[Sportsandrec] Best Workout Times

[Thornbury, Kelly]

Anita-
the absolute best time to work out is whenever you have the time to commit to the workout. There are no published research studies that say one time is better than another for every person; its all a matter of personal preference. 
Some people like to workout in the mornings, and like how this wakes them for the day. Others like to workout at noon (or late mornings/early afternoons), as a way of relieving stress from the day. Still others like to workout at night. they find it helps them wind down for sleep and  some theories state that the temporary increase in metabolism after a workout helps to burn more calories through the night when your metabolism is at a natural low, but I'm not familiar with the specific research on that. 
Basically, your workout time is your personal choice. Try a few different times, and see what feels best to you. Again, the most important factor is that you take the time to do the workouts. 

Ashley-
Skin fold measurements are relatively accurate at calculating your percentage of body fat, depending on the person administering the test and the protocols used. The most accurate instrument for measuring body composition is a DEXA (Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry ) scan. These are used to measure, among other things, body fat and fat free mass and bone density. This is a low dose x-ray (similar to being outside on a sunny day). These scans can be a little pricy, and are unnecessary for simply getting body fat percentages. Anyway, once you get your body fat percentage (lets say 30% as an example), the remaining percentage (70% in this example) is your fat free mass (bone, muscle, organs, blood...basically all the metabolic tissues). Its tough to get much more accurate as to the exact percentage of muscle an individual has, but I think the latest generations of DEXA may be able to calculate it. As for calculating calorie usage without the use of a metabolic cart (another rather expensive test procedure that isn't practical for the average exercise enthusiast), there is an equation that will give a rough estimate, and I'll send it to you off list in an Excel spread sheet. You should be able to just plug in some information about your workout to get a good approximation. 

J.S.- 
Some people are just blessed with recovery. Try really amping it up sometime...push right into the 80-90% of your heart rate reserve (calculation below) and see what happens. 
Subdued is a fair description of my "day" self, but you missed out on the Lighthouse on Saturday night, and "rolling" into bed around 3am. Once in a while that "night" dude steps out and causes a little mischief. 
Heart Rate Reserve (HRR) formula:
(220 minus age minus resting heart rate. That quantity multiplied by the percentage you are looking for (80-90% for example). Then that quantity added to your resting heart rate. 
Check your resting heart rate first thing in the morning, without being awaken by an alarm or the kids. This formula allows you to take into account your approximate physical fitness, as opposed to the traditional 220 minus your age multiplied by the desired percentage. Hope this formula makes a little sense, but I'll plug in my numbers as an example.
(220 - 36 - 70) = 114bpm.
(114 * 80%) +70 = 161
(114 * 90%) + 70 = 172.
So, 80-90% of my HRR is 161-172 bpm. 
You may just have an increased sensitivity to catecholamine (hormones released during workouts that prepare your body for the increased activity), which keeps you amped after the session. 

Kel