So, I tried a little something new this morning. I got up before everyone else, went outside and ran 5 km.
(I'm going to pause for dramatic effect here, because anyone who knows me is staring at their screen with their mouths agape, unable to comprehend what they just read. "She got up EARLY? And then went RUNNING? DENICE?!?!")
Yes, I did. Now, I should reveal that getting up before everyone else in my house means getting up at 7:30 a.m. and not at the crack of dawn or anything. But still, for me, it might as well have been 5 a.m., because I am NOT A MORNING PERSON. Usually, it takes a good hour of wandering around aimlessly and A LOT of caffeine before I feel like a human being. And even then, I don't really have enough brain cells firing on all cylinders to be a fully functioning human being until at least 1 p.m.
But, I needed to make a change. I prefer to do my running at night, but lately there have just been too many obstacles getting in the way. Either Gracie goes to bed too late, or I have work to do for the paper, or I'm just busy having fun 'cause it's summer and there are places to go, people to see! Which is great, but I wasn't getting any exercise. And there's this little promise I made to my sister about the Fort Macleod Triathlon, and it's getting closer every day, so… I got my butt out of bed and went running.
And I didn't die! In fact, I kinda liked it. It was cooler outside than when I run in the evening, and hardly anyone else on the path I like to take. I let myself walk for a little while first until I woke up a bit, but as soon as the Black Eyed Peas started telling me to "Pump It!" I was off and running.
The only problem is, usually, when I run at night, I give it my all. 110% and all that cliche crap. I work as hard as I possibly can, then come home and collapse on my couch until my heart stops trying to jump out of my chest. Then, (and here's the important part), I GO TO BED. Because I'm exhausted! I have the best sleep in the history of sleep, and I wake up in the morning all rested and refreshed.
But people, here's the thing I had not considered when I left the house this morning. When you give it your all in a 5 km run first thing in the morning, you don't get to go home and go to bed when you're done. YOU HAVE TO MAKE IT THROUGH THE WHOLE REST OF THE DAY!
It took my body awhile to accept that. It was all "Are you kidding me? You want me to like, DO STUFF now? You got me out of bed at the crack of 7:30 a.m., made me run 5 km, and now you want me to go about my day as if nothing happened? I DON'T THINK SO!"
But I got it to keep going by promising it that if Gracie had a nap today, it could nap too. Don't know what I'm going to have to promise it tomorrow…
