Seth took this picture of Rockaway Beach

Great is a journey, something you do.  Everyday.

When I go to work, I get to work so that I have a great day.

When I go out to run, I get moving so that I have a great workout.

You have to get great to be great.

Now that we have cookie plattered ourselves into the a new year, I am detaching myself from the refrigerator and  working on having less of me around.  My two favorite demons, diet and exercise, are back with a deliciously wicked twinkle in their eyes as they hover over my alarm clock set to go off at 5:00 am.

Getting up to run on the beach sounds very romantic and evolved when I am having my second cup of coffee with skim milk, no sugar, in the late morning.   Sitting groggy eyed and reluctantly throwing off my blankets in the dark and early morning is another story.

Of course, the reward is afterwards.  The feeling of having run five miles before the sun is up infuses my entire day with an energy that can only be described as amazing.  It is so worth the effort.

For any of you who want to exercise daily, the challenge will be the same for you as it is for me whether you do it at 5:00 am or at a more civilized hour.  And that challenge is consistency.  Doing it every day, every other day, or whatever schedule you choose for yourself.

Of the many things I have tried to help me achieve this, I offer three tips that always work for me:

1.  Get a friend

There is nothing like guilt to get you going.  Knowing I have to meet Andrea, who has also dragged herself out of bed to meet me and would never let me hear the end of it if I rolled over and went back to sleep, gets me up and out.

2. Get through the first five minutes

I let myself whine and complain for five minutes.  That usually wakes up the rest of my brain.

3. Get moving

Don’t just lay there.  Sit up.  Wiggle your toes.  Swing your legs over the edge of the bed.  Put one foot in front of the other.  Keep doing that until you find yourself actually running or exercising.

See you on the beach!

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