You Do What You Want and Reap What You Sow

I mentioned not very long ago that I prefer doing the treadmill late at night, which is as true now as it was then. However, sometimes we have to put aside what we prefer to make way for what’s best.

Man, this bugs me.

I am not a morning person. I don’t spend forty minutes dragging my slippered feet around, eyes squinting against the brightness of the day, reaching blindly for a coffee mug, yawning, and scratching my fuzzy robe against my hip. I don’t even own a fuzzy robe. I am quick to wake up, but I am not interested in functioning for a good, oh, I don’t know, three hours. I’m only joking a little.

Recently, as I’ve been doing the treadmill actually, I’ve started considering the benefits of working out in the morning. A lot of trainers on iFit tout early morning workouts as a boost of energy to start your day, but something else has been coming to mind. Of course, pushing yourself to be active first thing will certainly wake you up and get you started, but it’s not just about starting, it’s more, for me, about starting on the right foot.

Doing the treadmill or elliptical at the end of the day has begun to feel like I’m making up for anything bad (Hi, Peanut M&Ms, I’m looking at you.) I’ve chosen earlier in the day. It’s an eraser of errors instead of a blank sheet. To exercise immediately, or at least close to immediately, upon beginning the day, means I’m setting myself up for the best day, and any choice I make thereon will have to be worth the effort I’ve already made to better myself.

One of my teachers in elementary or middle school once said something akin to, “Everyone starts with an A, and your work determines whether you keep it or lose it.” That’s basically how I see starting off the day with a workout. I’m starting with the best chance I can give myself. Certainly if you’ve burned 450 calories, you’re going to think twice about having a buttery stack of pancakes right after; versus not having done anything that morning, having the buttery stack of pancakes, and thinking to yourself, “I’ll just work it off later.” I don’t want to work things off. I want to make sure I’m always making the best decisions. I want the handful of Peanut M&Ms to be something I consider, rather than just grab without much thought.

As I said, this bugs me. I’m not looking forward to doing it, but doing it I shall be. Just between us, I will keep my evening workouts around as well to help balance days when the Peanut M&Ms win.

Title From:
War
by The Gospel Whiskey Runners