4:30 AM...Time to Run!

Yes...you can say it...I am officially crazy! I woke up at 4AM on Sunday so that I could run at 4:30AM with friends. And...I was excited about it! :-)

It's been forever since I have woken up that early to run. For about the past 6 months I've had an unspoken rule that I would not wake up before 5AM to run. This girl loves her sleep! But with no official training happening right now...my motivation isn't what it used to be. So when my friends made plans to run on Sunday morning I couldn't resist. Now don't get me wrong...I complained and whined about having to go to bed early (I'm a night owl) so I could get up early. And when my alarm rang that annoying sound at 4AM I REALLY did not want to get out of my warm bed. But...I did it anyway. Because I knew if I didn't...I would regret it.

The weather was perfect for a run. The temps were in the low 50's. It is most likely our last little cold snap here on the Gulf Coast and I knew I wanted to take advantage of the cool air while it was here. There were about 10 ladies running that morning....so everyone had someone who ran the same pace as they did. No one had to run alone.

The first few miles went by fairly fast. We talked and laughed as we pounded the pavement. Even the hills didn't seem quite as bad since I had someone there conquering them with me. Before I knew it we were halfway through the run!

The route was one I hadn't run in a long time. It felt new. I get so tired of running the same routes over and over. I needed that change of scenery. We even ran through one of my favorite neighborhoods!

I was so busy enjoying the run and looking at all the beautiful houses in the neighborhood that we missed our turn! Luckily it didn't add too much to our mileage! I ended up finishing strong...and even wanted to keep running! I love it when runs like that happen!

7 hilly miles were conquered...and I felt amazing!!!

I ran in my new purple Pro Compression socks! I LOVE the color and they felt amazing during the run! I was excited to wear them because lately it has been too hot to wear compression socks on my runs. Sunday's weather was perfect!

I had forgotten how much I LOVE long slow runs! I had forgotten what it felt like to get in that groove where you feel like you could run forever! I had forgotten what it felt like to be sad that the run was finished. One thing I didn't forget...the amazing feeling of accomplishment after a good long run!

QOTD: Do you run in the morning or at night?