I awoke at 2:30 am. I had fallen soundly asleep at 9:15 the night before, but for some reason my body came to life hours earlier than I wanted it to. I decided to use the bathroom, hoping that maybe clearing my bladder would relax me. I crawled back into bed, and then it began.

No matter how hard I tried I couldn’t get comfortable, physically or mentally. My brain wouldn’t turn off, and my body wouldn’t relax. I tossed and turned forever. I knew my alarm would be going off at 5 am so I could get out for a run. That knowledge compounded the situation because every time I tried to relax my mind starting wondering how much longer I had left until the alarm would be sounding.

Finally, at 4 am I decided to get up and start my pre-run routine and hit the streets a bit earlier than I had planned. On the upside, it was an amazingly beautiful morning. The temps were very mild, and a light coating of crunchy ice/snow made my screw shoes feel useful. I didn’t run as fast as I should, but I enjoyed getting in a solid 6 miles.

It was a pleasant enough run that I had completely forgotten about the mere 5 hours of sleep the night before. That was until I turned into my parking lot and it all hit me. I grabbed a second cup of coffee after my morning check-in meetings and tried to keep busy throughout the day. I think tonight will be a very early bedtime.