Things I love about morning workouts

This morning I got in the pool for the first time in 10 days. (See previous post about bike accident if you wonder why). As I stood at the end of the empty pool preparing to break its pristine surface I had to pause and stare at its beauty. It occurred to me that this beauty, the glass smooth water, the quiet hum of the pumps, the smell of the chlorine (or what ever chemical they use these days), this is one of the things that I love the most about morning workouts. I almost hated to mess it up with my thrashing and kicking, uh..I mean swimming.

It's not just the pool either. On the bike or out on a run I relish the quietness that comes with it. When I head out for a ride the air is calm and quiet, and all I can hear is the distinctive hum of the wheels spinning. It is mesmerizing and hypnotic. It is a sound like no other. When I get up at 5AM on a Saturday morning there is no one else down at the lake, in fact there is no one even awake yet. As I run a long I occasionally am greeted by a raccoon fishing in the lake or I hear the trickle of the water as it flows around the columns that hold up Congress bridge. All this is like therapy for me. The workout becomes just as much about my physical health as it does my mental health. I don't need the distraction of an ipod, the company of another human, or the television blaring while I ride my trainer. My morning workouts are calming and centering. You might say it is my form of meditation. There is nothing like it and I hope to keep it all to myself.