Step 3
Participate in an appropriate warmup before you begin exercising. Your tired body might feel overexerted when you jump straight from the bed onto the treadmill. Plan for at least five minutes of light cardio as a warmup, along with the stretching of each major muscle group to gradually ready your body for more intense exercise.
Step 4
Drink enough water to replace that which is lost through sweat during your morning workout. Even if you don't particularly feel thirsty, is vital that you consume at least 7 to 10 ounces of water each 10 to 20 minutes that you're active. Nausea is often a first sign of dehydration, which you might be especially prone to after a night of sleeping.
Step 5
Participate in a type of activity that gradually builds in intensity to avoid early morning motion sickness from high impact workouts. For instance, if going for a run makes you feel sick, try taking a morning yoga or Pilates class. That way your body has time to adapt to the change in physical activity and you have time to wake up sufficiently to tackle higher impact activities.
