workout after night shift?
Question: Should i workout (calisthenics) after night shift?
Work schedule: 4 days a week 10 hours per shift, from Tuesday to Friday. Weekend and Monday are off.
What kind of work i do: I work in office.
Work routine here is the problem: I get up at 1:30 AM. At 2AM, I leave to commute to be in the office at 3AM. I finish work at 1PM and I'm home at 2:30PM.
Solution: I listen to my body, and workout when I feel like I can. But on the first work day I feel good and full of energy and after I feel more and more tired every-day.
My food info and body physics: I mostly eat fast food (burgers, pork, chicken grilled etc..coz night shift) i am 182cm tall 25 years old around 95kilo (not fat)
Previous gym experience: Used to go to the gym for 2 years, 5 days a week. 6 months active then year break then 8 months active, then few months break and so on.
(3)3 Comments
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Your fatigue comes from your diet. If you have ever eaten clean, and drank plenty fluids you feel better and more energetic as soon as a few days after starting. Night shift is no different to day shift, just times are swapped. With the time you have remaining you just have to be smart with meal prepping and sleep.
With this then I say yes workout after work and on your off days.
If you genuinely can't meal prep and sleep consistently then as JustSnilloc has mentioned in the comments - Just work out on off days and the days you feel good.
I am a fellow night shifter. I have been for nearly 20 years. In fact, my days off are the exact same as yours and I too work a 4 on 3 off, 10 hour shift. My hours are a little different, in that I go in at 7PM and get out at 5:30 AM.
For me, I always felt like I could work out after my shift, but that the intensity isn’t as high as doing it before work. There always seems to be a missing 10-15% that I just don’t have. That can be a big difference when you’re talking about lifting 85 pounds as opposed to 100 pounds, for example.
I wake up at 2:30 P.M. every day. If I worked day shift, this would just turn into 2:30 A.M. I have a cup of coffee, and am out the door no later than 3:15 P.M for my workout. I am done and home by 4:45. I walk the dogs for 20-30 Minutes, shower, eat and am out the door by 6:00 P.M. When I get off in the morning, I check mail, pay bills, and will call businesses or doctors (as needed) before bed. I’m lights out no later than 7:30.
I wrote my routine above for a reason. Working nights, your body will respond to ROUTINE better than anything. I DO NOT DEVIATE for much. If you can train your body to stay awake at certain hours, and be prepared to eat, workout, etc... at the same times every day, it will adapt. I even think it largely negates the unhealthy aspects of working night shift.
TLDR: I find I have more energy before work. Find a strict routine that works for you and stick to it. Your body will respond better.
I would highly recommend you to consume a cup of filter coffee or a preworkout supplement after your shift, but this recommendation only applies if you're feeling only tired and not sore. If you're feeling sore, I would recommend 1 day on - 1 day off training system.
In terms of diet, if you're not going out of shape with your current habits of eating, I would say keep doing what you're doing.
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