Test of Commitment

For the last two years I’ve been fortunate to have the flexibility of making my own work schedule. This has enabled me to workout whenever I wanted. But this week, my work schedule has changed dramatically and instead of going out for my run at a reasonable time of 8am to be at work for 10amish (or whenever), I’m now setting my alarm clock for 5:30am to ensure I can get in a 30 minute run before being at my desk working by 8:30am!!! Talk about a wake-up call… in more ways than one! This week has been the true test of my commitment to running. I won’t lie, each morning when my alarm clock goes off at 5:30am, the first thought that crosses my mind is “I’m not ready to get out of bed yet!”

The most difficult part of setting my alarm clock for 5:30am is the 60 seconds between 5:30-5:31am. I take a deep breath, get over the disappointment that I’ve been interrupted from a pleasant dream, enjoy the warmth of being curled up under the feather duvet and soft comfy sheets and know the harsh reality of what the cool bedroom air will feel like when I step out of bed. Each day I’ve laid there for a minute (my eyes closed but my brain racing, trying to justify the decision of getting up this early), quickly attempting to convince myself that I want to get out of bed and that the adrenaline and physical benefits I’ll get from an early morning run will far exceed the alternative of staying in bed for an extra 30 minutes (not to mention reminding myself of the guilt I’d feel all day for being a slacker if I went back to sleep). As soon as I coach myself through knowing this is WHAT I NEED TO DO and this is WHAT I WANT TO DO then it’s easy.

If you need some inspiration, check out my all-time favorite Nike Commercial. It reminds me of the dedication required to workout in the morning (especially when it’s still dark outside) and honestly this morning I thought of this commercial as I crawled out of bed!