Sweatin' to the Sunrise

I really, really, really wanted to be a nighttime exerciser. When Lucas and I decided to do P90X together, we had to do it at night because of work schedules and the massive time commitment required. So, I traded in 6am spin classes for 8pm plyometrics; 5am runs for weight training that started at dinnertime. When we started, I thought, “Great! I can sleep in … be more efficient with my time … ”

But I just can’t do it. I’m a morning runner, through and through! I love waking up and running under the stars. I love the cool pre-sunrise breeze. I love the feeling that, no matter what else happens in the day, I’ve at least accomplished one thing.

Plus, I wanted to test out my super-cool Shoe Wallet from HLS:

So, Thursday morning, I got up before the sun and got a wonderful 8-mile run complete before most of y’all were even awake. And chased away the sleepiness from my eyes with this:

I used the mixed berry Amazing Grass packet, a cup of frozen strawberries, a cup of almond milk and a cup of water. Blended up to sweet sweet joy.

And the happiness carried me through a very challenging day:

Luckily, Mom has been paying for AAA for me since 1996 and *finally, I got to use it! Thanks, Santos!

Twitter also once again proved to be the best tool ever, because I wasn’t sure whether I should tip Santos or not, so I tweeted the question and got overwhelmed with answers! (No, by the way)

I was so glad that he got there quickly, because it was about 100 degrees outside, and why I chose to wear a black sweater … well, it’s beyond me. Good thing I’ve been drinking my water!

I do everything I can to get at least 64 ounces of water in every day. That’s tougher than it sounds. One glass of water is great. Two will quench your thirst. And every glass after that will make you wonder if water is about to start coming out of your eyeballs.

Here are my tricks. Start by drinking two big glasses of water as soon as you wake up (or, in my case, as soon as I’m done working out). I prefer mine with ice and a straw. Then, fill up the biggest container you have and bring it with you in the car.

Try and get as much of that sucker down on the drive to work. When you get to work, refill the bottle.

Drink through the day, and when you get home — have a glass while making dinner and one with dinner. That should get you pretty close to 64. Honestly, after doing this for about a week, it just became second nature and now I consistently drink 64 ounces and sometimes even more.

One last thing … Nicole from Healthy Chow inspired me with this post, all about being thankful everyday, whether it’s for something small or huge. On Twitter, I started a gratitude journal. Every morning, I’m tweeting one thing that I’m thankful for, so you can join in if you want by tweeting your thoughts and this phrase: #gratitude. Then, you can search for what others are thankful for, too! I’d love to see your thoughts in the comments, too, so put them there or let me know on Twitter that you’re taking part!