How to Get Up Early to Workout

I reallllllly didn't wanna get out of bed this morning. Reasons?

1. It's freaking COLD. It "felt like" 6* AFTER my workout this morning.

I'm sure at 5am it was even colder. And, the bed is just SO warm. Especially with the Hubs still snoring away. At least it wasn't snowing. That's a plus.

2. I'm kinda in a gym/workout rut. I've introduced speed work and some hill work, which definitely helps... but, I'm just not really feeling MOTIVATED lately. Like, I haven't WANTED to workout in a while. I do it. I never dread it. I almost always like it when I'm actually doing it. But, I haven't had that fire under my ass in a while. Maybe it's just a little burn out? We'll see. Hopefully it's just a phase and it passes soon.

3. I couldn't sleep last night. Tossed and turned all night. Hate that. Usually I sleep like crap Sunday nights after a weekend, but this week Sunday I was OUT and last night sucked. Weird. My body's revolting.

4. I JUST DIDN'T WANT TO.


I mean, I guess that's really the only reasons. No fancy or eloquent way else to say it. I just didn't want to.

But, I did. Sometimes you just gotta suck it up and do it, even when you don't want to.

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60-minute Signature Strength class (luckily, the focus was on arms and abs) and 2.5 miles on the TM. DONE.

Not much else to that story. I'm glad I went. I still know I didn't want to, but I'm glad I did.

So, how do I get myself to workout (especially in the morning) even when I realllllllly don't want to? I'm by no means an expert and often times bail on workouts myself, but here's how I manage...

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1. Probably the biggest make-it or break-it factor for me and getting up at 4:55am to workout is my mental game. If I let myself think for even 1 second the night before that it's OK if I don't get up the next morning, for whatever reason ("if I don't sleep well", "if I promise to go at lunch", etc.) there's like a 95% chance I will not get up. I have to not even let the thought cross my mind. There is NO other option. I have to think of it like I HAVE to get up and go to the gym. Just as much as I HAVE to go to work or take Sadie out or whatever. HAVE to. No option. I don't let myself think maybe's or alternatives.

2. The second my alarm goes off, I turn it OFF and then tell myself "Ok, it's Tuesday. If you get up now, that's only 3 more mornings of waking up early before the weekend!" Somehow doing thinking about the fact that there's only X more early mornings that week helps.

3. Speaking of alarms-- NO SNOOZING! Part of this is easy because the Hubs is still asleep next to me and he'd be pisssssed if my alarm went off a billion times while we has still getting sleep. Part of this is if I snooze, I know I won't get up. It's just SO MUCH EASIER to just get up. The faster I get up, the less time my mind has to think about the fact that I'm SO TIRED and don't want to go and blah, blah, blah. I have to get up and moving and honestly even get out the door before my mind has a chance to know wtf my body is doing.

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4. OK, the next two are specifically about getting up to workout early-- and, this is a no-brainer... but, I go to sleep early. Like, 9pm early. No joke. To get up before 5am, a early bed time is mandatory. Simple as that.

5. I prep EVERYTHING I need the night before. This helps me in the whole #3 thing-- not THINKING about ANYTHING that early. I have my outfit for work laid out, gym outfit laid out, lunch packed, gym bag packed and everything exactly where it needs to be.

6. I remind myself WHY I'm working out. Training for a marathon? Lose weight? Get healthy? Stress reliever? Whatever the reason-- telling myself it in my head over and over again seems to help. I also remind myself how much better I'll feel AFTER the workout. Because it's true. I pretty much ALWAYS feel a million times better after a workout. Reminding myself of that (while also doing everything else) seems to help sometimes.  

7. Schedule a workout you actually enjoy. Hate running? Why run then? There are a bazillion other workouts  you can do. Find the one you like. It makes it easier to get up and do it if you like what you're doing. Oh, and mix it up. Doing the same thing everyday gets old FAST. I love that Tu/Th I can go to Signature Strength and W/F I can go to Spinning. Helps spice things up and keeps things interesting.

7. JUST DO IT. Simple, right? But-- I mean... it's true. At the end of the day (or the start of the day?) sometimes you just gotta do things you don't wanna do. End of story.