Getting up Early and Moving my Butt!!!

As part of my Health Blitz, this week I decided to swap 1 hour of sleep in the morning for 1 hour of working out.  So far, this hasn't been going so well.  It is much harder than I thought to drag myself out of bed in 5 degree 'heat' even though I know that within 10 mins I will be sweating up a storm and taking off my jacket. 

I would rather be doing this........

than this...........

But, if I want to look like this........(or something like it anyway)

Then I need to do this.................

Another thing that bugs me is that I know I feel so much better when I get up and move rather than lying in bed being kicked in the face by kids fighting over my iPhone.  So, today I went in search of some tips and I struck gold when I found exactly what I was looking for.......

A post called How to Workout in the Morning - thanks again Julie!!!

Here's a little snippet :

As I shifted my workouts to the morning, I found the transition easier by following these little tips:

• Commit to it: Your first morning workout will not be fun. You’ll be tired and cranky, but that’s okay! Don’t give up. General consensus says it takes around 21 days to make a habit. Commit to keeping up your morning workouts for 21 days and they will begin to feel like part of your routine.

• Schedule a Workout You Want to Do: For your first morning workout, schedule a workout you want to do. Don’t tackle sprints or a five-mile run on your first morning workout if this is the workout you dread the most!

• Revel in the Post-Workout Sense of Accomplishment: When your morning workout is over, make a mental note to remember how great it feels to have your workout done before the day really begins. Remember this feeling when the alarm goes off in the morning.

• Make it Easy on Yourself: Make getting to the gym in the morning as effortless as possible by laying out your workout clothes, filling up your water bottle and having your keys ready the night before.

• Enjoy that “I’d normally be at the gym right now” Feeling: When I switched my workout to the morning, I loved thinking “I’d normally be at the gym right now” around 5 p.m., when I would typically be working out. It made me appreciate the effort I put into getting my workout done earlier in the day.

It took Julie roughly 3 weeks to really love her early morning starts and continue it as part of her daily routine so I have decided to not give up trying and to just keep it going.  I imagine it will be a lot easier to get out of bed in the summer as well - not so warm and cosy.