Today: Early bird special.
[tweetmeme source=”elizabethev” only_single=false]Today, instead of devoting 58 minutes to trying on five thousand work outfits, and subsequently forming a Mt. Saint Helens of clothes on our bedroom floor, I went for a run. What brought about this deviation from my normal routine of wasting time, you might ask?
I’ve been slacking. Big time. The problem with being important busy, is that there are never enough hours in the day. I start the day with the best of intentions, a bunch of things happen and suddenly it’s time to go to bed so that the bags under my eyes stay on my face, and don’t migrate any further south. I’ve let running take a back seat. With a half marathon on the schedule in just a few weeks, my longest run has been 8 miles. In other words, I sort of blew it.
I could give you a bunch of excuses (I have a really good imagination), but I’d rather take responsibility for my under-training, and let the past’s mistakes inform the future’s successes. Whoa, that sounded good. I wonder if I made that up? I spend most of the afternoon yesterday speech-writing… where was that gem when I needed it? Anyway… I’ve emailed the race directors and asked if I can switch to the 5 miler. They were happy to oblige.
Why have a miserable 13.1 miles and risk injury, when you can have a fun 5 miles and be done in time to cheer on Nick and the rest of our team? I have a half marathon On Tap in early August, hopefully the Falmouth Road Race (though I likely used up all my good race lottery juju already), and most exciting of all, the New York City marathon in November. That’s two, possibly three, chances to stick to my long distance training plans, ramp up the intensity a bit, and make changes where I need to.
Change #1: Work out in the morning, if I know there’s even a chance my evening will get consumed by work, life, or Jeopardy!. No excuses, play like a champion. That first change precipitates a second change: Safety first. Running in the wee hours means I’ll need two things: a plan (which I will communicate in advance to Nick and Clark) and reflective gear.
I don’t want to get hit by a car, but if I do, I’d like someone to find me before I get hit by another car. Or the MBTA bus. Those things have no regard.
Also On Tap for Today:
- I scored a goal last night… on our team’s net. Whoooops.
- Touring Whole Foods Market, River Street with Boston Food Finds
- Planning a cooking party for the weekend 🙂
Are you a morning exerciser? What’s your secret? I want/need all of them…
Comments (10)
Emily @ A Cambridge Story
May 10, 2011 at 11:04 am
I do much better working out in the a.m too (plus only one shower required!)… but it can be challenging with puppy and other life duties. Hope this new routine works for you!
Megan
May 10, 2011 at 12:15 pm
I am a morning exerciser! It’s the way to go for sure because I hate to take extra showers and change my clothes more often than necessary.
Maybe set your alarm to wake you up to Eye of the Tiger?
Amanda
May 10, 2011 at 12:36 pm
I love working out in the mornings! There’s something about jump-starting your body/day with a little sweat and ambition. What gets me up is pre-setting the coffee machine so that the coffee is ready for me. I like getting up early anyways, but I lay out my clothes for my A.M. workout the night before. I have a scheduled MINIMUM of what I need to do, and if I get in more – kudos to me!
Katie
May 10, 2011 at 2:37 pm
I am NOT a morning person at all, but I’ve recently become a morning exerciser. The secret was just to literally force myself to do it for a few weeks and now it is a habit! Every morning when I finish my workout feeling happier, more awake and ready to tackle the day, I tell myself to remember the feeling so that I will get my butt up and do it the next day! I also signed up for a boot camp class at 6am Mondays/Wednesdays during the month of May – would hate to see the money I spent on it go to waste!
amy
May 10, 2011 at 3:19 pm
i’m TRYING to be a morning exerciser. does it count hitting snooze a good 6 times? or how about sitting up in bed but then laying back down?? does that count as ab work?
Katherine @ Neon Blonde Runner
May 12, 2011 at 12:18 pm
I’ve only been running before work once and I LOVED it. I haven’t repeated since because it required getting up at 4:30 am which is a little too early in my book…
I loved how the roads were open and no one was out yet.
I am all about bright colors and neon stuff to keep from getting hit by cars, I def would invest in some reflective stuff if I were to keep doing the early am runs. I never run at night so I don’t have a ton of reflective stuff.
How can I get rid of the purple bags under my eyes? | bags shoping
May 12, 2011 at 1:07 pm
[…] Today: Early bird special. « […]
michellerunsnyc
May 14, 2011 at 3:20 pm
Gah. Morning exercise only happens when I’m away on work trips and I know their is literally no other time in the day for me to run. I blame my dog. I could leave my comfy bed, but my pups pleading face… never. 🙂
Run Fast Travel Slow
May 23, 2011 at 1:17 pm
I think we’ve all been there… When I travel for a destination race, I definitely slack a little on the training plan because sightseeing is much more fun.
Btw, saw your guest post at Hit the Bricks — I love what you said about mantras. I wrote recently about mantras as well, if you’re interested: http://www.runfasttravelslow.com/2011/05/borrowing-inspiration-from-ferran.html
Lizzy @ Food to Run For
May 25, 2011 at 9:58 am
You got your number for Falmouth!! hehe And I hear ya, I think its wise to drop down. I couldn’t fathom running a half right now! Life is too busy lately : )