Open Your Eyes

My alarm went off at 4:30 a.m. It was Sunday morning. The house was quiet. Everything was quiet. Instead of getting up, I hit the snooze button. My body was stiff from the day’s previous training. The comfort and warmth of my bed was enough for me to stay in it. After all, it was 4:30 in the morning. I didn’t really have to get up. I finally rolled out of bed a few minutes past six.

This morning I was doing a EMOM workout. Every minute on the minute I was doing 70 skips with a 1 lb. jump rope. After the 13th minute, I was beginning to feel fatigued. During the 14th minute, my little boy opened the door to the garage and told me good morning. I finished the 14th minute. I was done. I could have gone longer. I hadn’t possibly done all that I could, but the motivation changed. My priority shifted from myself to my son.

What would have happened if I was up at 4:30? First, my workout would have been completed no later than 5:30. The next hour could have been spent reading or writing. My plan this day was to write. Then, by the time the family was getting up, I would have been knocked out the two biggest personal time goals that I had for the day. The rest of my waking hours would have been devoted to spending time with the family. But because I slept in, I got in an abbreviated workout and did not write.

This was just one day, actually several weeks ago. The days after this, with consistent practice I was able to get up earlier, stay up, and get the things done that needed to be accomplished. Everything was becoming more and more routine until I hit the Christmas holidays. Then the travelling began, and really didn’t end until this weekend. It wasn’t really possible to get up early without the risk and waking up the house I was staying in. With the exception of 1 or 2 days, that was about 16 days of sleeping in. I worked out when I could, barely wrote, and read a ton. In my mind I had a plan, and that plan was not executed. And now, I feel like I am back to square one.

Tomorrow, I am back to work. My alarm will be set for 3:55. It is imperative that I get up and start completing on my before work tasks (workout and reading). If I do not, then I won’t get another chance that day. By the time, I get home after six in the evening, the opportunity to work out will be gone. Evenings are reserved for family.

I remember the way it was last winter. I wanted to wake up and workout before work but did not have the discipline to do it. I had good intentions, but intentions without action are useless. I did not want to get out of shape, but I allowed it to happen. My waistline kept getting larger, my appetite kept growing, and the weight started creeping in. I had lots of desire just not the action to back it up.

Fitness is just one measurable part of my life that impacts almost every other aspect. Being conscious of my fitness causes me to be conscious of all my other actions. I tend to make better choices about the things I eat and drink when I am thinking about the impact it has on my body. The structure and time I plan for working out are all part of a larger daily plan for accomplishing tasks throughout the day. I start with the workout, scratch it off my list, and then move on to non-fitness related activities that need to be done. To have a successful day, I have to get my list done. To have a successful day, I have to be able to turn off that alarm and get up.

My son:

Open your eyes, and you will have bread. -Proverbs 20:13