4:59am. That’s what time I woke up. I had set my alarm at 5am. But it didn’t even have the chance to go off. I was up. A little tired and that evil little voice was telling me to lay back down. Go back to sleep. Just close your eyes for a few seconds. I was about to give in, when another little voice said “just run through your routine and if after that you still want to go back to bed you can.”

So I turned on the light. Walked to the kitchen. Poured a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar into a glass of cold water. Put on the electric kettle. Drank the water. It’s supposed to be good for you. [Side note: I don’t know, but I do remember that when I was wrestling, had to cut weight, and wasn’t eating – drinking a teaspoon of vinegar would stop the hunger pains. Must help suppress appetite or something.] Poured coffee in the filter.

Went to the restroom. Washed my face with cold water. Only problem is that the water at my place is never icy cold. At least it doesn’t feel that cold. Went back to the kitchen. Poured the boiling water over the coffee. Put on my workout clothes.

It was 5:13. I still wanted to get back in bed. But I thought to myself, “If I want to be in the gym by 5:30am I can’t lay down right now. If I do, I won’t make it.” Instead, I decided to do sit ups while my coffee cooled. 3 sets, done. Drank my coffee and I’m out the door. Made it to the gym exactly at 5:30am. Yes!!!

Today is a cardio day. But first I have to do my rehab work. Resistance band training for my hips and shoulders. Also, snuck in a few sets of decline bench press and preacher curls. A set of lunges and 3 sets of calf raises.

Then 20 minutes on the elliptical machine at level 10. And finished off with a 20 minute treadmill run. Tempo run today. Started off at 5 mph for the first few minutes. Then gradually increasing throughout the run. Finished off at about 6.3 mph for the last 3 minutes. It was slightly tough the whole way through. Meaning I was uncomfortable the whole time. But just constantly reminding myself to relax and settle into the run. Never huffing and puffing. Never breathing through my mouth. Breathing always under control and relaxed. To me that’s been the key to improving my running.

Weighed myself. Not bad. 205 lbs. I’m hoping to get under 200 lbs by the end of the week. That means that the next few days I’ll have to ramp up the intensity of my sessions. Not too much, just a little. I’ve been losing a little less than a pound a day. Probably closer to a pound every 2 days. Still it’s been pretty good progress.

Walked back home. Did 3 more sets of sit ups. A few push ups. Made my lunch ( arugula salad with cashews, cranberries, feta cheese, hard boiled egg, and tuna salad. Balsamic vinegar and a little bit of olive oil). Wrote this up and now its time to get ready for work.

Shave. Shower. Get dressed. Walk to work. Fight for our clients. You know the drill.