Saturday Morning Run

 I usually stay up very late on Friday night.  It is the one night of the week that is followed by a morning when I can sleep in.  I often stay up until two or three AM, watching worthless television.  Even though I go to bed late, I'm still usually the first one up Saturday morning.  I feel rotten, but I'm up.  This past weekend was a little different.  I went to bed at a respectable hour because I planned to get up early and go running outside.

Morning running plans always sound great the night before.  Saturday's forecast was hot and humid.  Getting a run in early while it was still cool made perfect sense.  I knew, however, that I needed to make preparations the night before.  I've made weekend running plans before and I know how easily they can be derailed Saturday morning.  Can't find the "right" kind of socks?  Well, maybe I'll just skip the run this one time.  Forgot to charge the iPod?  Better watch TV instead.  The smallest of inconveniences can become reasons to remain planted on the couch or in bed.  This is all the more likely if you are already exhausted from a late night.  Thus, I went to bed early.

Saturday morning rolled around and the "I don't want to run" me rolled out of bed.  I trudged downstairs, my mind frantically trying to come up with a justification for lounging on the couch.  I remembered last night's preparation.  I knew that my running clothes awaited me in the basement bathroom.  No excuses there.  A thought occurred to me.  Maybe, the weather had already gotten warm and muggy.  If it was hot, it would be unwise for me to go out.  After all, the rest of my family was sleeping.  If I collapsed in the street, they wouldn't miss me for hours.  Such action would be irresponsible.  I stepped out on the back porch.  A gentle cool breeze greeted me.  I grimaced and went back inside.

I looked at the TV.  It was off but I could imagine its sharp HD quality picture.  There was probably something mildly interesting on.  Maybe if I watched something educational, it would be okay.  Exercise for the brain.  A part of me already knew that this was a really lame rationalization.  If I flopped on the couch, the laid-out running clothes in the basement would be there, waiting to shame me when I went to shower.  No, educational TV was not a replacement for my morning run.  Still, the TV beckoned. 

It then occurred to me that I should at least check the news.  I would hate to trot out my front door only to find that there was some sort of emergency and that people were being advised to stay inside.  I hadn't heard any sirens or anything, still it seemed prudent to at least check.  I cautiously sat down at the edge of the couch.  It felt good but I fought the urge to lean back.  I grabbed the remote, turned the TV on and quickly switched the channel to CNN before I got caught up in some other program.  Dr. Sanjay Gupta was hosting a medical show.  There were no scrolls about any sort of emergency.  Dr. Gupta was interviewing a man about the benefits of running barefoot.  They also discussed how good running was for you in general.  I sighed and I turned off the TV.

As it turned out, it was a beautiful morning for a run.