Watch Eva Longoria Power Through an Early Morning Upper Body Workout

Eva Longoria
Eva Longoria
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

Getty Images

Eva Longoria's recent Instagram post may convince you to give an early morning workout a try. The actress shared clips from a sunrise upper body sweat session, and they're seriously motivating. (Related: How to Wake Up Early for a Morning Workout, According to Women Who Do It at 4 A.M.)

"Nothing like an early workout!!" wrote Longoria in text displayed on top of her video. It's 6:01 a.m., according to the timestamp on a clip of a tennis court surrounded by trees as the early morning sun slowly begins to turn the foggy sky orange. "Rise and grind 💪," wrote the Desperate Housewives alum in the caption of the post.

In a series of videos set to "Party" by Bad Bunny and Raux Alejandro, Longoria does upper body exercises inside a gym wearing an all black outfit. First she does low cable rows, maintaining a squat position in her lower body as she pulls the cable bar toward her hips, keeping her elbows close to her sides and core braced, explains LA-based certified trainer Julia Brown, who has been working with Longoria for three years and was there for the early morning workout. The low cable rows are great for the lower back and lats (aka latissimus dorsi), she says.

Next in Longoria's Instagram video, the actress gets into a kneeling lunge position on a mat for half-kneeling face-pulls. To do this move, she pulls the cable rope toward her face as she separates it using an overhand grip, explains Brown. It's a good exercise for the shoulders and upper back, and "the half-kneeling position makes you use your core to brace and stabilize," says Brown. "[Longoria is] constantly on the go and flies a lot, so we do these to help with posture," she adds.

Finally, the video wraps up with more low cable rows. This time Longoria is doing an eccentric movement, meaning she's emphasizing the part of the exercise that lengthens her muscles, rather than contracts them (though, the video is sped up here, so you have to look closely to see the difference). "With eccentrics, you pull the bar toward your hips and slowly release for about four counts. This is to help strengthen the lower back," says Brown.

While there are benefits to working out no matter the time of day, Longoria's recent Instagram post certainly makes an argument for early risers (did you see how idyllic that sunrise looks?!). In fact, the 47-year-old is a regular at working out first thing in the morning, according to Brown. "Never later than 8 a.m.," says her trainer, adding that they usually work out together five days a week. "We break the days into specific muscle groups or full body with an emphasis on a certain muscle group," she says. And no matter what the training focus is, Longoria shows up. "She doesn't miss a day," says Brown.

If you need even more evidence that getting your sweat on first thing in the morning is worth the early wake-up call, consider what experts have to say. Working out in the morning can help you stay consistent with your routine, have more focus throughout the day, and lose more weight (according to a study published in the International Journal of Obesity and others), Shape previously reported.

Drinking alcohol is also less likely to mess with a morning workout than an evening workout, as consuming alcohol right after a workout (which you might be tempted to do after a later visit to the gym) makes it harder for your body to recover. Plus, working out too close to your bedtime in the evening can make it harder to fall asleep, because working out causes hormones, such as adrenaline and cortisol, to give you energy, experts previously told Shape. (Related: I Swapped Evening Workouts for Early Morning Routines and I'm Never Looking Back)

If you're feeling inspired by Longoria and want to reap the benefits of early morning workouts, it may be time to set your alarm back a few hours. Not sure how to start? Check out this 30-day guide to becoming a morning workout person.