Monday, June 23, 2008

Just Call Me Angel of the Morning

I am a morning runner...

You know, early bird gets the worm...

Get the workout out of the way first thing so the rest of the day has meaning...


Well, Sunday I slept in. Hey, I am human occasionally.

Then I had stuff to do so I didn't have time to get in my morning run.

(Side note: I went with a girlfriend (Hi SZ) to look for wedding dresses. Usually this can be quite a daunting task. Well, let me tell ya - this girl knew what she wanted. We walked in, she tried on a handful and BAM - Done. Signed on the dotted line. It wasn't too difficult because every dress looked amazing on her. It was flippin' awesome. ) Also I went to the movies, saw "Love Guru." It was goofy, but a nice air conditioned theater was a good escape from the crazy heat.


By the time I got home, I was feeling really discombobulated from missing my morning run. So what the heck - I laced up my sneakers and hit the boardwalk. It was about 7:30 pm and still scorching hot. I had a fantastic run without Big G. I think I ran about 5.5 or 6 miles, was totally drenched in sweat and happy as a clam.


Here's the problem. I get home around 8:30 pm, take a quick shower and watch a little lame TV. Next thing I know it's 10:30 pm (past my bedtime) and I am NOT tired AT ALL. I force myself to go to bed, but I lay there tossing and turning. Finally at 1:00 am, I get up and take a half a sleeping pill. (Trust me, I am hating myself this morning.)


Running gives me such awesome energy. Which I ADORE in the morning, but not so good in the evenings. Anyone else have this problem?

35 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yupper - any run after 5 p.m. renders me sleepless until insane hours of the night. Pot of chamomile tea usually calms the bod down enough to "forget" I ran though. I'll get to sleep quick but usually have to get up for three wee's in the night tho (sorry - tmi). But hey, it's still quality slumber ;-).

Happy Monday!

Heather said...

Um yeah, I can't exercise past like 6 if I want to get to bed around 10. I slept in the car yesterday for two frigging hours, so I wasn't tired until twelve, and hated myself this morning. Damn.

Amy said...

Oh yeah, evening exercise ventures always leave me twitching at night. I still haven't quite found the balance.

I'm impressed that you squeezed in your run. Then again, we are talking about the discipline queen...

Calyx Meredith said...

I'm exactly the same way. Love the buzz of a good morning run but in the evening? Not so much.

BeachRunner said...

I am the same way too. It's too bad I have to work for a living because 10 a.m. seems to be ideal for my body's clock.

Robin said...

I exercise mid afternoon. I haven't tried in the evening, but I suspect I wouldn't be able to sleep.

That sucks about the sleeping pill. I hate when I wait too long to take one, then you are damned if you do, damned if you don't.

Robin said...

BTW, I got the Nike Vomero+3's. :) I haven't taken them out for a spin yet, but they were great on the treadmill at the running store.

Meg said...

That happens to me sometimes too so I avoid exercising too late in the evenings. I hate the feeling of not being able to fall asleep, then that stresses me out more, and makes me more likely to be up!

Teacher Pursuits said...

I am a morning girl as well... especially since I lose motivation as the day goes on so... need to seize the morning. I play soccer on Thursday nights and sometimes our games are as late as 10-11pm and I literally HAVE to have a beer after those games (though its not too hard to twist my arm) to help me fall asleep. ;)

Aron said...

YES and i am in this vicious cycle right now since i have been running at night and then i cant go to sleep, then i cant wake up! i feel soooo much better about my days if i get up and do some form of exercise first. i am going to try and break this cycle this week... we will see how that goes.

C said...

Yup, I'm the same. I find I really need the peaceful calm of the morning to really enjoy my run. That and the lack of people around. :)

Danielle said...

I'm a night runner, but I have this problem too. I run at 9 pm or so and then really can't get to sleep until 11 or so. I guess that's WHY I'm not a morning runner? I don't get to sleep until late and then I am too tired to get up an run in the morning!?!

TonyP said...

I'm totally a morning runner as well. I find it nearly impossible for me, after a long day of work, to get out at night, especially if I have any thoughts of spending time with the kids.

Alisa said...

I'm a morning person as well (I hate life at 5am when the alarm goes off but by 8am when my workout is done and I'm alrady at work, life is great!)...though this morning I was too tired to run (feared I may fall off the treadmill) so I did the elliptical and bike.

I can workout in the evenings and sometimes it makes me so exhausted I fall asleep right away but mostly it keeps me awake. A little shot of port helps me sleep if I'm restless...sleeping pills don't seem to work on me, I tried them in college to help with insomnia.

Nancy said...

Not me, I can sleep whenever. Hell, I can have a diet pepsi on the way to bed and still be out in 5 minutes. hee hee

Shelley said...

I wish I could run in the morning, I keep setting my alarm! but I always can't seem to fit them in until the evening. As long as it has been an hour since I worked out, I have no problem going to sleep.

Jess said...

You're preaching to the choir, sista! I have this issue all the time. It's a cycle I can't break.

Razz said...

I have to run in the morning for a gagillion reasons. I'll expound on them in a near-future post. Oh, the suspense!

teacherwoman said...

See I thought I was the only one who struggled with falling asleep after a evening workout... imagine me when I get home after softball at 11pm... Tonight I have to swim after meeting a couple friends for dinner since I didn't get there this morning before school. I just couldn't get my ass out of bed at 5am today....

jen said...

I occasionally get like that if I run at night, but mostly I just eat a big dinner and pass out.

Sounds like a fun weekend. :) I was the same way with my wedding dress. I think I tried on 2.

N.D. said...

Definitely feel the same way!! I am an early morning runner too and it keeps me going all day long! Later on in the day I want to crash, but I have this glow all day on the mornings I run! Good that you got the run in and looks nice out even though it is crazy hot!!

J~Mom said...

Yeah, happens to me all the time. I am a night owl though. It's a shame to go to bed and waste all of those endorphins!

RunnerGirl said...

I'm with Nancy, I can sleep anywhere, anytime. I fought a bad case of insomnia for a few years and ever since then its like my body is still trying to catch sleep whenever it can. I tell myself I'm saving up for when I have kiddos and won't be able to sleep in anymore!

Crissy Rae said...

I get this way every now and then. If I exercise after 8pm I am doomed to be up late. Usually I read a bit but sometimes I am just restless and miserable. That's why I like those early morning runs too :)

N.D. said...

I just literally read through all of your April, May and June posts. It is like reading a good book! Thanks for the headphones tip!! I'll check them out! One thing stood out, well, I really liked the post on the food and excuses and all that. Are you sugar free? Do you drink coffee or tea? I don't think I can enjoy my tea w/o sugar and I'm trying not to use splenda anymore!

Erin said...

I definitely don't sleep as well if I workout anytime after 6 or so. I just toss and turn, and it drives me crazy.

We went to see Love Guru yesterday, too. My husband loves Mike Myers - and I put up with it. Lol. But it wasn't that bad actually.

eurydice said...

oh no... i just came back from an 8-miler and it's 8:57 pm. normally i am a morning runner too so we'll see what happens. at least now you know!

Lily on the Road said...

Morning, noon or night, is good with me!

I can pretty much fall asleep anytime, but a good book always helps...

Kevin said...

I feel the same way when I miss a run, like I really need to get out there

jo said...

i've always been one of those nocturnal types which is probably why i can't ever seem to drag myself outta bed earlier in the morning to run. but i think you're right bout running giving you energy. i realised that after a particularly long run (4 hours) at night, i found it hard for my body to unwind and sleep.

Anne said...

Like someone previously mentioned, I've read in several places that running in the evening will prevent your body from coming to sleep-ready rest for several hours. I also in the winter have the problem of shaking miserably in bed following a hot shower if I do the evening track workouts.

carla said...

yesyesYES!!!

and I also freely recognize that if it werent my ONLY time (the am. the time with a 5 starting it off) Id prolly blow off getting up much more often.

Miz.

Unknown said...

I love the "I'm human":) And I think the timing is really dependent person to person for exercising.

Debbie said...

I'm the opposite...if I ran in the am I think I would be tired all day...I run in the pm and after I eat dinner I can chill for a little and then fall to sleep.

Viv said...

Oh yea, my head starts runningfter an evening run. I run tonight and get the 1/2 Ambien lined up for after the bath.