Early to Bed/Early to Rise

I've been going to bed somewhat early every night. Getting up at 5:30 every weekday is not easy in the beginning. At first I thought I was going to have a heart attack when the alarm went off for the first time before the sunrise, then it got easier.

I now get up every day a few minutes before my 5:25 alarm goes off. I set out my workout clothes the night before, including a heart monitor that goes under my bra. Three days a week we meet at the gym to get our walking assignment for the morning i.e. length of walk and pace. It usually goes like this... 1 minute of brisk walk then 4 minutes of running, do this for 55 minutes. make sure your back on time. watch your heart rate."got it!"

So we head out before the sun and run along the quiet streets of Santa Barbara and on down towards the ocean and then run along the ocean for a while then turn around and head back to the gym. I love it. I've never experienced a "runners high" before. It feels pretty damn good.

The other two days are our circuit training. One of the days is inside the gym and the other day is a full workout on the sand at the beach. Today was the beach workout. It's pretty cool because you're there before the sun comes up and watching the sunrise on most mornings is a spectacular sight and experience,One that everyone should do at least once a year. Everything is done barefoot in the sand so your feet and ankles get just as much of a workout as your body. Lots of running and side shuffling. lots of pulling of a HUGE tug-of-war rope. Sometimes the rope which already weighs about 50 lbs., has a 26 pound bell weight strung onto it. we have to pull it in the sand while the other person is running circles around the person who is pulling. It sucks but feels so good when you can do it faster and faster each time.

Today Shelley came dressed to the beach workout in quite the get-up.

It was bright pink spandex shorts, some sort of work-out top and the topper was the white terri cloth sweat band around her head. Eric the trainer thought it was the coolest...he would he's only 27.

Me...I wouldn't be caught dead in a get-up like that, but I was wishing I had that hideous headband at the end when the sweat was dripping off my nose into the sand while I was doing planks!!

Feels good to be done working out by 7 am. you have the whole day ahead of you.

Try it...early to bed, early to rise.