Studies show that a.m. exercisers are more consistent with their workouts than their afternoon or evening counterparts. Now, there are a.m. exercisers and then there are early a.m. exercisers; we’ll call them the pre-dawn set.
The hardest part of the workout for a pre-dawn exerciser is actually leaving the house and being enveloped in the darkness. It can be scary out there in the dark. But, I promise you, you’ll get used to it.
Here are some tried and true tips to make it just a bit easier.
- Get lit. I wear a very bright illuminated vest, a blinky light and I carry one or two knuckle lights. I don’t care for head lamps but if you have one, wear one.
- Run facing traffic. In case a car is going off the road (the road lanes are not very bright, an animal is in the way, you are running around curves) I want to see it. I don’t like the idea of worrying about a car coming behind me and clipping me on a road.
- Start small. Don’t plan to go out for a normal 8 mile run in the dark if you are not used to it. The paths and roads that look totally fine at 9:00 am are much different in the dark. Head out for a simple 2 or 3 mile run and then increase as you get comfortable.
- Be flexible. I have a great 6 and 8 mile out and back that is mindless and a great weekday run. The problem is that it’s so much darker right now and more animals (read: coyotes) are out and about. Sure, everyone will tell you that they leave humans alone but I didn’t want to find out this one didn’t get the memo so I turned tail and had to add an extra mile and back to my shortened loop to get the distance. The take away? Don’t risk yourself for getting your mileage in.
- Buddy up. If you are really too afraid to run or walk outside but that’s the only time you can workout, find a friend. Don’t worry if your paces are different. Plan to start out with 2 or 3 easy miles, then you can part ways and get the extra miles in if needed.
- Trust your gut. If you are running and something feels “off”, trust that feeling. Cross the street, stay under the street light and do a bodyweight workout until the sun gets higher or make a phone call. Apologize to your friend or husband for waking them up but they love you so they’ll understand. Be safe, that’s all I’m saying.
So give it a go and let me know if you become a pre-dawn convert!
Workout #7 – 10/7/15
- Hip Lifts (Bridges) – 25 repetitions
- Squats – 30 repetitions
- Alternating Reverse Lunges – 30 repetitions (a left and a right leg is a 1 count)
Instructions
- Please print up the October Challenge Workout Description for a complete description of how to do the exercises.
- Do the circuit 1 to 3 times through.
- Feel free to drop the number of repetitions or time in a plank to suit your fitness level.
Now go run!
Keli 🙂
