Early Bird Gets the Worm! And …. Miles?

Unexpected Abundance family, welcome back for another conversation! I know what you’re thinking, “Where have you been? I thought you said you would come back with consistent posts!”. Well, I have a somewhat valid excuse for not posting for a bit. I went on my honeymoon! And then I got a cold when I came back, which also happened to be Thanksgiving week. And I found out I’m having a baby boy! So yeah, quite a lot has happened in the few weeks. Regardless, we’re here, and that’s all that matters. That doesn’t mean I wasn’t running! I got some decent training in over the month of November and have started to pick up the mileage for marathon training, so a lot of exciting stuff to talk about. I’m not going to sit here and promise you consistent posts, I’m just going to do it. How does that sound? It’ll hold me accountable, and the content will be better for you guys.

Enough catching up, let’s get into today’s conversation, which is early morning runs! Like most people, I have a normal 9-5 job that forces me to get my training done in the early morning. Nothing beats getting out there in the early hours and completing a nice run while the world is still waking up. I’ve been doing this consistently for the past year and a half, and I’ve found some great benefits that I’d like to share with you all. First, let me preface by saying I’m not an expert, nor am I telling you what to do or when to train. You run whenever and however you feel like it. If your job schedule doesn’t permit you to run early, and the only time you can run is at night, then, run at night. I’m just sharing what I have found has benefitted me, and if you’re in the same situation I’m in, then it may benefit you.

1.      A sense of accomplishment

We’ve all had that sense of dread when we wake up in the morning to get ready for the day. We hit the snooze button a few times, drag ourselves out of bed, and next thing, we’re late for work or school. I personally do that a few times a week, and what I’ve done is given myself some additional buffer time. If I want to be on the road running at 6:30, I’ll set an alarm at 6 to give myself 10-15 minutes to hit snooze and wake up, and an additional 15 minutes to get ready and stretch. By 6:30, I’m feeling awake and ready to go run. Exercising in the morning before work and school feels like an easy to do task. It’s like a layup in basketball, where although the task is simple, it can be difficult to accomplish. I compare it to having a long to-do list of small tasks. The list may seem long, but once you knock out a few items, you feel good about yourself and get into a positive groove. It’s the same with running in the morning. Getting ready sucks because you’re trying to warm up your body from a good night’s sleep and things are taking a while to warm up. But once you finish the morning run, you’ll feel good and ready to take on the rest of the day. You check off an item from your to-do list and feel more energetic throughout the day. Well, at least that works for me. 😊

2.      Peace & Quiet

Sorry to go full zen mode right there, but man, I’ve had some peaceful runs these past few weeks! Two things have led to that. One: no music. The sun rises around 6:30 am here in Southern California, so I’ve been starting my run around 6:15 am, and I swear it’s quieter when the sun is still down. All I hear are the distant cars on the freeway, the birds chirping, and my feet as I’m stepping on the concrete. Although I run around the neighborhood, I feel like I’m in a place away from home. It’s nice because it’s still quiet, so I’m just admiring everything around me. It also gives me time to think and be appreciative of the moment that I’m in. I’ve learned to be grateful for every workout, every run, and just embrace the sweat, feel my body running, and be focused on the moment. It’s helped change my perspective on life, and I know it seems weird as you’re reading this, but trust me, it’s an experience that I recommend for everyone.

3.      Discipline

Waking up early is hard enough, but waking up early to exercise is REALLY tough. The bed feels cozier, blanket feels warmer, and the pillow feels softer. Trust me, I struggle with it often. When I was younger, I used to think that discipline meant never taking a day off and having the same rigorous training schedule every day. I would beat myself up when I failed to wake up early to train, and I would let it throw my whole day off. Not the healthiest approach, but that was my way of thinking. Over the years, I’ve learned that discipline is about not giving up when things don’t go according to plan. Cliché, I know, but let me explain. Running has taught me that there will be good and bad runs. Not every workout will be good, but not every workout will be bad either. Discipline is getting back on the road to run after taking three days off to spend time with family or getting a 15-minute run done the day after completing a 15-mile run. The training plan may look different for everyone, but the discipline to get back on the road and run again is the true discipline. Although waking up early may not seem important, I believe it builds discipline, because you’re getting back on the road to run again even though you’re not feeling the greatest or you’d rather be cozy and comfortable in bed. If you’re able to, try running early in the morning before the sun is out. You may be surprised at what you experience!

4.      Sunrises

I’ll let the photos do the talking.

Unexpected Abundance family, thanks so much for joining me again for another conversation. I can’t tell you how much fun I have writing these posts and sharing what I know, and I hope you enjoy them. Before I let you go, I want to announce that I’ve picked my next race, which will be the LA marathon in March 2024. I am super excited to run the course again, and I’ll be taking you with me for the training process and providing updates on how my training is going. It’ll be through a mix of blogs, photos, and videos, so stay tuned. Don’t forget to follow us at @unexpectedabundance on Instagram.

Until next time, stay healthy and enjoy the trails!